Carbondale is an unincorporated community

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 in northwestern Waterloo Township

Waterloo Township, Athens County, Ohio

Waterloo Township is one of the fourteen townships of Athens County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 2,605 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the western part of the county, it borders the following townships:*York Township - north...

, Athens County

Athens County, Ohio

As of the census of 2000, there were 62,223 people, 22,501 households, and 12,713 families residing in the county. The population density was 123 people per square mile . There were 24,901 housing units at an average density of 49 per square mile...

, Ohio

Ohio

Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Although it is unincorporated, it has a post office

Post office

A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...

, with the ZIP code

ZIP Code

ZIP codes are a system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service since 1963. The term ZIP, an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, is properly written in capital letters and was chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly, when senders use the...

 of 45717. It is located a short distance north of State Route 56

Ohio State Route 56

State Route 56 is a west–east state highway in southern Ohio. Its western terminus is at SR 29 near Mutual, and its eastern terminus is at SR 682 in Athens.-Cities along route:* London* Mount Sterling* Circleville* Laurelville* South Bloomingville...

.

The town is located on Carbondale Creek, which flows into Hewett Fork just below the town. Hewett Fork is a tributary of Raccoon Creek

Raccoon Creek

Raccoon Creek may refer to:*Raccoon Creek, a tributary of the Coosa River in Alabama*Raccoon Creek , a tributary of the Etowah River*Raccoon Creek, a tributary of the Elm River...

, which is a tributary of the Ohio River

Ohio River

The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...

.

The name refers to the once-abundant coal resources in the hills and valleys surrounding the community. The area was extensively mined, with all mines closing years ago. The community is closely hemmed in by the Zaleski State Forest

Zaleski State Forest

Zaleski State Forest is the second-largest state forest in the U.S. state of Ohio, located primarily in Vinton County, with areas in Athens County as well. The 28,000 acre forest surrounds Lake Hope State Park in Vinton County, and extensively borders the Waterloo Wildlife Research Station in...

, including the Enderlin Forest just west of town, which includes one of the earliest large-scale white pine

Eastern White Pine

Pinus strobus, commonly known as the eastern white pine, is a large pine native to eastern North America, occurring from Newfoundland west to Minnesota and southeastern Manitoba, and south along the Appalachian Mountains to the northern edge of Georgia.It is occasionally known as simply white pine,...

 plantations in the state, and features the state's champion white pine tree.

Education

Public Education in the community of Carbondale is provided by the Alexander Local School District

Alexander Local School District

The Alexander Local School District is a public school district based in Albany, Ohio, United States.The school district includes all of Alexander and Lodi townships, most of Waterloo Township as well as a small portion of west-central Athens Township in Athens County...

. Campuses serving the community include Alexander Elementary School (Grades PK-5), Alexander Middle School (Grades 6-8), and Alexander High School http://www.alexanderschools.org/high_school (Grades 9-12).