Civil War Cleveland

Soldiers and Sailors Monument

Amid the busy streets of downtown Cleveland stands the Soldiers and Sailors' Monument, built to honor the 10,000 Cuyahoga County residents who fought in the Civil War. Almost fifteen years after Major William J. Gleason first suggested the idea of honoring the bravery of these local Union…
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Old Stone Church

First Presbyterian Church, commonly referred to as the Old Stone Church, is located on the northwest quadrant of Cleveland's Public Square at the corner of Ontario and Rockwell Streets. Possibly Cleveland's best-known religious building, Old Stone Church is a symbol of the city's…
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Weddell House/Rockefeller Building

On February 15, 1861, the streets surrounding the Weddell House, as well as the windows, porches and even rooftops that looked upon the hotel, were dense with faces eager to see the newly elected president, Abraham Lincoln. Once inside his overnight lodgings on the corner of Superior Avenue and…
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The Academy of Music

On the evening of December 5, 1863, two thousand audience members at the Academy of Music enthusiastically applauded the acting of John Wilkes Booth. Little did they know that the actor who gave "his greatest performance" as Charles D'Moor in The Robbers would not be remembered for…
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Soldiers' Aid Society

Rebecca Rouse and the Local Care Campaign for Union Troops

The Soldiers' Aid Society of Northern Ohio grew out of Cleveland's Ladies Aid Society's efforts to assist soldiers serving in the Civil War. The parent organization of the Soldiers' Aid Society was the U.S. Sanitary Commission, which was established by the federal government in…
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Union Depot

Though the Cleveland Memorial Shoreway has since swallowed it up, Union Depot was a transportation hub for a century. Originally built in 1853, Union Depot unified the railroad stations into one area. Many passenger railroads passed through Union Depot, including the Cleveland-Erie-Buffalo, the…
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Abraham Lincoln in Cleveland

Remembering a Slain President

No other president stirred the imagination of the American public like Abraham Lincoln. From his humble beginnings to his dramatic death, Lincoln's life and times have seeped into the mythology of the country. His name, face and deeds are memorialized in hundreds of American cities, including…
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The Cyclorama

An Immersive Spectacle of the Pre-Film Era

In 1890, you would have encountered a large circular room called the Cyclorama tucked away off the lobby of the Lennox Building, located on the northeast corner of Euclid Avenue and Erie Street (now East 9th). In the nineteenth century, cycloramas were popular mass entertainment in the era before…
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Grays Armory

On May 30, 1893, patriotic melodies of the Grand Army Band of Canton could be heard coming from the corner of Bolivar Street and Prospect Avenue as an exciting celebration was taking place - the laying of the new Grays Armory cornerstone. Grays Armory was to be the new location of weaponry and…
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Erie Street Cemetery

The City's Oldest Existing Cemetery

On East 9th Street, enclosed by a 19th century iron fence and Gothic gateway, is the Erie Street Cemetery - the final resting place of some of Cleveland's most notable pioneers and combatants. Located right next door to Progressive Field, even the popular baseball stadium is easily forgotten…
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Woodland Cemetery

On June 14, 1853, Cleveland's mayor, city officials, clergy, and a few citizens gathered under a shady grove for the dedication of Woodland Cemetery. The flat but tree copious 60-acres used for the new burial ground had been purchased in 1851 and developed by Cleveland's city council to…
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John D. Rockefeller

In 1863, John D. Rockefeller encouraged fellow business partner, M. B. Clark to agree to a decision which would eventually lead to the creation of the multimillion dollar company Standard Oil. The duo financed and joined with chemist Samuel Andrews in starting the oil refining business Andrews,…
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Camp Cleveland

On November 24, 1862, in what was then University Heights and now is Tremont, Governor David Tod ascended a large hill to be greeted by a 15-gun salute from the 20th Ohio Independent Battery. The governor was here to inspect Camp Cleveland—the largest of Cleveland’s six Civil War training camps and…
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Camp Taylor

An Early Training Ground for Civil War Enlistees

Walking down Woodland Avenue in the spring of 1861, you would have come across a row of bayonet armed soldiers guarding Camp Taylor, a Civil War training facility for Union soldiers. It would have been hard to imagine judging from their stern faces and disciplined demeanors that these men had only…
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7th Ohio Volunteer Infantry

While no actual Civil War battles took place in Northeast Ohio, the role that its men played in the war was still a significant one. The 7th Ohio Volunteer Infantry, which is better know as the 7th OVI, was a heroic group of men from all over Northeast Ohio who served proudly in the American Civil…
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