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History · Brady Lake

Brady Lake dates to 1891, and 52% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1906 on, and the census since 1930.

1891founded
0on the National Register
52%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Brady Lake’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Brady Lake began

When was Brady Lake founded?

1891

Brady Lake dates its founding to 1891 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1930.

First census: 78 in 19302020 census: 1,222135 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1924.

What stands out about Brady Lake’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Brady Lake’s homes were built before 1938.On the map since 19065 editions of the USGS map, 1906 to 1994. Watch Brady Lake change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Brady Lake’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Brady Lake’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewPanoramic view of Brady Lake: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story so far

Brady Lake, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Brady Lake yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Brady Lake is an unincorporated census-designated place and former village in Portage County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,222 at the 2020 census. Incorporated in 1927, it originally developed as an amusement park and summer resort that opened in 1891. It was formed from a small portion of Franklin Township and became fully independent of the township in 1993. The village was named after the lake it borders, Brady Lake, which in turn was named for Captain Samuel Brady, who hid in the lake around 1780 while being pursued by a band of local Native Americans. Residents voted to dissolve the village on May 2, 2017, and the area was again made part of Franklin Township. In 2019, the…

Brady Lake was established in 1891. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 464 to 1,222 (+163%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

On the map

Brady Lake on the map, 1906 to 1994

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Brady Lake. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Brady Lake on the 1906 USGS mapBrady Lake on the 1960 USGS mapBrady Lake on the 1970 USGS mapBrady Lake on the 1984 USGS mapBrady Lake on the 1994 USGS map1906Kent sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Brady Lake.

Timeline

Brady Lake, 1891 to 1914

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1891
    FoundingBrady Lake is established
  3. 20th century
  4. 1906On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 1911In the archivePanoramic view of Brady Lake
  6. 1914Born hereEddie Morgan is born here
By decade

Brady Lake, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s1 item
Panoramic view of Brady Lake1911Panoramic view of Brady Lake
1920s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today4 recent
Map of Portage County Ohio Highlighting Brady Lake Village2015Map of Portage County Ohio Highlighting Brady Lake Vi…MapKent Roosevelt district2010Kent Roosevelt districtPortage County2008Portage CountyOHMap-doton-Brady Lake2004OHMap-doton-Brady Lake
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Panoramic view of Brady Lake
Retake this viewPanoramic view of Brady Lake, 1911

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Brady Lake’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Brady Lake, census by census

02004006008001,0001,200194019601980200020201,222

Grew from 78 people in 1930 to 1,222 in 2020, more than tenfold.

10 censuses, 1930–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Brady Lake’s Wikipedia page.

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Franklin Township1 historic placeB+Ravenna Township4 historic placesA−

Questions about Brady Lake’s history

What year was Brady Lake founded?

In 1891, according to Wikidata. Brady Lake’s post office opened in 1924, and the census of 1930 counted 78 people here.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (4), the Library of Congress (1), Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps and U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.