The History

1796 – Moses Cleveland crossed Lake Erie from Buffalo to establish a new lakefront city at the Cuyahoga River.

1818 – The first steamboat on Lake Erie arrived in Cleveland.

1829 – The first lighthouse was built on a bluff at Main Avenue and present-day West 9th Street.

1837 – Fueled by the work on the Ohio and Erie Canal system, Cleveland’s population grows to more than 6,000 people — 10 times its population in 1820.

1851 – The Cleveland, Columbus & Cincinnati Railroad opened the first Cleveland depot on the lakefront at West 9th Street.  By 1853, railroads had constructed six piers east of the Cuyahoga River.

1873 – The City purchased a narrow nine-acre parcel immediately south of the lakefront railroad tracks between West 3rd and East 9th streets.  Eventually this would become Lakeview Park.

1875 – The United States Congress authorized funds for the initial construction of a breakwater to protect the Cleveland harbor.

1896 – To resolve a dispute with the railroads, Mayor Robert McKisson and City Council authorized construction of a bridge in a single night to span the tracks at present-day West 3rd Street, which permitted access to “new” land created by filling on the north side of the railroads.

1913 – The East 9th Street pier opened to provide passenger ferry service between Cleveland, Detroit and Buffalo.

1931 – Cleveland Municipal Stadium opened on the shores of Lake Erie and, at the time, had the largest individual seating capacity (78,189 seats) of any outdoor arena in the world.

1936 – The Great Lakes Exposition was held in the summers of 1936 and 1937 on 135 acres of lakefront land extending from West 3rd to East 20th streets to celebrate the centennial of Cleveland’s incorporation as a city.  The exposition included industrial and historical exhibits, an art gallery, marine theater and horticultural gardens, which attracted seven million visitors.

1950 – The city’s population peaks to one million residents, and port business is thriving.

1959 – The St. Lawrence Seaway opens and quickly becomes one of the world’s greatest commercial waterways. The seaway stretches 2,342 miles from the heart of North America to the Atlantic Ocean, making it possible for large overseas ships to reach Cleveland from the Atlantic Ocean.

1960s – The City of Cleveland developed new international docks (Docks 28 to 32) north of Municipal Stadium for commercial maritime shipping.

1968 – The Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority was established to operate the Port of Cleveland.

1970s – The Port Authority purchased land from several entities between the mouth of the Cuyahoga River and West 3rd Street in anticipation of an ore dock for Republic Steel that ultimately was built in Lorain.

1976 – A World War II era submarine was brought to Cleveland and located at the west end of Burke Lakefront Airport for public tours.

1986 – The State of Ohio and the City of Cleveland began construction of a seven-acre inner harbor between Cleveland Municipal Stadium and East 9th Street.

1990 – The Steamship William G. Mather Museum became the first attraction at North Coast Harbor when this ship was permanently moored at the East 9th Street Pier.

1993 – The Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority penetrates the local financing arena when it creates the Development Finance Group to assist in the financing and construction oversight of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.

1995 – The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum opened at North Coast Harbor, attracting visitors from around the world.

1996 – George V. Voinovich Bicentennial Park was dedicated at the foot of East 9th Street.

1996 – The Great Lakes Science Center was dedicated to educating the region’s youth through hands-on exhibits.

1996 – The Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority began providing light rail service on the Waterfront Line from Tower City Center through the Flats Entertainment District, to North Coast Harbor.

1999 – Cleveland Municipal Stadium was demolished in 1996 to make room for the new Cleveland Browns Stadium on the same site, where the first game was played in August 1999.

2002 – Mayor Jane L. Campbell launches Connecting Cleveland: The Lakefront Plan to identify opportunities to improve access between Clevelanders and their waterfronts, including the downtown shoreline.

2005 – The City of Cleveland granted an agreement to the Goodtime III to dock in North Coast Harbor on the south side of Voinovich Park.

2009 – The Port Authority engages Ehernkrantz Eckstut and Kuhn to build from the 2004 conceptual plan and create a plan for the 100 acres site on the downtown lakefront.