Donna Owens, director of the Ohio Department of Commerce, and Mark S. Roach, Stark County Treasurer, announced today that the department’s Division of Unclaimed Funds will be setting up its “Treasure Hunt” display at the Stark County Fair in Canton. The department will be hosted by the Treasurer's Office, whose booth will be located under the grandstand at the Fair.

The "Treasure Hunt" will be open on Wednesday, September 2 and Thursday, September 3 from 10 a.m. - 8:30 p.m. Fairgoers who cannot stop by on Wednesday or Thursday can visit Treasurer Roach's booth on the other days of the Fair to check their name against a computer printout of the Stark County unclaimed funds accounts. Also, this list is available for review during regular office hours at the Treasurer's Office at 200 Tuscarawas St. W., Canton.

The Treasure Hunt program gives thousands of Ohioans each year an opportunity to check their names for unclaimed funds. The division's outreach efforts helped the division return more than $21 million last fiscal year to current and former residents of Ohio.

"The division currently holds 51,105 unclaimed funds accounts worth $3,958,212 for current or former residents of Stark County," Director Owens said. "Residents from any county can stop by the Treasure Hunt to find out immediately if any of these funds belong to them."

Common sources of unclaimed funds include: dormant checking and savings accounts, forgotten rent and utility deposits, uncashed checks, undelivered stock certificates, uncashed insurance policies, forgotten layaway deposits, and safe deposit box contents.

Individuals who would like to check their names for unclaimed funds can also check the Internet or write to the Division of Unclaimed Funds at 77 South High Street, 20th Floor, Columbus, OH 43266-0545. Individuals who write to the Division should provide the full name to be researched, along with the Ohio counties in which the person may have resided. Unclaimed Funds Chief Jessie Baker encourages current and former Ohio residents to visit the Department of Commerce's Internet site at www.com.state.oh.us to check if they have unclaimed funds waiting to be claimed.

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The Ohio Department of Commerce’s Division of Unclaimed Funds is responsible for the safekeeping and return of monies designated as “unclaimed.” Forgotten monies from about 200,000 people and organizations are turned over to the state each year as the result of death, forgetfulness, or inadvertence. Other Commerce divisions enforce regulations regarding building and fire codes, financial institutions, real estate, securities, liquor and various other licensed professions and industries.