The German Village Society, founded in 1960 with the foresight and hard work of a group of neighbors and friends, has acted as steward of the district’s architectural restoration and preservation efforts. Its original membership of 183 has grown to over 1,800 individuals and businesses who support the historic district. German Village, the internationally recognized historic district just blocks from downtown Columbus, Ohio is a 233-acre district on the National Register of Historic Places. Through it’s Visitor Center and tour program the German Village Society offers a glimpse of how a working class neighborhood developed and grew in the early nineteenth century and how the passion of a small group drove the twentieth century restoration efforts. All proceeds from the German Village Society events and programs help to support the preservation work of the Society. The German Village Society is a fountainhead for other communities wishing to save and preserve historic areas.