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Happy Cleveland Day! The case for celebrating July 22 with Mike Polk Jr.

Mike Polk Jr. on bringing back a celebration for the "birthday" of Cleveland.

CLEVELAND — I can’t begin to tell you guys how embarrassed I am that I just recently discovered that today is “Cleveland Day,” a legitimate holiday that commemorates the founding of our fair city. 

It’s true!

“Cleveland Day” was first proclaimed in 1906 by then Mayor Tom L. Johnson in a statement which read: 

 “Let us set apart one day a year in which the people of this city shall stop work, shall suspend business, get together and in unity glorify out past attainments and declare for future attainments.”

In other words, let’s throw a big party. So what happened? Why’d we stop celebrating this? To get some answers, I spoke to Case Western professor and Cleveland historian, Dr. John Grabowski about the history of our namesake Moses Cleaveland, and the diverse melting pot we have since fostered where Lake Erie meets the Cuyahoga River. 

If you want to learn more about Cleveland history - The Western Reserve Historical Society is reopening on July 24th - go pay them a visit, but remember to wear your mask!

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