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History · Glenwillow

Glenwillow’s post office opened in 1893

Most of Glenwillow was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1988. Below: maps from 1906 on and the census since 1920.

1893first post office
0on the National Register
8%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Nyttend · Public domain
Quick answers

How Glenwillow began

When was Glenwillow founded?

1893

The Glenwillow post office opened in 1893, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 200 in 19202020 census: 994133 years
Founding year: the first Glenwillow post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Glenwillow’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Glenwillow are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19066 editions of the USGS map, 1906 to 1994. Watch Glenwillow change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Glenwillow’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Glenwillow on the map, 1906 to 1994

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

Glenwillow on the 1906 USGS mapGlenwillow on the 1953 USGS mapGlenwillow on the 1963 USGS mapGlenwillow on the 1970 USGS mapGlenwillow on the 1984 USGS mapGlenwillow on the 1994 USGS map1906Chagrin Falls 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 Glenwillow.

The story

How Glenwillow came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Glenwillow.

Read it all →

The Village of Glenwillow was carved out of Solon Township and established in 1893 as a company town by Austin Powder Company. As the population in surrounding areas, particularly the city of Solon, increased, Austin Powder was unable to test its explosive products. It moved its manufacturing operations to Athens, Ohio, and closed its Glenwillow plant in 1972. In the 1980s, the village installed infrastructural and utility improvements and added a 250-acre (1.0 km2) industrial park. Served by the Solon City Schools, the village has since experienced residential development. In the early 2000s, the village received significant investment through mixed-use development, including renovation of the former Austin Powder housing stock and general store into boutiques, a tavern, in conjunction with a new town center, village park and new housing in a town plan layout.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Glenwillow, 1893 to 1956

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1893Post officeThe Glenwillow post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1906On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 1956Post officeThe Glenwillow post office closes
By decade

Glenwillow, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Glenwillow park E7573 (2)2022Glenwillow park E7573 (2)Pinecrest in2017Pinecrest inGlenwillow village hall2017Glenwillow village hallMap of Cuyahoga County Ohio Highlighting Glenwillow Village2015Map of Cuyahoga County Ohio Highlighting Glenwillow V…MapGlenwillow-CuyahogaCoOH2006Glenwillow-CuyahogaCoOHOHMap-doton-Glenwillow2004OHMap-doton-Glenwillow
People over time

Glenwillow, census by census

02004006008001,000192019401960198020002020994

Grew from 200 people in 1920 to 994 in 2020, 4 times over.

11 censuses, 1920–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Glenwillow

Nobody well known was born in Glenwillow itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
James A. GarfieldPresident of the United States in 1881 · b. 1831
Anne HecheAmerican actress · b. 1969
M
Mary OliverAmerican poet · b. 1935
Lisa BanesAmerican actress · b. 1955
Vanessa BayerAmerican actress and comedian · b. 1981
R
Ron KitajAmerican artist · b. 1932
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and places now gone

Glenwillow had its own post office from 1893 to 1956.

Glenwillow
1893–1956
18901960today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Falls JunctionGlenwillow Mobile Home Park
Gone or out of use
Glenwillow Post Officepost office

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

SolonIts storyCTwinsburg3 historic placesB

Questions about Glenwillow’s history

What year was Glenwillow founded?

The Glenwillow post office opened in 1893, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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 (6), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.