Editing Strongsville, Ohio (section)

==History==
Founded by settlers arriving in the newly purchased [[Connecticut Western Reserve]], the city was named after John Stoughton Strong, the group's leader. He brought his oldest son, Emory Strong, his brother-in-law Elijah Lyman Sr., and Guilford Whitney, another relative of the Strongs. Along with Whitney came his daughter, her husband John Hilliard, and their daughter. Other pioneers in the group included William Fuller Jr., Obadiah Church, Zachariah Goodale, and George Fox Gilbert. They arrived in 1816 and cleared enough land to construct log cabins. The 25-square-mile area of land was surveyed and divided into lots for John Stoughton Strong to sell off by agreement with [[Oliver Ellsworth]] of Hartford, Connecticut. Strongsville officially became Township No. 5, 14th range on February 25, 1818.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Did You Know? |url=https://www.strongsvillehistoricalsociety.org/did-you-know-2.html |access-date=2024-12-12 |website=Strongsville Historical Society |language=en}}</ref> Strongsville then became a village in 1923 and was ultimately designated a city in 1961.

John Stoughton Strong, originally from Vermont, was instrumental in Strongsville's establishment and early growth. He drew in settlers from New York, Pennsylvania, and New England by driving cattle that he obtained to markets in those states. In the following years, he oversaw the development of settlements, roads, businesses, schools, and churches. He had the first mill built in 1820 on the Rocky River in Albion. While it is no longer standing, the dam and foundation still exist in what is now Bonnie Park. He also brought in settlers with specialized skills, such as Dr. William Baldwin as the town doctor.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Courey |first=Bruce M. |title=Strongsville (Images of America) |publisher=Arcadia Publishing |isbn=9780738541266 |publication-date=29 November 2006 |pages=7–8, 48}}</ref> The [[John Stoughton Strong House]] was added to the [[National Register of Historic Places]] on November 24, 1980.

Many of the main streets in the city are named after other principal figures and landowners from the city's history, e.g. Howe, Drake, Shurmer, and Whitney.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://interactive.ancestry.com/1127/31617_072090-00156|title=Atlas of Cuyahoga County, Ohio|year=1914|publisher=G. M. Hopkins Company|pages=50 (on page 41)|access-date=18 November 2013|location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania}}</ref>
[[File:Alanson Pomeroy House.jpg|left|thumb|A [[Heritage Documentation Programs|Historic American Landscapes Survey]] photograph of the Alanson Pomeroy House.]]
The Pomeroy House, built in 1847, was known as the Homestead for over a century. Alanson Pomeroy, the homeowner and prominent Strongsville resident, hosted members of the Congregational Church of which he was an active member, and opened his spare room to travelers. During the Civil War, the Homestead became a stop on the [[Underground Railroad]], where he concealed runaway slaves on his property. From this residence in Strongsville, the runaway slaves were taken to boats on the Rocky River for passage to Canada.<ref>{{Cite web | website=Ohio History Central | url=http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/entry.php?rec=3452 | title=Alanson Pomeroy | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120730115322/http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/entry.php?rec=3452 | archive-date=2012-07-30}}</ref> The [[Alanson Pomeroy House]] was added to the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in June 1975. After a few years of renovation, it opened as Don's Pomeroy House Restaurant & Pub in 1980. Guests can dine in the library, the old dining room, the study, or the parlor. The pub is located downstairs and the upstairs bedrooms now serve as private dining rooms.<ref>{{Cite web |title=History – Don's Pomeroy House – Strongsville, Ohio |url=https://donspomeroy.com/history/ |access-date=2024-12-10 |language=en-US}}</ref>

In 1853, [[John D. Rockefeller]]'s family moved to Strongsville. At the time, Rockefeller was only a child.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/timeline/rockefellers/|title=WGBH American Experience . The Rockefellers - PBS|website=[[PBS]] |access-date=1 September 2016}}</ref>

On April 11, 1965, an [[Fujita scale|F4]] tornado hit Strongsville; it was part of the [[1965 Palm Sunday tornado outbreak]].

=== National Register of Historic Places ===

* [[Alanson Pomeroy House]]
* [[John Stoughton Strong House]]
* [[Strongsville Town Hall]]
* [[Valerius C. Stone House]]