Nottingham Historical Society

18326 St. Clair Rd. Cleveland, Ohio 44110

notthistorysoc@aol.com

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    Beside our schools, churches, and homes, there have  been other public and private buildings that have served (and continue to serve) our community.   We highlight a few for you now and encourage you to return to see what other gems we may post in the future.  

    One of our prized possessions is an early photo of Nottingham's Town Hall.  This uniquely shaped building was built during Nottingham's incorporated years and continued to serve the community for approximately 50 years.  It was demolished in the late 1950's as it stood in Interstate 90's path.  Take a close look at this photo and note the vehicle parked curbside.

    Rossmore Inn, at Stop 127 1/2, gives us the flavor of what 185th Street was like in the early 1900's.  We are happy to have acquired this post card but would like to know more about this establishment.

    The Cunningham Sanitarium with its five story pressurized ball, looks like it may have been a prop from an old sci-fi movie.  Its story may be more interesting, however.  In 1928 millionaire steel manufacturer, N.M. Timken financed an experimental hospital on the site of his thirteen and one half acre summer estate, supporting Dr. Cunningham’s theories on healing.  The enormous, five story, pressurized ball, provided an oxygen rich environment believed to speed and facilitate healing for almost every disease.  The theory was not supported by the AMA and “Cunninghams’ Sanitarium” closed by 1934 .  A conventional hospital used the facility for a short time.  In 1941, the Cleveland diocese purchased the property.  In 1942 the giant shell ball was dismantled and its 1,000 tons of
scrap went to support our troops.  The diocese has operated a youth center, an orphanage (St. Joseph-On-The-Lake), and a retreat center on this site.  Since 1947, St. Joseph Christian Life Center has been the Diocese of Cleveland’s retreat center.    

    Still standing at18920 Nottingham Rd, is what was once Nottingham Hospital.  Owned and operated by Dr. C.J. Cannon and Mary Frances Conrad , this facility proudly served this community for over 20 years, beginning in  1922.  Visiting staff also included Drs. W.O. Jenks, J. H. Dempsey and M.C. Davis.  Records of this facility are part of the collection at Case Western's Medical Collection.

    The Nottingham Historical Society is collecting images and ephemera from its past.   We cannot post all of our images but will periodically update our web site.  We need your help in acquiring images and information.  We need information and photos of stores, businesses, industrial settings, etc.  Contact us, come to a meeting, and join our membership.  Share your stories.