Ohio's second-largest city extends 50 miles east and north along the shore of Lake Erie and 25 miles south inland. It is a combination of industrial flats, spacious suburbs, wide principal streets, and an informality due partially to its diverse population. Many nationalities have contributed to its growth—Poles, Italians, Croats, Slovenes, Serbs, Lithuanians, Germans, Irish, Romanians, Russians, and Greeks. Formerly, the various national groups divided regionally, but this is less true today.

Cleveland has more than 600 churches, 11 colleges, one metropolitan newspaper, and several suburban weeklies, as well as a progressive independent mayor-council form of government. A transportation crossroads and a big steel, electrical, and machine tool center, the city also serves as home to the famed Cleveland Clinic.

Cleveland's history has been peppered with industrial giants--John D. Rockefeller, the Mathers of iron and shipping, Mark Hanna of steel and political fame, the Van Sweringens, and others. The village, founded by Moses Cleaveland, profited from the combination of Great Lakes transportation and fertile country. At the time, northern Ohio was still almost entirely unoccupied; growth was slow. Not until 1827, when the Ohio Canal was opened to join Lake Erie with the Ohio River, did the town start to expand. Incoming supplies of coal and iron ore led to the manufacture of locomotives and iron castings. Before the Civil War, the city had surpassed Columbus in population to become the second largest in the state and was changing from a commercial to an industrial center. The boom era after World War I saw the birth of Shaker Heights, one of the more affluent suburbs; the Terminal Tower Group of buildings downtown; and the Group Plan, with civic buildings surrounding the central mall.

The layout of the city is systematic. All the main avenues lead to the Public Square (Tower City Center), where the Terminal Tower is located. The east-west dividing line is Ontario Street, which runs north and south through the square. The north and south streets are numbered; the east and west thoroughfares are avenues, with a few roads and boulevards. Euclid Avenue is the main business street running through Cleveland and many of its suburbs. Many of the early buildings have been razed and replaced by planned urban architecture, while other buildings are being restored. "Millionaire's Row" and the magnificent mansions on Euclid Avenue are all but gone. The Cuyahoga River Valley, where refineries, oil tanks, and steel mills once made many fortunes, now is known for its entertainment and dining area. The 39 city parks and 17,500 acres of metropolitan parks are still a tribute to what was once called "forest city." Cleveland is also home to many universities, including Case Western Reserve, John Carroll, and Cleveland State.