JUDSON RETIREMENT COMMUNITY was incorporated on 17-Aug. 1906 as the Baptist Home of Northern Ohio. The mission—a permanent residence for aging Baptists (especially women without family or funds)—had begun on 1-Nov. 1904 when six members of the Women's Social Bible Class of the EUCLID AVE. BAPTIST CHURCH decided to organize and raise funds. A board of trustees was formed on 27-May 1907.
The next month (June 1907), with funds received from JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER, the group purchased the 19-room Southworth residence at 3334 Prospect Ave. Churches of several denominations also contributed money, furniture, and provisions. The home opened on October 16, 1907. In 1919 the organization moved to a larger residence at 8903 Cedar Ave. That venue was sold in 1939 when the Baptist Home purchased the seven-acre estate of contractor Warren G. Bicknell. The tract included a large residence (built in 1919) at 1801 Chestnut Hills Dr. in CLEVELAND HEIGHTS. It was renamed the Baptist Home of Ohio in 1940 and expanded in 1950-51. In 1974 the adjoining ten-story Jordan Gardner Tower (named in honor of donor Grace Jordan Gardner) was completed at 2181 Ambleside Dr. The entire complex was re-christened Judson Park in honor of Baptist missionary Adoniram Judson. The Bruening Health Center—a long-term skilled nursing and rehabilitation facility—opened at Judson Park in 1991.
Judson Manor, located at 1890 E. 107th St. in UNIVERSITY CIRCLE, joined the newly named Judson Retirement Community in 1983. The U-shaped Georgian Revival-style building was built in 1921-22, opening in 1923 as Wade Park Manor, a luxury residential apartment hotel. The Christian Residences Foundation, a nonprofit, nonsectarian, community organization of seven area churches, had purchased the manor from David C. Lincoln in 1964 and operated it as a retirement facility until its purchase by Judson. Following a 1985 remodeling, it was renamed Judson Manor.
In 2006, the organization launched Judson at Home (rebranded Judson Link in 2026), giving members access to a variety of Judson’s programs and services while living in their own homes. That same year, a third facility opened on a 90-acre tract in Chagrin Falls: South Franklin Circle offers three levels of care: independent senior living, assisted living, and memory care.
Judson Park, Judson Manor, and Judson Franklin Circle continue to operate as a single retirement institution—Judson Retirement Community—providing independent and assisted living, as well as nursing care. It is one of only a few fully accredited continuing-care communities in the country. A board of trustees, professional staff, and volunteers (including the Auxiliary and the Evening Auxiliary) administer the institution.
Updated by Christopher Roy 18 August 2026