West of the Cuyahoga

George Condon

Description

A narrative history of Cleveland's West Side"In the beginning, two settlements straddled the Cuyahoga River at its northernmost reach, where it twists its way into Lake Erie. The older and larger of the two, Cleveland, was on the east bank. The younger community on the west bank was called Brooklyn Township, later to be known as the City of Ohio or, familiarly, Ohio City, and, ultimately, the West Side. The twain faced each other as rival entities for many years, divided not only by the waters of the river but by political, historical, and economic differences as well." -from West of the CuyahogaLongtime columnist for the Cleveland Plain Dealer, George E. Condon turns his keen reportorial eye to Cleveland's West Side, an area rich in history but too often overlooked in scholarly texts. In easy, polished prose, Condon regales the reader with stories of settlement, migration, and development, all the while bringing to life such characters as "Ice Wagon" Kilbane, whose legendary punch laid many West Side Irishmen low, and "Six O'Clock" Dorsey, said to have been the skinniest kid in the Old Angle neighborhood, and "Needles" McCafferty, who took his dinkey trolley sightseeing one memorable night.This seasoned newspaperman has been soaking up stray facts and vanishing information for more than five decades. Condon's voracious appetite for facts and a nose for where to find them bring alive this Cleveland history, engaging the reader with his authentic stories, humorous anecdotes, and fond perspective.West of the Cuyahoga fills a gap in the history of Cleveland, Ohio, and reveals the gleanings of a lifetime for a local journalist and raconteur.

Informations

• Publié par: The Kent State University Press
• Date de parution: 20 janvier 2014
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781631010392
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 7 Mo

Extrait

W estof the Cuyahoga

W e of s th t e c uyahoga

George E. Condon

the kentstateuniversity press Kent,Ohio

Frontis:West and East ofthe Cuyahoga in 1800.Sketches ofWestern LifebyHarvey Rice. Cleveland Public LibraryPhotograph Collection

© 2006 by The Kent State University Press, Kent, Ohio 44242 all rightsreserved Library ofCongress Catalog Card Number 2006000525 isbn-10: 0-87338-854-2 isbn-13:978-0-87338-854-2 ManufacturedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica

10 09 08 07 06

542 3 1

library of congress cataloging-in-publication data Condon, George E.  West ofthe Cuyahoga / by George E. Condon.  p. cm.  Includes bibliographical references. isbn-13:978-0-87338-854-2 isbn-10: 0-87338-854-2 1. West Side (Cleveland, Ohio)—History. 2. Cleveland (Ohio)—History. I. Title. f499.c66w472006977.1'32—dc222006000525

British LibraryCataloging-in-Publication data are available.

For my beloved wife, Marjorie Philona Condon

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Contents

Preface and Acknowledgments Introduction Once There Were Two The Connecticut Land Company Brooklyn Canals Carry New Life to the West The Clash of the Cities That First City Directory AForest of Steeples The Cuyahoga’s Bridges Opening a New Chapter The Changing Street Scene W. 25th Street—The Heart of Ohio City Franklin,Street of Dreams The Rhodes-Hanna Axis Marcus Alonzo Hanna The Wedding of the Century Tremont—An Old World Discovered Jewels in the Civic Treasury The Sights and Sounds ofCleveland Past Bibliography

ix xiii 1 9 17 26 34 45 51 62 72 84 90 103 113 123 137 145 152 165 171

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Preface and Acknowledgments

ds em i A tn thd.emearethwhert’sfinsistlogohceareappa dane ahT.dnuorgrednu Archaeologists will be the first to testify that cities, towns, andvillages,like their inhabitants, have a life of their own. Settle- s have their time on the scene, play out their role, and then, like the humanitythat created them,yield to the stresses of lif So do thehistorians.  In the opening decade of the nineteenth century, two opposing settlements lay on either side ofthe Cuyahoga River where itflows into Lake Erie. Cleveland on the east bank grew large and flourishes still. Its upstart competitor, Brooklyn (later the City of Ohio), on the west bank, gave cityhood a respectable run for glory before finally yielding to the benefits of unity and realistically quitting the race to merge with its rival municipality.  By that conclusive time, 1854, the twain had faced each other across the valley for close to a half-century, divided not only by the waters ofthe river but by political, social,historical, and economic differences as well. After the two became one, the world, always ready to side with a winner, diverted its attention from the west side of the Cuyahoga to the many other livelier happenings of that eventful time in history.

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