History of the West Park
Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Ohio
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by Gary Swilik
A vintage bank vault that once served the independent City of West Park now sits nearly forgotten at Cleveland City Hall in the Treasurer's office (room 115).
When West Park voted to become part of Cleveland on November 7, 1922, its public property, including a city hall building, two fire stations, and eight public schools, was turned over to Cleveland.
The former West Park City Hall at 15619 Lorain Avenue became the home of Cleveland's First District Police Station. In about 1977, when the police station moved to the present building on West 130th, the old city hall was torn down.
The safe, clearly labeled as West Park property, may have made the eight-mile trip to Cleveland City Hall at that time or even much earlier. In any case, we're lucky to have discovered a significant relic of our old city still in existence. It now serves only to store office supplies. Perhaps some way can be found for the old vault to return home and put on permanent, public display as a reminder of West Park's historic origins