The History of Cleveland

Did you know that the land which Cleveland is now on was once covered by a glacier? Next came a huge sea which was filled with sharks and fish. The sea eventually retreated, and plants (possibly even dinosaurs) inhabited our land. Later, Native American tribes came and made their homes on the land that is now Cleveland. Two of the tribes that lived on this land were the Erie Indians and the Iroquois Indians.

More about Cleveland before it was Cleveland . . .

Occasionally, trappers hunted in the Ohio country that was occupied by Native Americans. These trappers went back to the east and told the settlers how rich the land would be for farming, and what a great place it would be to build a city.

A company called the Connecticut Land Company had been given the Ohio country land by the King of England. The company decided they could make money by selling the land.

They sent a team of workers to survey, or measure and write maps of the land so it could be sold. The team of surveyors was lead by a man named Moses Cleaveland (can you guess where the name of our city came from?). When the surveyors came to this area (then called the Western Reserve), they saw something much different than we do today. Can you imagine what they saw?

A few settlers came to Cleveland as it was first being settled. There were some rough winters that early Clevelanders endured, but slowly the city began to grow and more people started moving here. Since then, the city has grown and prospered. Many famous people came from Cleveland, and some important events and inventions originated here!

More about Cleveland from the time of Moses Cleaveland's arrival . . .

Cleveland just celebrated its 200th birthday, and the city has lots to be proud of!

The city has great places to visit, lots of fun things to do,



many educational opportunities, an area with countless museums,

awesome places to eat, and wonderful people!


Look at Cleveland today. What is your favorite part of our city?

Resources for teaching Cleveland

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