Warsaw has been a thriving community since it was platted in 1834. The village was named for the capital of Poland in recognition of the struggle that country was undergoing for liberty.

When the Walhonding Branch of the Ohio and Erie Canal was completed in 1842, boats came bringing merchandise to exchange for farm produce and the flour that was ground at Warsaw's canal-water powered five story mill.

Many of the buildings in the village are monuments to the past. A canal era hotel on the corner of Main and Bridge Streets has been converted to apartments. There are elaborate homes that date from the Victorian period and more modest homes from the early 1900's. More recent housing developments have expanded the size of Warsaw from its original 32 lots to a current population of more than 800.

Before Mohawk Dam was constructed in the mid 1930's, the unpredictable Walhonding River that runs through Warsaw, put the village under water many times. Today, tamed by the dam, the river attracts canoers, campers, and fishermen. Ever since the canal era, cat fish have been a prize catch in these waters.

The Walhonding River is formed by the merging of the Kokosing and Mohican Rivers and lies completely within the boundaries of Coshocton County.

In 1901, Johnny Appleseed, Ohio's legendary apple seed planter, trod the 25 mile length of the Walhonding so there would be trees for the settlers when they came.