Kate McLaughlin

The Township of Euclid, was one of the first communities to be established in the Western Reserve. A contract between Superintendent Moses Cleaveland and 41 employees of the Connecticut Land Company created the Euclid Survey Township. Euclid, named after the Greek mathematician, was incorporated as a township in 1809. The township consisted of more than 35 square miles of land. David Dille, a Virginia company lieutenant from the Revolutionary War, is credited as the founder of Euclid Township. He built a log cabin on the west bank of Euclid Creek. In those early years, the village was a farming community, subsisting on cash from crops of wheat and table grapes. The first industries were saltworks, sawmill, gristmill and ship building. In 1930, with a population of 12,753, Euclid officially became a city and Henry S. Pickands was elected the first mayor. A decade later, World War II brought sudden growth to the community. An influx on new industry began replacing the farmland. Euclid's city planners assured orderly growth by segregating commercial and industrial land from residential neighborhoods, becoming pioneers of modern zoning concepts. In 1994, the population of Euclid was 54,875. Today Euclid is known for its superior municipal services, excellent educational opportunities and quality of life.