North Royalton Historical Timeline
DATE | EVENT | |
|---|---|---|
| 1818 | Oct. 27th Became a Township Separated from Brecksville, First Doctor Henry Hudson ($2 house calls and $35 Baby Delivery) | |
| 1819 | First Church, May 1819, Baptist Reverand Henry Hudson | |
| 1820 | Stage Coach Line from Cleveland to Columbus Passed Through Royalton | |
| 1821 | First 4th of July Celebration | |
| 1824 | City Green/Triangle Bought from John Watkins (5-8 acres) | |
| 1825 | First Local Postmaster Appointed – Smith Ingalls | |
| 1827 | First Single Frame Dwelling – Jonathan Bunker First Store – 10 x 12 Log house – Royal Tyler | |
| 1828 | York Road Developed and First Baptist Church of Christ Organized with 11 members | |
| 1829 | First School Built and NR Christian Church Built | |
| 1830 | First Town Hall (log Cabin) Built in Center – Cost $78.50 | |
| 1834 | First Saw Mill was Built | |
| 1836 | Free Will Baptist Church(Records Lost)/United Methodist Church Founded | |
| 1837 | Abraham Teachout, Sr Arrived in Royalton Built Steam Saw Mill with Son | |
| 1840 | Population 1,051 | |
| 1845 | JW Edgerton Born (Grandfather of Lester Edgerton) | |
| 1847 | Clark Gibbs Bought Mill Privelege Ridge Rd South of Edgerton. John Shepard Died 1/3/47 at Age of 118 Years | |
| 1850 | First Free Will Baptist Stone Church Built, Rev. Hudson | |
| 1854 | St. Mary's Catholic Churh Organized | |
| 1855 | First Library in Ridge Road School – Thomas C. Coates First Librarian was Paid $11 Per year. Library Moved From School to School until 1945 | |
| 1859 | Empire Lodge I.O.O.F. Instituted July. Methodist Church Built | |
| 1866 | James Wyatt Opened Cheese Factory. First Voted Levy – $1 mil for Cemetary Purposes | |
| 1870 | New Town Hall Built – 2 Story Brick Building – $2,985. J.W. Edgerton Opened Wagon Repair & Blacksmith Shop in Center of Royalton | |
| 1881 | Royalton Township Became North Royalton | |
| 1884 | First Annual Farmers Picnic eventually became Homecoming | |
| 1894 | Harvest Home Picnic Assoc. Formed/Milk Producing Started to Decline | |
| 1904 | City Hall used as High School 1904 | |
| 1905 | First Paved Road – State Road – Bricks from Berea | |
| 1907 | First High School Built with Public Funds | |
| 1913 | Bandstand on City Green/Triangle Built | |
| 1919 | N.R. Included in Berea Telephone Exchange Service | |
| 1920 | 4-H Clubs Established | |
| 1923 | N.R. Received its Own Telephone Exchange Service. Football First Organized Sport in School System | |
| 1927 | NR Township Incorporated as a Village 4/4/1927 First Elected Mayor, E.C. McCombs Served 6 months | |
| 1928 | Harry Dixon Elected Mayor to Replace McCombs PTA Established | |
| 1929 | Baptist Church, grocery store and First Cemetary removed from City Green All but six graves were moved (Small Pox Victims). Progressive League of NR Formed | |
| 1930 | Lester Edgerton Elected Mayor | |
| 1931 | Clayton Akins Elected Marshal of NR | |
| 1932 | Basement of Town Hall Built – Wall Colapsed Requiring Replacement of Entire Structure | |
| 1937 | New Town Hall Built | |
| 1938 | First Dial Phones in Operation using Beacon 7 (237) | |
| 1940 | Populaton 2,549 | |
| 1941 | Dr George Rosenbaum Started Newsletter for Chamber of Commerce The Beginning of the Royalton Recorder | |
| 1942 | Girl Scouts Formed. Retarded Children's Classes Organized | |
| 1943 | Council Voted to Pay Volunteer Fireman $1 per Fire. They Were Summoned by a Siren Mounted on Roof of Town Hall | |
| 1945 | 1st Library (Branch of Cuyahoga County Public Library) Opened in City Hall Moved across street in 1950 | |
| 1946 | Band Boosters Organized. Football Stadium Added to High School. VFW Post #7494 Est. | |
| 1947 | Buffalo Pumper Fire Truck Purchased/Official Incorporation of Chamber of Commerce April 16th | |
| 1948 | House Numbers Were Assigned & City Hall Added Fire Station | |
| 1949 | High School Graduated 40 Students | |
| 1950 | Water and Gas Lines Brought into Village | |
| 1951 | Telephone Booth at Royalton Ridge Rds Monthly Commission $2.90 Considered a Sound Investment. Kiwanis Club Formed | |
| 1952 | New High School Dedicated, Loder's Shake Shoppe Opened | |
| 1953 | Beaconhill Florist Opened (Closed 2018)/Mason's Fellow Craft Club Lodge No. 749 Est. | |
| 1954 | Purchased 16 Acres on Albion for $7,900 – Elementary School Opened in 1956 | |
| 1955 | New Postage Zone 33 Given to Village Turnpike Was Constructed | |
| 1956 | Oct 1 Post Office Became First Class Brand of Cleveland Post Office | |
| 1957 | Royal Redeemer Church Formed (1/6/57) First Services in Town Hall/NR Blood Bank Established | |
| 1958 | Young Men Required to Register w/Selective Service or fined $1,000 and/or 5yrs in Prison/New Post Office Opened 7005 Ridge Road | |
| 1959 | NR HS had 2nd Largest Enrollment in County with 1500 Students & Royal Redeemer Church Opened & St Albert Founded/Jaycees Chartered | |
| 1960 | Cannon on City Green Dedication to Service Men/Women of NR (5/30) & High School Named E.E. Root | |
| 1961 | 1/14/1961 North Royalton Became a City – Population 9,290 with 2,761 homes/Athletic Boosters Formed/Friends of Library Formed | |
| 1962 | Board of Education Takes On Administration of Kindergarten- To Get State Funds/Camp Fire Girls Group Formed | |
| 1963 | New South Wing of City Hall under Construction | |
| 1964 | St Albert Opened on Wallings Rd (May) (Formerly met in H.S. Auditorium for Five Years)/Full Time Fire Department Created with Chief Dan Akins and 4 Firemen | |
| 1965 | Royal View Elementary School Opened Sept. | |
| 1966 | Art League Formed | |
| 1968 | Leonard J Hlavin Elected Mayor/Population 11,600/Sesquentennial Celebrated | |
| 1969 | Mayor Hlavin Receives First Telepone Book from Ohio Bell & Touch Tone Service Began. City Acquires Memorial Park From Chamber of Commerce | |
| 1970 | Royalton Car Wash Opens, Population 12,807 | |
| 1971 | Harlem Diplomats Played Faculty & Harry Loder Becomes Mayor | |
| 1972 | President Richard Nixon Stopped at Royalton and Ridge Road for 20 minutes | |
| 1973 | Shopping Mall Planned for York & Sprague | |
| 1974 | First Safety Town for Preschoolers at Valley Vista | |
| 1975 | Turn Right on Red (July 1)/1st Animal Warden Appointed/Sm Plane Crashes – Pilot Killed | |
| 1976 | NR Historical Society Established (Jan. 14, 1976)/Rennovation of Band Stand on City Green/Dedication of New Addition to High School | |
| 1977 | NR Historical Society First Museum Tour & Post Office moves to State Road/NR High School Hall of Fame Est.-1st Members 1978 | |
| 1978 | New Cuyahoga County Branch Library Dedicated on State Road/Building Band in Place for 180 Days to Study Storm Water & Drainage Issues | |
| 1979 | Lucile Heasley Becomes 1st Female Mayor | |
| 1980 | John Halak Becomes Mayor (Mayor Heasley passed away after 56 days in office) New Fire Station on Green Built | |
| 1981 | North Royalton High School Alumni Assoc. Formed. Cable T.V. Comes to NR. | |
| 1982 | Food Bank Established | |
| 1983 | Old NR Methodist Church Demolished | |
| 1984 | NR Animal Shelter is Opened | |
| 1985 | NR Tree City USA. Homestead Exemption Program Started | |
| 1986 | Gary Skorepa Elected Mayor | |
| 1987 | North Royalton Schools Enrollment 2,750 & NR Band Receives 1st Superior Rating at State Finals. Emergency 911 Service Began | |
| 1988 | NR HS Band Performs at Disney World | |
| 1989 | Memorial Trees Planted on City Green (Kromer, Brooks-Taylor, Fencl, Audeman, Harbeitner)/Ground Breaking for New Police Station | |
| 1990 | NR High School Champs on Academic Challenge | |
| 1991 | Sculptor Norbert Koehn – Life Size Mascot at High School & New Police Station Opens & First Holiday Lighting on the Green | |
| 1992 | Curbside Recycling Begins & Full Service Jail Opens in Police Station & Mandatory Seat Belt Fees ($25 & $15) | |
| 1993 | Clean Indoor Air Act Passed-Smoking Prohibited in Public places | |
| 1994 | Fisher Big Wheel Out Drug Mart In & Ground Breaking for New Middle School North of High School | |
| 1995 | Gary Barna Elected Mayor, Population 26,365 | |
| 1996 | ||
| 1997 | Senior Center on Ridge Road Dedicated 11/19/97. Area Code 440 Goes Into Effect 8/16/1997 | |
| 1998 | New Mount Royal Villa Building Opened | |
| 1999 | Cathy Luks Becomes Mayor, CVS Opens on Corner Ridge and 82 & Royal View has Bear Carved by Mike Ulrich | |
| 2000 | Methodist Church on Ridge Demolished, Population 28,648 | |
| 2001 | Dr. John Rosenbaum, Founder of Royalton Recorder Dies | |
| 2002 | Cell Phone Restriction, Meals on Wheels Begins | |
| 2003 | First Harvest Fest on City Green | |
| 2004 | Building on Corner Ridge/82 (Kaiser Gibson) purchased by City for Street Widening | |
| 2005 | Second Fire Station Opened York and Albion | |
| 2006 | Gazebo on City Green Demolished and Rebuilt | |
| 2007 | Robert Stefanik Elected Mayor & Royalton High School Celebrates 100 Years | |
| 2008 | City Purchases Land on Royalton Road West of Bennett $225,000 with $200,000 Grant from OH Dept of Natural Resources for Passive Recreation | |
| 2009 | Do Not Knock Registry & Cpl Jeffrey A Boskovitch Memorial Service – Died August 2, 2005 in Iraq War | |
| 2010 | NRHS Class Graduated 370 Students/Royal View A National Blue Ribbon School & Law Prohibiting use of Cell Phones | |
| 2011 | New Athletic Stadium Opened | |
| 2012 | New YMCA Opened on Wallings Road | |
| 2013 | New Library Officially Opens on Wallings Road (8/3) | |
| 2014 | New City Hall Opens(11/10) on State Road (Old Library) | |
| 2015 | Metro Parks Purchased 80 Acres (Timberlane Farms on Boston Road) to be included in Mill Stream Run Reservation | |
| 2017 | City Hall on Green Demolished (7/11) – Too Costly to Renovate | |
| 2018 | North Royalton Historical Society Purchases Land (13759 Ridge Road-Current Museum Location) from Methodist Church Association. Bicentennial Celebration Ball 8/4/2018 Carrie Cerinos | |
| October 27, 2018, NR Official 200th Birthday – Time Capsule Buried at the NR Historical Society | ||
| Note: Information in this timeline extracted from various sources deemed reliable but can not be guaranteed to be accurate. It is a work in progress that will be edited as new information is developed. Any questions or information to be considered for the timeline should be addressed to the North Royalton Historical Society. |
13759 Ridge Rd, North Royalton, OH 44133
Mail must be sent to:
P.O, Box 33181, North Royalton, OH 44133