According to the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History, Cleveland’s Lithuanian community “is recognized as one of the most active and productive in terms of organizational activity, community consciousness, political and civic involvement in the general affairs of Greater Cleveland, literary activity and the arts, and folk art ensembles, and is the home community of numerous persons prominent in various fields among the Lithuanian nation worldwide.”
Lithuanians began arriving in Cleveland as early as the 1870’s, soon establishing St. George’s Catholic Church, which eventually rose in its present location at E. 67th and Superior. A second church, Our Lady of Perpetual Help, was founded in the former Nottingham Village (now Collinwood) in 1929. Dozens of Lithuanian businesses, newspapers, benevolent groups and community organizations began to thrive in the area surrounding St. George’s, including Cleveland’s Lithuanian Club, founded in 1920. Although the Club’s original building was burned down in 1971, the Lithuanian Community Center and Club continues to thrive in its new home on East 185th Street in Cleveland. By the mid-1980’s, the Lithuanian community numbered about 16,000.
Today, Lithuanian Ohioans continue to participate in various social and cultural groups that serve to promote Lithuanian beliefs and customs.
– clevelandmemory.org