History
The city got its name on July 22, 1796 when surveyors of the Connecticut
Land Company named an area in Ohio "Cleaveland" after Gen. Moses Cleaveland,
the superintendent of the surveying party, a month after white settlers had
signed a treaty with local Indians to acquire the land. Cleaveland laid out
the plan for the modern Public Square area before returning home. He never
visited the area again (The spelling of the city's name was changed to "Cleveland"
in 1831 when an "a" was dropped so that the name would fit a newspaper's
masthead.)
Though not initially apparent - the city was surrounded by swampland and the
harsh winters did not encourage settlement - the location proved
providential. The city began to grow rapidly after the completion of the
Ohio and Erie Canal in 1832, turning the city into a key link between the
Ohio River and the Great Lakes, and particularly once the city railroad
links were added. In 1837, the city, then located on the eastern banks of
the Cuyahoga River, nearly erupted into open warfare with neighboring Ohio
City, Ohio (since annexed) over a bridge connecting the two. As a half-way
point for iron ore coming from Minnesota across the Great Lakes and for coal
and other raw materials coming by rail from the south, the site flourished.
Cleveland also enjoyed its position as the major break-in-bulk center for
Ohio.
Cleveland became one of the major manufacturing and population centers of
the United States, home of numerous major steel firms. John D. Rockefeller
made his fortune there. By 1920, it was the 5th largest city in the country.
The city was also one of the centers of the national progressive movement,
locally headed by Mayor Tom L. Johnson
The city began to suffer in the post-World War II period, however, as
industries began to slump and the city suffered from serious white flight.
The city suffered from racial unrest in the 1960s, culminating in the 1968
riots in the Hough neighborhood. Its nadir is often considered to be its
default on its loans on December 15, 1978, when it became the first major
American city to enter bankruptcy since the Great Depression. It
subsequently became clear, however, that the city had been forced into
default by an attempt by local banks and the local electric provider to
force the city to sell off Cleveland Public Power.
The metropolitan area began to recover thereafter. The recovery in the city
has been uneven, however, with the strongest growth in the downtown area
near the Gateway complex - consisting of Jacobs Field and Gund Arena - and
near the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Many of the residential neighborhoods
remain troubled, and the public school system has suffered serious problems.
Economic development, retention of young professionals, and capitalizing
upon its Lake Erie waterfront are current municipal priorities.
Geography
Cleveland is located at 41°28'56" North, 81°40'11" West (41.482301,
-81.669718).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of
213.5 km˛ (82.4 mi˛). 200.9 km˛ (77.6 mi˛) of it is land and 12.5 km˛ (4.8
mi˛) of it is water. The total area is 5.87% water.
Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there are 478,403 people, 190,638 households, and
111,904 families residing in the city. The population density is 2,380.9/km˛
(6,166.5/mi˛). There are 215,856 housing units at an average density of
1,074.3/km˛ (2,782.4/mi˛). The racial makeup of the city is 41.49% White,
50.99% African American, 0.30% Native American, 1.35% Asian, 0.04% Pacific
Islander, 3.59% from other races, and 2.24% from two or more races. 7.26% of
the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There are 190,638 households out of which 29.9% have children under the age
of 18 living with them, 28.5% are married couples living together, 24.8%
have a female householder with no husband present, and 41.3% are non-families.
35.2% of all households are made up of individuals and 11.1% have someone
living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is
2.44 and the average family size is 3.19.
In the city the population is spread out with 28.5% under the age of 18,
9.5% from 18 to 24, 30.4% from 25 to 44, 19.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.5% who
are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 33 years. For every 100
females there are 90.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there
are 85.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $25,928, and the median
income for a family is $30,286. Males have a median income of $30,610 versus
$24,214 for females. The per capita income for the city is $14,291. 26.3% of
the population and 22.9% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the
total people living in poverty, 37.6% are under the age of 18 and 16.8% are
65 or older.
Sports and Leisure
Cleveland's sports teams include the Cleveland Indians (Major League
Baseball), Cleveland Browns (National Football League), Cleveland Barons (American
Hockey League), and Cleveland Cavaliers (National Basketball Association).
The Indians have a minor-league affiliate, the Lake County Captains, that
plays in the suburb of Eastlake.
Cleveland is also home to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which is located
downtown close to Lake Erie. The museum's building was designed by I. M. Pei.
In the 1970s a number of bands generally described as proto-punk or
post-punk were formed in Cleveland, including the Electric Eels, Rocket From
The Tombs and Pere Ubu.
The Great Lakes Science Center is located next to the Hall of Fame. Other
nearby attractions include the Steamship William G. Mather Maritime Museum,
a restored Great Lakes bulk freighter built in 1925, and the USS Cod, a
World War II submarine.
Five miles (8 km) east of downtown Cleveland is University Circle, a 500
acre (2 km˛) concentration of cultural, educational, and medical
institutions. These include the Cleveland Orchestra, one of the United
States major orchestras, and the Cleveland Museum of Art. Some of the other
institutions located in University Circle are the Cleveland Museum of
Natural History, the Cleveland Botanical Garden, the Cleveland Institute of
Art, the Cleveland Institute of Music, University Hospitals of Cleveland,
the Western Reserve Historical Society, and Case Western Reserve University.
The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, the Cleveland Playhouse and the Health
Museum of Cleveland are located nearby.
Industry and Politics
Cleveland is the corporate headquarters of many large companies such as
National City Corporation, Eaton Corporation, Forest City Enterprises,
Parker Hannifin Corporation, Sherwin Williams Company, and KeyCorp after
which the highest skyscraper in Cleveland is named (Key Tower). The
headquarters of OfficeMax is located in suburban Shaker Heights, and
Progressive Insurance is headquartered in suburban Mayfield Village, Ohio.
Cleveland is also a major contributor to the automotive industry in Detroit.
The Ford Motor Company has an assembly plant here.
Two of the city's mayors, Dennis Kucinich, who was mayor from 1977 to 1979,
and George Voinovich, who was mayor from 1979 to 1989, became nationally
powerful politicans, serving in the United States House of Representatives
and the United States Senate, respectively.
The current Mayor of Cleveland is Jane Campbell
Mass transit
Cleveland currently has a mass transit system consisting of two light rail
lines and one heavy rail metro line, officially named Cleveland Rapid
Transit, but better known as The Rapid. The light rail lines are all that
remain of the city's once-extensive streetcar system. The metro was extended
to Hopkins International Airport in 1968 -- the first airport-to-mass-transit
link in North America.
The Rapid and local bus lines are owned and administered by the Greater
Cleveland Regional Transit Authority.
Colleges and Universities
Baldwin-Wallace College (Berea, Ohio)
Case Western Reserve University
Oberlin College, (Oberlin, Ohio)
Cleveland College of Jewish Studies (Beachwood, Ohio)
Cleveland Institute of Art
Cleveland Institute of Music
Cleveland State University
Myers University
John Carroll University (University Heights, Ohio)
Notre Dame College (South Euclid, Ohio)
Ursuline College (Pepper Pike, Ohio)
Two-year colleges
Cuyahoga Community College
Lakeland Community College
Airports
Burke Lakefront Airport
Cuyahoga County Airport
Hopkins International Airport
Additional sites of interest
Terminal Tower
Cleveland Public Library
St. John's Cathedral
Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland
Jacobs Field
Gund Arena
Cleveland Browns Stadium
Metroparks Zoo
Dunham Tavern
Cleveland Arcade
West Side Market
The Warehouse District
Cleveland Museum of Art
Cleveland Public Library
Famous Natives
Drew Carey
Paul Newman
Steve Harvey
Gerald Levert
Arsenio Hall
Phil Donahue
Jim Backus
Burgess Meredith
Dorothy Dandridge
Henry Mancini
Joel Grey
Ruby Dee
Margaret Hamilton
