Parma Heights dates to 1818, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 49% of U.S. towns · #669 of 993 in Ohio. What drives it
Most of Parma Heights was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1960. Its Register listing is the Robert W. Henry House. Its Register listing is the Robert W. Henry House. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1902 on, and the census since 1920.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Parma Heights is more historic than 49% of U.S. towns, #669 of 993 in Ohio. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Parma Heights’ overall grade.
Ohio towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Ohio town has 2.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Parma Heights’ 0.5 sits near the middle of its state (47% of Ohio towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1818.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B+. The pre-1940 share (±1.3 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Parma Heights’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Parma Heights. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1902Berea 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 Parma Heights.
Timeline
Parma Heights, 1818 to 1956
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
In 1806, the area that was to become Parma and Parma Heights was originally surveyed by Abraham Tappan, a surveyor for the Connecticut Land Company, and was known as Township 6 - Range 13. This designation gave the town its first identity in the Western Reserve. Soon after, Township 6 - Range 13 was commonly referred to as "Greenbriar," supposedly for the rambling bush that grew there. Benajah Fay, his wife Ruth Wilcox Fay, and their ten children, arrivals from Lewis County, New York, were the first settlers in 1816. The area of Greenbriar that was to later become Parma Heights was first settled in 1817. It was around that time that Greenbriar, under a newly organized government seat under Brooklyn Township, began attending to its own governmental needs.
In 1818, according to Wikidata. the census of 1920 counted 310 people here.
How does Parma Heights rank for history?
Parma Heights is more historic than 49% of U.S. towns, #669 of 993 in Ohio. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Parma Heights?
One place: the Robert W. Henry House (listed 1978).
How old are the homes in Parma Heights?
3% of Parma Heights’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.3 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1960.
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).
From Wikimedia Commons (1), the Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.
Date?
2009