Hidden History of Northeast Ohio

by Mark Strecker

Northeast Ohio is awash with nearly forgotten historical events. In 1780, American scout Captain Samuel Brady leaped across the Cuyahoga River where Kent now stands to evade a party of Native Americans aiming to take his scalp. During the Civil War, Confederates tried to free their compatriots from the Johnson's Island prisoner of war camp by capturing two ferries and attempting to poison the crew of the Union's only gunboat in Lake Erie. The town of Kirtland was briefly the national headquarters of the Mormons and the location of one of the Church of Latter-day Saints' most revered temples. Mark Strecker has unearthed a hidden gem of local history for each of Northeast Ohio's twenty-two counties.

179 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 4, 2021

About the author

Although he wanted to become a comic book artist, a severe lack of talent in that area pushed author Mark Strecker toward his other loves, writing and history. Aside from penning books, Mark also maintains a website, Mark Strecker's Historical Perspective (markstrecker.com), on which he has articles, a travel log about historical sites he has visited, and Mark's Musings, short essays on current events in the context of history.

Reviews

[Stephen Dages · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad! I really enjoyed getting to know local history, especially for the counties where I’ve lived and worked all my life. Reading this book will basically save you from traveling to obscure museums all of NE Ohio that you didn’t even know existed. At the end of the day though, it’s some pretty dry history and Strecker doesn’t make much of an effort to spruce it up.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed learning more about NEO history, but I also wish the essays were more cohesive. While many facts and histories were touted, a majority of the time I found myself asking, “…but why?” re: relevance.