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History · Cleveland

Cleveland’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold no old photos of Cleveland. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.

0old images & papers
0recent photos

The story so far

from Wikipedia & the U.S. Census

Cleveland is a village in Henry County, Illinois, United States. The population was 163 at the 2020 census.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 188 to 163 (-13%). Half of its homes were built before 1972.

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Cleveland yet — the old photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Intro from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Population and housing: U.S. Census Bureau.

Be one of the first

Start Cleveland’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Cleveland’s history is told.

0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Famous people from ClevelandWriters, athletes, leaders and more who were born in Cleveland.Meet them →
By decade

Cleveland, decade by decade

Before
2000
No old photos in the archives yetWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your album
National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Cleveland is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Cleveland has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Black's Store in Hampton, 6.3 miles away.

Cleveland and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Cleveland. Tap a dot.
Black's StoreDawley HouseJohn Smith HouseJames Gamble HouseJacob Suiter HouseWilliam Suiter House

Closest to Cleveland

Black's StoreHampton · Building6.3miDawley HouseLe Claire · Italianate6.6miJohn Smith HouseLe Claire · Building6.7miJames Gamble HouseLe Claire · Italianate Palazzo6.7miJacob Suiter HouseLe Claire · Italianate6.7mi

How a place gets listed

1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Black's Store’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Cleveland?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Cleveland’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old place
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons

Then & now

When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Colona📜 Hanna📜 East Moline📜 Carbon Cliff
We left the porch light on

Where to, neighbor?

You’re in Cleveland, ILView boundary

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01
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