The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
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City started off as Dover Township in 1811
The city of Westlake has certainly grown from its inception as Dover Township in 1811.
The bustling metropolis actually got its start the year prior when two families arrived via oxcart to build homesteads in what was then known as Township 7, Range 15, of the recently created Western Reserve, according to the city’s website.
The families settled in what would become Bay Village, but by the next year Leverett Johnson, a member of one of those two families, began clearing the land that would become Westlake.
From there, the area began to fill with settlers until on July 20, 1901, when Bay Village spun off, according to Westlake Porter Public Library Local History Librarian Chad Statler.
“So there’s a split there between Dover and Bay Village,” he said, citing a book in the library’s local history collection. “It says something about them not wanting to support.”
He said another 4.5 miles of Dover Township was given to the newly developing area of North Olmsted when it was incorporated into a village in 1908.
But how did Dover Township become Westlake? According to Statler’s research it was the fault of the U.S. Postal Service.
Citing the book “You’ve Come a Long Way Westlake” by William M. Robishaw, Statler said that Dover was an incredibly popular name for communities across the country. The 1850 U.S. Census showed 17 different municipalities with the name and five of those were in Ohio.
In 1915, the post office pushed the Cuyahoga County Dover to change its name, but there was local pushback on that effort.
The leader of a local Dover lodge, possibly a Freemason group, wrote to the post office saying they did not approve of the change and threatened to close the post office down rather than change, Statler said.
But there was no denying the duplicated names led to some confusion.
Citing the book, Statler said that in 1929 Dover Township, in Cuyahoga County, ordered a new fire engine which was delivered to one of the other Dovers instead. Not to mention a large amount of local mail ended up in the wrong Dover as well.
“By 1940 they get around to (changing the name),” he said.
This was done by the popular consent of the residents who chose Westlake, then a village, over the other options of Clague
Park, Claguewood and Park Ridge, according to the city’s website which cites a 1939 Plain Dealer article.
From there the city grew exponentially, shooting up to nearly double its population in 1950 from where it was in 1900. By 1960 it had jumped an additional 162 percent from the population it had in 1950. In 1957, Westlake was designated a city, according to its website.
For those who would like more information on the history of Westlake, Statler recommends a visit to the local history section of the Westlake Porter Public Library, 27333 Center Ridge Road.
“We have several shelves dedicated to materials that are generally specific to Westlake and its history, and then the western part of Cuyahoga County, then Cleveland more in General and then Northeast Ohio,” he said.
The library also has a large collection of historical photos online at http://history.westlakelibrary.org/. Another resource is the Westlake Historical Society, 1371 A Clague Road in Westlake.
“We have several shelves dedicated to materials that are generally specific to Westlake and its history, and then the western part of Cuyahoga County, then Cleveland more in General and then Northeast Ohio”
— Westlake Porter Public Library Local History Librarian Chad Statler.