An English immigrant, George Howlett (1825-1892), acquired the Burton House in 1861. In addition to owning a successful ornamental painting business, Howlett was politically active on the South Side of Cleveland in the late nineteenth century. He was a member of the Cleveland school board, ran for several other elected offices, and was a leader of the neighborhood campaign to curb the pollution of Walworth Run caused by nearby breweries, stockyards and oil refineries. Shown above is a portion of his letter to the editor which appeared in the Plain Dealer on September 8, 1890.
Image courtesy of Cleveland State University, Michael Schwartz Library, Special CollectionsDownload Original File
