Shaker Heights, Ohio
Encyclopedia
Shaker Heights is a city
in Cuyahoga County
, Ohio
, United States
. As of the 2010 Census
, the city population was 28,448. It is an inner-ring streetcar suburb
of Cleveland
that abuts the city on its eastern side.
, the city has a total area of 6.3 square miles (16.3 km²), consisting of 6.3 square miles (16.3 km²) of land and 0.04 square mile (0.1035995244 km²) of water.
Shaker Heights is roughly 1,050 feet (320 m) above sea level
, and is located about six miles (10 km) inland from Lake Erie
. Shaker Heights is drained by the Doan Brook watershed, and has several small artificial lakes: Horseshoe Lake, Green Lake, Lower Shaker Lake, and Marshall Lake. Horseshoe Lake and Lower Shaker Lake had been dammed by the Shakers, while developers added Green Lake and Marshall Lake, the latter named after drugstore chain owner W. A. Marshall, at a later point.
(Koppen climate classification
Dfa), which is similar to much of the midwest United States
. This climate has very warm, humid summers and cold, snowy winters. The Lake Erie
shoreline is very close to due east-west from the mouth of the Cuyahoga River
west to Sandusky
, but at the mouth of the Cuyahoga it turns sharply northeast. This feature is the principal contributor to the lake effect snow
that is typical in Shaker Heights weather from mid-November until the surface of Lake Erie freezes, usually in late January or early February. Seasonal totals approaching or exceeding 100 inches (2,540 mm) are not uncommon because Shaker Heights is found in an area known as the "Snow Belt
", extending from the east side of Cleveland proper through the eastern suburbs and up the Lake Erie shore as far as Buffalo, New York
. Despite its reputation as a cold, snowy place in winter mild spells often break winter's grip with temperatures sometimes soaring above 68 °F
(20 °C).
The all-time record high in Shaker Heights of 104 °F
(40 °C) was established on June 25, 1988, and the all-time record low of −20 °F (−29 °C) was set on January 19, 1994. On average, July is the warmest month with a mean temperature of 71.9 °F (22.2 °C), and January, with a mean temperature of 25.7 °F (−3.5 °C), is the coldest. Normal yearly precipitation
based on the 30-year average from 1971 to 2000 is 38.7 inches (930 mm).
's older inner-ring or "first" suburbs, and borders Cleveland
, Cleveland Heights
, University Heights
, Beachwood
, Highland Hills
, and Warrensville Heights
. Shaker Heights is a member of the Northeast Ohio First Suburbs Consortium.
Shaker Square
is in the city of Cleveland, though, in an arrangement dating to the late 1920s, is in the Shaker Heights City School District.
, there were 29,405 people, 12,220 households, and 8,040 families residing in the city. The population density
was 4,685.0 people per square mile (1,807.9/km²). There were 12,982 housing units at an average density of 2,068.4 per square mile (798.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 59.94% White, 34.11% African American, 0.06% Native American, 3.16% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.50% from other races
, and 2.22% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.15% of the population. By 2010, the estimated percentage of Asians in Shaker Heights was 4.7%, the seventh-highest percentage for cities in Ohio, and the third-largest percentage for cities in Cuyahoga County. About 93.5% of residents speak English
natively at home, while 1.6% speak Spanish
, 1.2% speak French
, 0.7% speak Chinese
, and 3.0% speak another language, including German
, Russian
and Arabic
.
There were 12,220 household
s out of which 32.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.1% were married couples
living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.2% were non-families. 30.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 3.00.
In the city the population was spread out with 26.2% under the age of 18, 5.3% from 18 to 24, 27.4% from 25 to 44, 25.5% from 45 to 64, and 15.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 83.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $63,983, and the median income for a family was $85,893. Males had a median income of $61,768 versus $38,606 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $41,354. About 5.3% of families and 6.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.1% of those under age 18 and 6.5% of those age 65 or over. According to a 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the city had risen to $68,793, and the median income for a family had risen to $93,380. About 6.1% of families and 8.6% of the population were below the poverty line.
Shaker Heights was incorporated
as a village
in 1912. The name "Shaker Heights" has origins in two local sources. The community was laid out on land formerly owned by the North Union Community of the United Society of Believers, more commonly known as Shakers
. "Heights" refers to the plateau
east of Cleveland that rises sharply in elevation from 582 feet above sea level at the base of the Cedar Glen Parkway rising to 950 feet above sea level in nearby Cleveland Heights
; Shaker Heights' elevation is 1050 feet above sea level.
Ralph Russell established the North Union Settlement in 1822 with just over 80 individuals. In 1826, the group dammed Doan Brook, thus creating the Lower Lake and establishing a gristmill
and a sawmill
. Later, in 1854, the community built a second dam creating the Upper Lake, and constructed another mill. Also called 'The Valley of God's Pleasure', the colony peaked around 1850 with about 300 settlers. As the Shakers practiced celibacy
, the colony faded away and was closed in 1889. In 1905, the land was bought by brothers M.J. and O.P. Van Sweringen
who envisioned the first garden styled suburb
in Ohio for the site. The brothers constructed homes, set aside land for churches and schools, and planted trees. Originally referred to as Shaker Village, the community was incorporated in 1912 and reached city status in the 1931. Shaker Heights is known for its stringent building code
s and zoning
laws, which have helped to maintain the community's housing stock and identity throughout the years. Approximately seventy percent of the city of Shaker Heights is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
as Shaker Village Historic District.
The Van Sweringens acquired the New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad
(Nickel Plate Road) in order to secure the right of way needed to establish a rapid transit
interurban streetcar system that would carry residents of Shaker Heights to and from downtown Cleveland
. The resulting system was known as the Shaker Heights Rapid Transit. The Rapid Transit system was transferred into the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority
(RTA) in the 1970s, which combined the operation of all bus systems in the county with the operation of the Shaker and Cleveland Transit System west side rapid lines. Shaker Heights and Greater Cleveland
refer to the system and to the trains as "The Rapid Transit", "Rapid" or "Shaker Rapid". While originally envisioned to extend from downtown Cleveland fourteen miles to the community of Hunting Valley
(then called Shaker Estates), the system expansion ended at Green Road in eastern Shaker Heights following the collapse of the Van Sweringen rail empire during the Great Depression
.
Efforts toward integration began in the late 1950s with neighbors in the Ludlow Elementary School area working together to make integration successful. As a result, Shaker Heights avoided many of the problems created from practices such as blockbusting
and white flight
. In 1986, the city began a Fund for the Future of Shaker Heights, offering loans for down payments for residents buying homes in segregated neighborhoods, creating multi-ethnic neighborhoods. Today, the city maintains a housing assistance office that works with home buyers to achieve and maintain neighborhood integration. In August 2004, the story of early integration efforts in Shaker Heights was subject of The Reunion, an ABC News
special produced by Paul Mason
. Mason, now a senior vice president of ABC News, was a student at Ludlow Elementary School when residents, including his parents, moved forward with their efforts to make neighborhood integration a community project.
Shaker Heights was a finalist for the All-America City Award
in 1989.
provides for a mayor
and seven members of a city council
, elected on an at-large, non-partisan basis for four years. The current mayor of Shaker Heights is Earl Leiken. The last mayoral and council elections being in 2007, the mayor and four council members selected in one election and three council members at the following, in a way to stagger terms.
The Neo-Georgian
city hall, designed by Charles Schneider
, was built in 1930.
Shaker Heights is entirely within the Eleventh Congressional District
, a seat in the House of Representatives
currently held by Marcia Fudge.
s, Fernway, Mercer, Boulevard, Lomond and Onaway; an upper elementary school, Woodbury Elementary School; Shaker Heights Middle School
; and Shaker Heights High School
. The district estimates that roughly 90% of Shaker graduates attend college, and has been recognized for its efforts to increase neighborhood integration
. In the 1950s, the public school system was rated in the top ten nationally. In recent years, however, the school district is no longer top rated. According to the 2007-2008 State of Ohio Report Card, Shaker scored 97.1 out of a possible 120. The district is listed as "Effective," the third tier on a 6 tier scale. On the other hand, since 1995, 9-17% of seniors at Shaker Heights High School
have been recipients of National Merit Scholarship awards
, and in 2008, the high school had twice as many National Merit Scholarship winners as any other public school in the state. This can possibly be explained in a 2009 survey of the school, which said that Shaker Heights High School "is really two schools – one school with students in an outstanding Advanced Placement program and one school with students with academic needs."
Private schools in the city include Laurel School
, Hathaway Brown School
, and the lower campus of University School
. There is also a parochial school
in Shaker, St. Dominic School.
John Carroll University
is partially located in Shaker Heights, with the university owning several residential and commercial properties in the city. Additionally, Shaker Heights is in close proximity to University Circle, which is home to Case Western Reserve University
, The Cleveland Institute of Art
, and the Cleveland Institute of Music
.
for CBS
affiliate WOIO
, channel 19, which has its studios and offices in Cleveland.
Shaker Heights news appears in the Cleveland daily newspaper, The Plain Dealer. The Sun Press
, a weekly, provides local coverage of Shaker Heights and neighboring Beachwood
, Cleveland Heights
, and University Heights
.
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
in Cuyahoga County
Cuyahoga County, Ohio
Cuyahoga County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. It is the most populous county in Ohio; as of the 2010 census, the population was 1,280,122. Its county seat is Cleveland. Cuyahoga County is part of Greater Cleveland, a metropolitan area, and Northeast Ohio, a...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. As of the 2010 Census
United States Census, 2010
The Twenty-third United States Census, known as Census 2010 or the 2010 Census, is the current national census of the United States. National Census Day was April 1, 2010 and is the reference date used in enumerating individuals...
, the city population was 28,448. It is an inner-ring streetcar suburb
Streetcar suburb
A streetcar suburb is a residential community whose growth and development was strongly shaped by the use of streetcar lines as a primary means of transportation. Early suburbs were served by horsecars, but by the late 19th century cable cars and electric streetcars, or trams, were used, allowing...
of Cleveland
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
that abuts the city on its eastern side.
Topography
Shaker Heights is located at 41°28′35"N 81°33′6"W. According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 6.3 square miles (16.3 km²), consisting of 6.3 square miles (16.3 km²) of land and 0.04 square mile (0.1035995244 km²) of water.
Shaker Heights is roughly 1,050 feet (320 m) above sea level
Above mean sea level
The term above mean sea level refers to the elevation or altitude of any object, relative to the average sea level datum. AMSL is used extensively in radio by engineers to determine the coverage area a station will be able to reach...
, and is located about six miles (10 km) inland from Lake Erie
Lake Erie
Lake Erie is the fourth largest lake of the five Great Lakes in North America, and the tenth largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has the shortest average water residence time. It is bounded on the north by the...
. Shaker Heights is drained by the Doan Brook watershed, and has several small artificial lakes: Horseshoe Lake, Green Lake, Lower Shaker Lake, and Marshall Lake. Horseshoe Lake and Lower Shaker Lake had been dammed by the Shakers, while developers added Green Lake and Marshall Lake, the latter named after drugstore chain owner W. A. Marshall, at a later point.
Climate
Shaker Heights has a humid continental climateHumid continental climate
A humid continental climate is a climatic region typified by large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot summers and cold winters....
(Koppen climate classification
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by Crimea German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen himself, notably in 1918 and 1936...
Dfa), which is similar to much of the midwest United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. This climate has very warm, humid summers and cold, snowy winters. The Lake Erie
Lake Erie
Lake Erie is the fourth largest lake of the five Great Lakes in North America, and the tenth largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has the shortest average water residence time. It is bounded on the north by the...
shoreline is very close to due east-west from the mouth of the Cuyahoga River
Cuyahoga River
The Cuyahoga River is located in Northeast Ohio in the United States. Outside of Ohio, the river is most famous for being "the river that caught fire", helping to spur the environmental movement in the late 1960s...
west to Sandusky
Sandusky, Ohio
Sandusky is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Erie County. It is located in northern Ohio and is situated on the shores of Lake Erie, almost exactly half-way between Toledo to the west and Cleveland to the east....
, but at the mouth of the Cuyahoga it turns sharply northeast. This feature is the principal contributor to the lake effect snow
Lake effect snow
Lake-effect snow is produced during cooler atmospheric conditions when cold winds move across long expanses of warmer lake water, providing energy and picking up water vapor which freezes and is deposited on the leeward shores...
that is typical in Shaker Heights weather from mid-November until the surface of Lake Erie freezes, usually in late January or early February. Seasonal totals approaching or exceeding 100 inches (2,540 mm) are not uncommon because Shaker Heights is found in an area known as the "Snow Belt
Snowbelt
Snowbelt is a term describing of a number of regions near the Great Lakes in North America where heavy snowfall in the form of lake-effect snow is particularly common. Snowbelts are typically found downwind of the lakes, principally off the eastern and southern shores...
", extending from the east side of Cleveland proper through the eastern suburbs and up the Lake Erie shore as far as Buffalo, New York
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
. Despite its reputation as a cold, snowy place in winter mild spells often break winter's grip with temperatures sometimes soaring above 68 °F
Fahrenheit
Fahrenheit is the temperature scale proposed in 1724 by, and named after, the German physicist Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit . Within this scale, the freezing of water into ice is defined at 32 degrees, while the boiling point of water is defined to be 212 degrees...
(20 °C).
The all-time record high in Shaker Heights of 104 °F
Fahrenheit
Fahrenheit is the temperature scale proposed in 1724 by, and named after, the German physicist Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit . Within this scale, the freezing of water into ice is defined at 32 degrees, while the boiling point of water is defined to be 212 degrees...
(40 °C) was established on June 25, 1988, and the all-time record low of −20 °F (−29 °C) was set on January 19, 1994. On average, July is the warmest month with a mean temperature of 71.9 °F (22.2 °C), and January, with a mean temperature of 25.7 °F (−3.5 °C), is the coldest. Normal yearly precipitation
Precipitation (meteorology)
In meteorology, precipitation In meteorology, precipitation In meteorology, precipitation (also known as one of the classes of hydrometeors, which are atmospheric water phenomena is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravity. The main forms of precipitation...
based on the 30-year average from 1971 to 2000 is 38.7 inches (930 mm).
Cityscape
Shaker Heights is one of Greater ClevelandGreater Cleveland
Greater Cleveland is a nickname for the metropolitan area surrounding Cleveland, Ohio and is part of what used to be the Connecticut Western Reserve.Northeast Ohio refers to a similar but substantially larger area as described below...
's older inner-ring or "first" suburbs, and borders Cleveland
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
, Cleveland Heights
Cleveland Heights, Ohio
Cleveland Heights is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States, a suburb of Cleveland. The city's population was 46,121 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Cleveland Heights is located at ....
, University Heights
University Heights, Ohio
University Heights is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. It borders Beachwood to the east, Cleveland Heights to the west, South Euclid to the north and Shaker Heights to the south. The population was 13,539 as of the 2010 Census...
, Beachwood
Beachwood, Ohio
-External links:* *...
, Highland Hills
Highland Hills, Ohio
Highland Hills is a village in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,130 at the 2010 census. It was formally incorporated in 1990.-Geography:Highland Hills is located at ....
, and Warrensville Heights
Warrensville Heights, Ohio
Warrensville Heights is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The population was 13,542 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Warrensville Heights is located at ....
. Shaker Heights is a member of the Northeast Ohio First Suburbs Consortium.
Neighborhoods
There are nine neighborhoods in Shaker Heights, all of which were named after the nine original elementary schools. These neighborhoods are:- Boulevard, located in northwest Shaker Heights, is near Cleveland's University CircleUniversity CircleUniversity Circle, is a neighborhood located on the east side of Cleveland, Ohio. It is best known for its world-class cultural, educational and medical institutions, including the Cleveland Orchestra, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland Museum of Art, Lakeview Cemetery, and University...
neighborhood, and borders Shaker SquareShaker SquareBuckeye-Shaker is a neighborhood on the East Side of Cleveland, Ohio. It encompasses the old Buckeye neighborhood and Shaker Square neighborhood, the latter of which is centered around an historic shopping district and an eponymous rapid transit station, located at the intersection of Shaker and...
. The Nature Center at Shaker LakesNature Center at Shaker LakesThe Nature Center at Shaker Lakes, a nonprofit organization that is dedicated to conserving a natural area, connecting people with nature, and inspiring environmental stewardship, was founded in 1966 as the result of a grassroots community effort to preserve the Shaker Parklands from becoming the...
is located in this neighborhood. - Fernway is located in the middle of Shaker Heights, north of the RTA Rapid TransitRTA Rapid TransitRTA Rapid Transit is a rapid transit and light rail system in Cleveland and Cuyahoga County owned by the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority...
Blue LineBlue and Green Lines (Cleveland)The Blue Line, Green Line, and Waterfront Line are the interurban/light rail component of the RTA Rapid Transit, a rapid transit rail system in greater Cleveland and Shaker Heights, Cuyahoga County, Ohio...
, and south of Shaker Heights Country Club. - Lomond is located in the south-central part of the city.
- Ludlow is the smallest neighborhood and is located in the western portion of the city. Half of the neighborhood lies in Shaker Heights, while the other half is in ClevelandCleveland, OhioCleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
. - Malvern is mostly residential and is the location of Hathaway Brown SchoolHathaway Brown SchoolHathaway Brown is an all-girls private school in Shaker Heights, Ohio, founded in 1876. It is also Ohio's second oldest college preparatory school for girls. The HB experience spans the early childhood program, primary school, middle school, and upper school.-History:Founded in 1876, Hathaway...
. The Hanna Perkins Center, a child development center, occupies the former Malvern school building. - Mercer, located in northeast Shaker Heights, is the largest neighborhood. The area is also home to Shaker Heights Middle SchoolShaker Heights Middle SchoolShaker Heights Middle School is located in Shaker Heights, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland, and is part of the Shaker Heights City School District. Being the sole public middle school in the district, it serves about 900 students in grades seven and eight....
(previously Byron Junior High School), and the private schools University SchoolUniversity SchoolUniversity School, commonly referred to as US, is an all-boys K - 12 school with two campus locations in the Greater Cleveland, Ohio area...
and Laurel SchoolLaurel SchoolLocated in Shaker Heights, a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio,Laurel School is a school for girls Kindergarten through Grade 12, with a coeducational pre-primary program. Laurel’s mission is to “inspire each girl to fulfill her promise and to better the world". While this is their mission statement,...
. The eastern terminus of the RTA Rapid Transit Green LineBlue and Green Lines (Cleveland)The Blue Line, Green Line, and Waterfront Line are the interurban/light rail component of the RTA Rapid Transit, a rapid transit rail system in greater Cleveland and Shaker Heights, Cuyahoga County, Ohio...
, the Green Road StationGreen (RTA Rapid Transit station)Green Road Station is a station on the Green Line of the RTA Rapid Transit in Cleveland, Ohio, USA. It is the eastern terminus of the Green Line....
, is located here, as well as the Bertram Woods branch of the Shaker Heights Public Library. - Moreland is located in southwest Shaker Heights. The former Moreland school building now houses the Shaker Heights Public LibraryShaker Heights Public LibraryShaker Heights Public Library is a library district in eastern Cuyahoga County, Ohio serving the city of Shaker Heights and that portion of the City of Cleveland, known as Shaker Square, which falls within the Shaker Heights City School District. This service area encompasses with a population of...
Main Branch. - Onaway is home to Shaker Heights High SchoolShaker Heights High SchoolShaker Heights High School is a public high school located in Shaker Heights, Ohio, USA, in Greater Cleveland. The high school is the only public high school in the Shaker Heights City School District, which serves Shaker Heights and a small part of Cleveland...
, and the former Woodbury Junior High School Building. - Sussex is located in southeast part of the city and is the location of the Tower EastTower EastTower East is a high-rise office building in Shaker Heights, Ohio. At , it is the tallest building in the city. Tower East was the last building in the United States designed by architect Walter Gropius. BGK Equities of Santa Fe purchased the building for $12.68 million in 2000.- References :**...
office building.
Shaker Square
Shaker Square
Buckeye-Shaker is a neighborhood on the East Side of Cleveland, Ohio. It encompasses the old Buckeye neighborhood and Shaker Square neighborhood, the latter of which is centered around an historic shopping district and an eponymous rapid transit station, located at the intersection of Shaker and...
is in the city of Cleveland, though, in an arrangement dating to the late 1920s, is in the Shaker Heights City School District.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000United States Census, 2000
The Twenty-second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons enumerated during the 1990 Census...
, there were 29,405 people, 12,220 households, and 8,040 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 4,685.0 people per square mile (1,807.9/km²). There were 12,982 housing units at an average density of 2,068.4 per square mile (798.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 59.94% White, 34.11% African American, 0.06% Native American, 3.16% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.50% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 2.22% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.15% of the population. By 2010, the estimated percentage of Asians in Shaker Heights was 4.7%, the seventh-highest percentage for cities in Ohio, and the third-largest percentage for cities in Cuyahoga County. About 93.5% of residents speak English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
natively at home, while 1.6% speak Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, 1.2% speak French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, 0.7% speak Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
, and 3.0% speak another language, including German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
and Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
.
There were 12,220 household
Household
The household is "the basic residential unit in which economic production, consumption, inheritance, child rearing, and shelter are organized and carried out"; [the household] "may or may not be synonymous with family"....
s out of which 32.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.1% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.2% were non-families. 30.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 3.00.
In the city the population was spread out with 26.2% under the age of 18, 5.3% from 18 to 24, 27.4% from 25 to 44, 25.5% from 45 to 64, and 15.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 83.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $63,983, and the median income for a family was $85,893. Males had a median income of $61,768 versus $38,606 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $41,354. About 5.3% of families and 6.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.1% of those under age 18 and 6.5% of those age 65 or over. According to a 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the city had risen to $68,793, and the median income for a family had risen to $93,380. About 6.1% of families and 8.6% of the population were below the poverty line.
History
Municipal corporation
A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. Municipal incorporation occurs when such municipalities become self-governing entities under the laws of the state or province in which...
as a village
Village (United States)
In the United States, the meaning of "village" varies by geographic area and legal jurisdiction. In many areas, "village" is a term, sometimes informal, for a type of administrative division at the local government level...
in 1912. The name "Shaker Heights" has origins in two local sources. The community was laid out on land formerly owned by the North Union Community of the United Society of Believers, more commonly known as Shakers
Shakers
The United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing, known as the Shakers, is a religious sect originally thought to be a development of the Religious Society of Friends...
. "Heights" refers to the plateau
Plateau
In geology and earth science, a plateau , also called a high plain or tableland, is an area of highland, usually consisting of relatively flat terrain. A highly eroded plateau is called a dissected plateau...
east of Cleveland that rises sharply in elevation from 582 feet above sea level at the base of the Cedar Glen Parkway rising to 950 feet above sea level in nearby Cleveland Heights
Cleveland Heights, Ohio
Cleveland Heights is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States, a suburb of Cleveland. The city's population was 46,121 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Cleveland Heights is located at ....
; Shaker Heights' elevation is 1050 feet above sea level.
Ralph Russell established the North Union Settlement in 1822 with just over 80 individuals. In 1826, the group dammed Doan Brook, thus creating the Lower Lake and establishing a gristmill
Gristmill
The terms gristmill or grist mill can refer either to a building in which grain is ground into flour, or to the grinding mechanism itself.- Early history :...
and a sawmill
Sawmill
A sawmill is a facility where logs are cut into boards.-Sawmill process:A sawmill's basic operation is much like those of hundreds of years ago; a log enters on one end and dimensional lumber exits on the other end....
. Later, in 1854, the community built a second dam creating the Upper Lake, and constructed another mill. Also called 'The Valley of God's Pleasure', the colony peaked around 1850 with about 300 settlers. As the Shakers practiced celibacy
Celibacy
Celibacy is a personal commitment to avoiding sexual relations, in particular a vow from marriage. Typically celibacy involves avoiding all romantic relationships of any kind. An individual may choose celibacy for religious reasons, such as is the case for priests in some religions, for reasons of...
, the colony faded away and was closed in 1889. In 1905, the land was bought by brothers M.J. and O.P. Van Sweringen
Van Sweringen brothers
Oris Paxton Van Sweringen and Mantis James Van Sweringen were brothers who became railroad barons in order to develop Shaker Heights, Ohio. They are better known as O.P. Van Sweringen and M.J. Van Sweringen, or by their collective nickname, the Vans...
who envisioned the first garden styled suburb
Garden city movement
The garden city movement is a method of urban planning that was initiated in 1898 by Sir Ebenezer Howard in the United Kingdom. Garden cities were intended to be planned, self-contained communities surrounded by "greenbelts" , containing proportionate areas of residences, industry and...
in Ohio for the site. The brothers constructed homes, set aside land for churches and schools, and planted trees. Originally referred to as Shaker Village, the community was incorporated in 1912 and reached city status in the 1931. Shaker Heights is known for its stringent building code
Building code
A building code, or building control, is a set of rules that specify the minimum acceptable level of safety for constructed objects such as buildings and nonbuilding structures. The main purpose of building codes are to protect public health, safety and general welfare as they relate to the...
s and zoning
Zoning
Zoning is a device of land use planning used by local governments in most developed countries. The word is derived from the practice of designating permitted uses of land based on mapped zones which separate one set of land uses from another...
laws, which have helped to maintain the community's housing stock and identity throughout the years. Approximately seventy percent of the city of Shaker Heights is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
as Shaker Village Historic District.
The Van Sweringens acquired the New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad
New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad
The New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad , abbreviated NYC&St.L, was a railroad that operated in the mid-central United States. Commonly referred to as the Nickel Plate Road, the railroad served a large area, including trackage in the states of New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois...
(Nickel Plate Road) in order to secure the right of way needed to establish a rapid transit
Rapid transit
A rapid transit, underground, subway, elevated railway, metro or metropolitan railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with a high capacity and frequency, and grade separation from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically located either in underground tunnels or on...
interurban streetcar system that would carry residents of Shaker Heights to and from downtown Cleveland
Downtown Cleveland
Downtown Cleveland is the central business district of the City of Cleveland and Northeast Ohio. Reinvestment in the area in the mid-1990s spurred a rebirth that continues to this day, with over $2 billion in residential and commercial developments slated for the area over the next few years...
. The resulting system was known as the Shaker Heights Rapid Transit. The Rapid Transit system was transferred into the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority
Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority
The Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority is the public transit agency for Cleveland, Ohio, United States, and the surrounding suburbs of Cuyahoga County. RTA is the largest transit agency in Ohio, providing over 44 million trips to residents and visitors of the Cleveland area in 2010...
(RTA) in the 1970s, which combined the operation of all bus systems in the county with the operation of the Shaker and Cleveland Transit System west side rapid lines. Shaker Heights and Greater Cleveland
Greater Cleveland
Greater Cleveland is a nickname for the metropolitan area surrounding Cleveland, Ohio and is part of what used to be the Connecticut Western Reserve.Northeast Ohio refers to a similar but substantially larger area as described below...
refer to the system and to the trains as "The Rapid Transit", "Rapid" or "Shaker Rapid". While originally envisioned to extend from downtown Cleveland fourteen miles to the community of Hunting Valley
Hunting Valley, Ohio
Hunting Valley is an affluent village located east of Cleveland in Cuyahoga and Geauga counties in the Northeast Ohio region, the 14th largest Combined Statistical Area in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the village population was 705...
(then called Shaker Estates), the system expansion ended at Green Road in eastern Shaker Heights following the collapse of the Van Sweringen rail empire during the Great Depression
Great Depression in the United States
The Great Depression began with the Wall Street Crash of October, 1929 and rapidly spread worldwide. The market crash marked the beginning of a decade of high unemployment, poverty, low profits, deflation, plunging farm incomes, and lost opportunities for economic growth and personal advancement...
.
Efforts toward integration began in the late 1950s with neighbors in the Ludlow Elementary School area working together to make integration successful. As a result, Shaker Heights avoided many of the problems created from practices such as blockbusting
Blockbusting
Blockbusting is a business practice of U.S. real estate agents and building developers meant to encourage white property owners to sell their houses at a loss, by implying that racial, ethnic, or religious minorities — Blacks, Hispanics, Jews et al. — were moving into their previously racially...
and white flight
White flight
White flight has been a term that originated in the United States, starting in the mid-20th century, and applied to the large-scale migration of whites of various European ancestries from racially mixed urban regions to more racially homogeneous suburban or exurban regions. It was first seen as...
. In 1986, the city began a Fund for the Future of Shaker Heights, offering loans for down payments for residents buying homes in segregated neighborhoods, creating multi-ethnic neighborhoods. Today, the city maintains a housing assistance office that works with home buyers to achieve and maintain neighborhood integration. In August 2004, the story of early integration efforts in Shaker Heights was subject of The Reunion, an ABC News
ABC News
ABC News is the news gathering and broadcasting division of American broadcast television network ABC, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company...
special produced by Paul Mason
Paul Mason
Paul Mason may refer to:* Paul Mason , British television news correspondent* Paul Mason , American author* Paul Mason , British footballer* Paul Mason , Canadian canoeist and cartoonist...
. Mason, now a senior vice president of ABC News, was a student at Ludlow Elementary School when residents, including his parents, moved forward with their efforts to make neighborhood integration a community project.
Shaker Heights was a finalist for the All-America City Award
All-America City Award
The All-America City Award is given by the National Civic League annually to ten cities in the United States.The oldest community recognition program in the nation, the award recognizes communities whose citizens work together to identify and tackle community-wide challenges and achieve uncommon...
in 1989.
Government and politics
The Shaker Heights City Charter was adopted in 1931 and revised in 1974, 1986 and 1999. This charterMunicipal charter
A city charter or town charter is a legal document establishing a municipality such as a city or town. The concept developed in Europe during the middle ages....
provides for a mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
and seven members of a city council
City council
A city council or town council is the legislative body that governs a city, town, municipality or local government area.-Australia & NZ:Because of the differences in legislation between the States, the exact definition of a City Council varies...
, elected on an at-large, non-partisan basis for four years. The current mayor of Shaker Heights is Earl Leiken. The last mayoral and council elections being in 2007, the mayor and four council members selected in one election and three council members at the following, in a way to stagger terms.
The Neo-Georgian
Georgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
city hall, designed by Charles Schneider
Charles Sumner Schneider
Charles Sumner Schneider was an American architect active in Ohio.Schneider was born in Cleveland to Rev. William F. and Amanda Schneider. He received his first architectural training in the office of Meade & Garfield, and afterwards studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris...
, was built in 1930.
Shaker Heights is entirely within the Eleventh Congressional District
Ohio's 11th congressional district
Ohio's 11th congressional district is represented by Representative Marcia Fudge, a Democrat, having been elected after the death of Stephanie Tubbs Jones. This district includes the East Side of Cleveland and much of the eastern suburbs in Cuyahoga County, and borders Lake Erie.Ohio has had at...
, a seat in the House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
currently held by Marcia Fudge.
Education
Publicly, Shaker Heights is served by the Shaker Heights City School District, a K-12 district with an enrollment of about 5,600 with eight total schools. There are five lower elementary schoolElementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
s, Fernway, Mercer, Boulevard, Lomond and Onaway; an upper elementary school, Woodbury Elementary School; Shaker Heights Middle School
Shaker Heights Middle School
Shaker Heights Middle School is located in Shaker Heights, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland, and is part of the Shaker Heights City School District. Being the sole public middle school in the district, it serves about 900 students in grades seven and eight....
; and Shaker Heights High School
Shaker Heights High School
Shaker Heights High School is a public high school located in Shaker Heights, Ohio, USA, in Greater Cleveland. The high school is the only public high school in the Shaker Heights City School District, which serves Shaker Heights and a small part of Cleveland...
. The district estimates that roughly 90% of Shaker graduates attend college, and has been recognized for its efforts to increase neighborhood integration
Racial integration
Racial integration, or simply integration includes desegregation . In addition to desegregation, integration includes goals such as leveling barriers to association, creating equal opportunity regardless of race, and the development of a culture that draws on diverse traditions, rather than merely...
. In the 1950s, the public school system was rated in the top ten nationally. In recent years, however, the school district is no longer top rated. According to the 2007-2008 State of Ohio Report Card, Shaker scored 97.1 out of a possible 120. The district is listed as "Effective," the third tier on a 6 tier scale. On the other hand, since 1995, 9-17% of seniors at Shaker Heights High School
Shaker Heights High School
Shaker Heights High School is a public high school located in Shaker Heights, Ohio, USA, in Greater Cleveland. The high school is the only public high school in the Shaker Heights City School District, which serves Shaker Heights and a small part of Cleveland...
have been recipients of National Merit Scholarship awards
National Merit Scholarship Program
The National Merit Scholarship Program is a United States academic scholarship competition for recognition and college scholarships administered by National Merit Scholarship Corporation , a privately funded, not-for-profit organization. The program began in 1955...
, and in 2008, the high school had twice as many National Merit Scholarship winners as any other public school in the state. This can possibly be explained in a 2009 survey of the school, which said that Shaker Heights High School "is really two schools – one school with students in an outstanding Advanced Placement program and one school with students with academic needs."
Private schools in the city include Laurel School
Laurel School
Located in Shaker Heights, a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio,Laurel School is a school for girls Kindergarten through Grade 12, with a coeducational pre-primary program. Laurel’s mission is to “inspire each girl to fulfill her promise and to better the world". While this is their mission statement,...
, Hathaway Brown School
Hathaway Brown School
Hathaway Brown is an all-girls private school in Shaker Heights, Ohio, founded in 1876. It is also Ohio's second oldest college preparatory school for girls. The HB experience spans the early childhood program, primary school, middle school, and upper school.-History:Founded in 1876, Hathaway...
, and the lower campus of University School
University School
University School, commonly referred to as US, is an all-boys K - 12 school with two campus locations in the Greater Cleveland, Ohio area...
. There is also a parochial school
Parochial school
A parochial school is a school that provides religious education in addition to conventional education. In a narrower sense, a parochial school is a Christian grammar school or high school which is part of, and run by, a parish.-United Kingdom:...
in Shaker, St. Dominic School.
John Carroll University
John Carroll University
John Carroll University is a private, co-educational Jesuit Catholic university in University Heights, Ohio, United States, a suburb of Cleveland. The university was founded in 1886 by the Society of Jesus as Saint Ignatius College.The university was founded in 1886 by the Society of Jesus, as...
is partially located in Shaker Heights, with the university owning several residential and commercial properties in the city. Additionally, Shaker Heights is in close proximity to University Circle, which is home to Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University is a private research university located in Cleveland, Ohio, USA...
, The Cleveland Institute of Art
Cleveland Institute of Art
The Cleveland Institute of Art is a private college of art and design located in University Circle, Cleveland, Ohio. It was founded in 1882 as the Western Reserve School of Design for Women. From 1891 until 1948 it was named Cleveland School of Art. During the Great Depression the school...
, and the Cleveland Institute of Music
Cleveland Institute of Music
The Cleveland Institute of Music is an independent music conservatory located in the University Circle district of Cleveland, Ohio, United States and is overseen by president Joel Smirnoff and Adrian Daly, dean....
.
Media
Shaker Heights is the city of licenseCity of license
A city of license or community of license, in American and Canadian broadcasting, is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator....
for CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
affiliate WOIO
WOIO
WOIO, virtual channel 19 , is the CBS affiliate in Cleveland, Ohio. It is licensed to the nearby suburb of Shaker Heights. WOIO is owned by Raycom Media and its sister station to MyNetworkTV affiliate WUAB . The two stations share a studio facility in Cleveland and WOIO's transmitter is located in...
, channel 19, which has its studios and offices in Cleveland.
Shaker Heights news appears in the Cleveland daily newspaper, The Plain Dealer. The Sun Press
Sun Newspapers
Sun Newspapers is a chain of 11 weekly newspapers serving 49 different communities in Greater Cleveland. The papers are focused on suburbs and exurbs in Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lorain and Medina counties...
, a weekly, provides local coverage of Shaker Heights and neighboring Beachwood
Beachwood, Ohio
-External links:* *...
, Cleveland Heights
Cleveland Heights, Ohio
Cleveland Heights is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States, a suburb of Cleveland. The city's population was 46,121 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Cleveland Heights is located at ....
, and University Heights
University Heights, Ohio
University Heights is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. It borders Beachwood to the east, Cleveland Heights to the west, South Euclid to the north and Shaker Heights to the south. The population was 13,539 as of the 2010 Census...
.
See also
- List of people from Shaker Heights, Ohio
- Nature Center at Shaker LakesNature Center at Shaker LakesThe Nature Center at Shaker Lakes, a nonprofit organization that is dedicated to conserving a natural area, connecting people with nature, and inspiring environmental stewardship, was founded in 1966 as the result of a grassroots community effort to preserve the Shaker Parklands from becoming the...
- The Battle of Shaker HeightsThe Battle of Shaker HeightsThe Battle of Shaker Heights is a 2003 comedy-drama film co-directed by Efram Potelle and Kyle Rankin. It starred Shia La Beouf, Elden Henson, Kathleen Quinlan, Amy Smart, and Shiri Appleby...
(film set in Shaker Heights)