I have never been an official tour guide of Cleveland, but I am donning my the hat of one because the upcoming Republican National Convention set for this city is a prime time to show off what my hometown has to offer. I figure the political party officials, delegates, members of the media, and others who will be here for the convention can learn a little about Cleveland in between their business sessions.
The expected 50,000 people from around the nation and the world need to know Cleveland is situated on an inland sea -- Lake Erie, one of the five sisters of the Great Lakes family. Together, the family provides 21 percent of the freshwater in the world. That was one of the reasons Connecticut surveyor Moses Cleaveland (yes, that's the correct spelling of his surname) in 1796 ventured to this part of what was called the Western Reserve.
Conventioneers can see a state of Cleaveland in Public Square, which is in the heart of the city settlers named after him. By the way, old Moses must have done a very good job for the people because after 30 days, the folks named their little settlement Cleveland (dropping the "a" for some reason or another). Since then, Cleveland grew by huge numbers. Its situation on the shores of Lake Erie and the banks of the Cuyahoga River made it a transportation and commerce center for the nation.
By 1900, one-sixth of all the millionaires in the world lived in Cleveland. Obviously, Cleveland was a money-generating city. In fact, the world's first billionaire -- John D. Rockefeller, who began the Standard Oil Company -- was a Clevelander. His body is buried in Lake View Cemetery. So is the body of President James A. Garfield, who was a Republican from Ohio who won his party's nomination for president in the 1880 Republican convention which was a contested one (sound familiar?).
Anyone visiting Cleveland who wants to know more about the city should visit the Cultural Gardens, a federation of gardens where each represents an ethnic group which helped build Cleveland and the nation. The Cultural Gardens are on two thoroughfares -- Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and East Boulevard -- which run from Lake Erie to University Circle.
In University Circle, home of Case Western Reserve University, there is an abundance of museums which are worth the visit. In fact, there are more museums and cultural institutions in one square mile of University Circle than anywhere else in the world. Museums include The Cleveland Museum of Art, Natural History Museum, Museum of Contemporary Art, and Botanical Gardens. Other institutions include the Institute of Art, Institute of Music. There are also three world-class hospitals -- Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals, and the Cleveland Louis Stokes VA Medical Center.
Throughout the area, there are fountains, historic churches, lagoons, and floral displays.
I am not an official tour guide, but I have lived in Cleveland most of my life and I have learned these places to be exciting, entertaining, and informative. They should be on any visitor's "must see" list.
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