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B−History
History · Willowick

Willowick dates to 1804, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

More historic than 55% of U.S. towns · #596 of 993 in Ohio. What drives it

Most of Willowick was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1957. Its Register listing is the Claud Foster House. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1905 on, and the census since 1930.

1804founded
1on the National Register
6%homes built before 1940
2old photos & papers
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Willowick’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Willowick began

When was Willowick founded?

1804

Willowick dates its founding to 1804 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1930.

First census: 667 in 19302020 census: 14,204222 years

How historic is Willowick?

B−

More historic than 55% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1941.
History grade

What drives Willowick’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Willowick is more historic than 55% of U.S. towns, #596 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 Willowick’s overall grade.
Founding era1804, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 19405.6% of homes (±2.0) · typical OH town 14.5% · U.S. 8.4%CNational Register1 listing, 0.7 per 10,000 residents · typical OH town 2.9 · U.S. 2.4B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 55%
NewerOlder
Ohio towns of 2,500+ (993)Ahead of 40%

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 Willowick’s 0.7 sits near the middle of its state (48% 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 1804.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to B+. The pre-1940 share (±2.0 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 Willowick’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 2 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 21,237 in 1970; 14,204 people lived here in 2020.Lost villages1 post office opened and closed inside today’s Willowick, and 5 old place names are still on the map.On the map since 19055 editions of the USGS map, 1905 to 1992. Watch Willowick change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Willowick’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Willowick’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 viewAirplane - DPLA - 13645c0704fc8be82d276…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Willowick, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00019401960198020002020Peak: 21,237

Peaked at 21,237 in 1970; 14,204 people lived here in 2020.

10 censuses, 1930–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and places now gone

Another post office, Erieside, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Brookwood BeachErie SideJohnson Mobile Home ParkRush RoadWilloughbeach
Gone or out of use
Erieside Post Officepost officeNike Site CL-13Cmilitary

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

The story so far

Willowick, in brief

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

Willowick is a city in Lake County, Ohio, United States, on Lake Erie. The population was 14,204 at the 2020 census. A suburb of Cleveland, Willowick is served by a branch of the Willoughby-Eastlake Public Library. The city's name is a portmanteau of two adjacent cities, Willoughby and Wickliffe. As of 2022, the mayor of Willowick is Michael Vanni.

Willowick was established in 1804. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 14,171 in 2010, 14,204 in 2020.

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

Timeline

Willowick, 1804 to 1970

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1804
    FoundingWillowick is established
  3. 20th century
  4. 1905On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 1912In the archiveAirplane - DPLA - 13645c0704fc8be82d276779099450c8
  6. 1931Born hereBob Golic is born here
  7. 1941Post officeThe Erieside post office opens
  8. 1950Post officeThe Erieside post office closes
  9. 1954Born hereKen Novak is born here
  10. 1962Born hereMike Golic is born here
  11. 1970CensusPopulation peaks at 21,237
By decade

Willowick, decade by decade

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

1910s2 items
Airplane - DPLA - 13645c0704fc8be82d276779099450c81912Airplane - DPLA - 13645c0704fc8be82d276779099450c8Airplane at Willoughbeach Park - DPLA - 549e7e8c37691754deecfc11f728f40f1918Airplane at Willoughbeach Park - DPLA - 549e7e8c37691…
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
Today1 recent
West from Lakefront Lodge over lake2015West from Lakefront Lodge over lake
On the map

Willowick on the map, 1905 to 1992

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

Willowick on the 1905 USGS mapWillowick on the 1953 USGS mapWillowick on the 1963 USGS mapWillowick on the 1970 USGS mapWillowick on the 1992 USGS map1905Mentor 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 Willowick.

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.

Airplane - DPLA - 13645c0704fc8be82d276779099450c8
Retake this viewAirplane - DPLA - 13645c0704fc8be82d276779099450c8, 1912

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 historic place in Willowick

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
2004
Claud Foster House
Claud Foster House
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Bungalow/Craftsman1
Claud Foster HouseBungalow/Craftsman

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Famous people

3 famous people were born in Willowick

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
K
Ken NovakAmerican football player · b. 1954
Mike GolicAmerican football player and sportscaster · b. 1962
B
Bob GolicAmerican gridiron football player · b. 1931
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

EastlakeIts storyC+Wickliffe1 historic placeBEuclid2 historic placesB+Willoughby3 historic placesA−

Questions about Willowick’s history

What year was Willowick founded?

In 1804, according to Wikidata. Willowick’s post office opened in 1941, and the census of 1930 counted 667 people here.

How does Willowick rank for history?

Willowick is more historic than 55% of U.S. towns, #596 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 Willowick?

One place: the Claud Foster House (listed 2004).

How old are the homes in Willowick?

6% of Willowick’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.0 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1957.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (3), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.