JONES HOME HISTORIC DISTRICT Cleveland, Ohio 44109, USA February 17th, 2012

HISTORY OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD

The area was originally part of the Western Reserve, surveyed by the Connecticut Land Company into part of what became Brooklyn Township in 1818. The earliest settlers of the area west of the Cuyahoga River were the Brainard and Fish families, who settled here in 1812. The lands were developed early in the nineteenth century into farmsteads, with a row of farms facing onto both sides of what is now West 25th Street. David Jones arrived in 1831 from New Jersey with his wife Cynthia and family, including son Carlos Lloyd Jones and developed a farm on this site. In 1867, as Cleveland extended to just south of Clark Avenue, Brooklyn Village was incorporated, with the Jones Farm sitting on its northern end. In 1872 a plat was entered for the northern portion of the former Jones farm that marked the initial development of the district into a residential community. By 1874 the farmstead was subdivided in a series of plats that all followed the same plan as the original allotment, with fairly broad streets and spacious lots with alleys in the rear.

DISTINCTIVE PLANNING AND HOUSING QUALITY

The district is significant for its distinctive street pattern of wider streets, compared to the surrounded area, spacious lots and rear lot line alleys that combined with the Jones Home for Children and its spacious park-like setting to stimulate the development of a turn of the century middle class residential neighborhood that survives largely intact today. District planning was influenced by the streetcar, as the streets were laid out east-west for better access to the streetcar lines along Pearl and Fulton Roads. The streetcars also enabled industrial activity to be located further from the residential community, unlike neighborhoods to the north where factories were often built within walking distance of residences. The properties within the district are a microcosm of well-preserved examples of American architectural styles during its period of significance, from 1872, when the area was first subdivided, through World War I, when the area was completely developed. The neighborhood is focused around four streets: Woodbridge, Marvin, Daisy and Library Avenues. The significance of this neighborhood lies in its overall ambience and its relationship to the Jones Home for Children, a major architectural landmark on Clevelands west side as its centerpiece. Most of the houses in the district are of Colonial Revival in style with Queen Anne and other styles interspersed throughout. There are 745 structures listed within the District with 695 contributing and 50 non-contributing buildings.

THE NOMINATION PROCESS

The process for nomination of the district started in 1994 when the former Clark-Metro Community Development Corporation hired Steve McQuillin, of Steve McQuillin and Associates, to identify potential National Register Historic Districts within its service area. Of three potential districts the consultant identified, the Jones Home Subdivisions Historic District gained the most favor. Others involved in the process included former Councilwoman Helen K. Smith, Cleveland Landmarks Commissioner Robert Keiser, and neighborhood residents. In 2008 a neighborhood resident worked with the consultant to update the application, and in 2011 Councilman Cummins had the new Stockyards, Clark-Fulton & Brooklyn Centre Community Development Office put the finishing touches on the document for final submittal. The updated application was approved by the Ohio Historic Preservation Office and forwarded and approved by the National Park Service on February 17th, 2012, making the new district official on the National Register of Historic Places. The new National District designation and recognition coincides with the larger Brooklyn Centre areas bicentennial celebration of the original settlements founding. Events for the Brooklyn Centre bicentennial are being planned for the weekend of August 10th and will include a historic home tour which will include structures located in the new Jones Home District.

DISTRICT BOUNDARIES - The District is bounded on the: north by the rear lot lines of the properties on the north side of Woodbridge Avenue; east by West 25th Street; south by the rear lot liens of the properties on the south side of Library Avenue; and, west by a line formed by West 39th Street at daisy south to the southern boundary line, and, northward from Daisy, by the rear lot lines of the properties on the east side of Fulton Road.