Lorain is a city in Lorain County, Ohio, United States. It is located in Northeast Ohio on Lake Erie at the mouth of the Black River, about 25 miles (40 km) west of Cleveland. With a population of 65,211 at the 2020 census, Lorain is the ninth most populous city in Ohio, the most populous in Lorain County and the third most populous in Greater Cleveland.
At a Glance
- County: Lorain County
- State: Ohio
History of Lorain
According to local government records, the city began as an unincorporated village established before 1834 as “Black River Village”, and was renamed in 1837 as "Charleston." According to 19th century historians, the new name was rejected by its own citizens, who continued to use Black River Village. The village was incorporated as Lorain in 1874 and became a city in 1896. The first mayor was Conrad Reid, who took office on April 6, 1874. The municipal boundaries incorporated most of the former Black River Township judicial boundaries, and portions of the Sheffield Township, Amherst Township, and Brownhelm Township judicial borders.
The 1924 Lorain, Sandusky tornado hit the city on Saturday, June 28, 1924. The tornado formed over the Sandusky Bay during the late afternoon hours and hit Sandusky, where it killed eight people and destroyed 100 homes and 25 businesses. After moving east over Lake Erie for several miles, the tornado then struck Lorain, killing 72. Among the dead were 15 people inside a collapsed theater, which makes it the worst tornado related death toll from a single building in Ohio. Eight people were also killed inside the Bath House near the location where the tornado came onshore.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Lorain, Ohio, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license.