PAYNE, OLIVER HAZARD (21 July 1839-27 June 1917), businessman and philanthropist, was born in Cleveland to Mary Perry and HENRY B. PAYNE. He was educated at Phillips Academy and Yale, leaving the latter in 1861 to serve in the CIVIL WAR, earning the brevet of brigadier-general. In Nov.
PEAKE, GEORGE (1722-Sep. 1827)—last name sometimes spelled Peek or Peak—the first AFRICAN AMERICAN to settle permanently in Cleveland and something of an inventor, developing a new hand mill for grinding grain, was a native of Maryland and former resident of Pennsylvania. Peake came to Cleveland with his wife and 2 sons in Apr. 1809.
PEASE, SETH (9 Jan. 1764-12 Sept. 1819), early surveyor in the WESTERN RESERVE, was born in Suffield, Conn. to Joseph and Mindwell Pease.
PECK, ELIHU M. (14 Sept. 1822-8 May 1896), with his partner IRVINE U. MASTERS, an important shipbuilder, was born in Butternuts, Oneida County, N.Y., came to Ohio by the fall of 1845 when he married Susan Ettling Rogers, and worked as a ship carpenter until the mid-1850s.
PECKHAM, GEORGE GRANT GUY (1 Aug. 1874-8 Aug. 1945) was a pioneer in automobile sales in Cleveland, building one of the largest car dealerships in the state. Pekham was born in Troy, Ohio, the son of George Washington and Lavine Jane (Shilling) Peckham and was educated public schools until age 18 when entered commercial school in Dayton to study bookkeeping.
The PEERLESS MOTOR CAR CO., noted for its luxury automobiles, was established in Cleveland in 1889 as the Peerless Wringer & Mfg. Co., located on the city's east side at the junction of the Cleveland & Pittsburgh and the New York, Chicago & St. Louis railroads. By 1892 it had become the Peerless Mfg. Co. Originally a producer of washing-machine wringers, Peerless moved to 2654 Lisbon St.
PEIXOTTO, BENJAMIN FRANKLIN (13 Nov. 1834-18 Sept. 1890), journalist, lawyer, and diplomat, was born in New York City, son of Rachel (Seixas) and DANIEL LEVY PEIXOTTO. He was brought to Cleveland at 2 when his father accepted a position at Willoughby University Medical School, left with his family in 1841, but returned at 13.
PEIXOTTO, DANIEL LEVI (18 July 1800-13 May 1843), the first Jewish doctor to teach medicine in Ohio and one of the first to establish a practice, was born in Amsterdam to Moses Levy Maduro and Judith Lopez Salzedo Peixotto. He received his medical degree from Columbia University in 1819.
PEKAR, HARVEY LAWRENCE (8 October 1939-12 July 2010) was a comic book writer and critic. Born in Cleveland to Saul and Dora Pekar, Jewish immigrants from Poland, he graduated from Shaker Heights High School in 1957.
PELTON, FREDERICK W. (24 Mar. 1827-15 Mar. 1902), banker, soldier, and Cleveland mayor (1871-73), was born in Chester, Conn., to Russel and Amelia Abbey Pelton. He came with his father to BROOKLYN in 1835 and attended Brooklyn Academy. He then worked with Wheeler, Chamberlain, & Co. in Akron, which later relocated to Cleveland, bringing Pelton back to the city.
PENFOUND, RONALD A. (CAPTAIN PENNY) (28 Jan. 1927-16 Sept. 1974), who worked in TELEVISION and RADIO, entertained Cleveland children in the Captain Penny Show on WEWS from 2 March 1955 through 4 Sept. 1971. Penfound was born in Elyria, OH, to Archie and Marjorie (Saywell) Penfound.
The PENN CENTRAL TRANSPORTATION CO. was created in 1968 by merging the NEW YORK CENTRAL and PENNSYLVANIA RAILROADS, the nation's 2 largest trunklines, extending from the Atlantic to Chicago and St. Louis.
The PENNSYLVANIA RAILROAD was one of the 3 major components of the CONRAIL network, which included the ERIE-LACKAWANNA RAILROAD and the NEW YORK CENTRAL RAILROAD.
PENTECOST LUTHERAN CONGREGATION. See SS. PETER AND PAUL LUTHERAN CHURCH.
PENTON MEDIA, a publisher of business and professional magazines, directories, and handbooks, is descended from 2 old-line Cleveland firms, the Penton Publishing Co. and the Industrial Publishing Co. John A.
PENTON, INC., See PENTON MEDIA.
PEOPLE'S MISSION. See VOLUNTEERS OF AMERICA.
PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE. See CLEVELAND COUNCIL ON SOVIET ANTI-SEMITISM.
The PEOPLES THEATRE was a short-lived workers' theater established in Cleveland during the Depression. Modeled after New York's Theatre Union and Workers Laboratory Theatre, it was begun by HOWARD DA SILVA, a native Clevelander who had returned after being raised and trained in New York. The Peoples Theatre made its debut ca.
PEOPLES-HOPE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH, 1880 W. 65th St., officially formed in 1985 out of mergers with several other historic congregations. It originated in 1845 as the German Mission Society, composed of 13 congregants. The society met in homes until 1848, when it built a church for $2,000 on Prospect between Erie and Ontario streets.
PEPPER PIKE, originally part of Orange Twp., was incorporated as a village on 1 Oct. 1924 and as a city in 1970. Pepper Pike operates under the mayor-council form of government.
PEPPERCORN, BERYL (25 Apr. 1887-28 May 1969), was a founder and longtime head of the AMALGAMATED CLOTHING WORKERS OF AMERICA (ACWA) in Cleveland and one of the city's most influential labor leaders.
PERERA, JOHN B. (10 June 1934 - 17 Jan. 1998) was a lifelong activist for social justice, human rights and the environment. He was born in New York City to Ruth (Brinton) and Charles Allen Perera.
PERK, RALPH J. (19 Jan. 1914-21 Apr. 1999) a Depression-era ice peddler who organized and headed the American Nationalities Movement rose to the city's highest office with the support of blue collar, ethnic voters. He was born in Cleveland to Mary B. (Smirt) and Joseph C. Perk, a tailor.
The PERKINS SCHOOL OF PIANO TUNING AND TECHNOLOGY, established by ROBERT K. PERKINS in 1962, was a vocational school approved by the Ohio Department of Education and later by many state Vocational Rehabilitation departments. The U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service approved the school as well, allowing foreign students to enroll.
PERKINS, ANNA "NEWSPAPER ANNIE" (ca. 1849-1 Feb.
PERKINS, EDNA BRUSH (25 Mar. 1880-11 Oct. 1930), social reformer and painter, organized and lectured for woman's suffrage (1912-20), chaired the Woman's Suffrage Party of greater Cleve.
PERKINS, JOSEPH (5 July 1819-26 Aug. 1885), businessman, philanthropist, and congressman in the U.S. House of Representatives the last two years of his life, was born in Warren, Ohio, to Simon and Nancy Bishop Perkins. He graduated from Marietta College in 1839, and returned to Warren to work for his father in the railroad business.
PERKINS, MAURICE (ca.1850-16 Oct. 1895), journalist, wrote for Cleveland's major newspapers before leaving for New York and Indiana. Perkins was probably born on a Michigan farm, although one account gives his birthplace as Cleveland.
PERKINS, ROBERT KENNETH (ca. 1936-11 Jan. 1993) was the founder of PERKINS SCHOOL OF PIANO TUNING AND TECHNOLOGY, the only such institution in Ohio and one of only about a handful of its kind in the United States.
PERKINS, ROGER GRISWOLD (17 May 1874-28 Mar. 1936), responsible for filtrating and chlorinating Cleveland's water, was born in Schenectady, N.Y., to Maurice and Anna D. (Potts) Perkins. He graduated from Union College (1893), Harvard with an A.B. (1894), and Johns Hopkins with a medical degree (1898), and came to Cleveland in 1898.
The PERRY MONUMENT commemorating the victory at the Battle of Lake Erie by Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry (1785-1819) was sculpted by Wm. Walcutt and dedicated on 10 Sept. 1860 in the center of Cleveland's PUBLIC SQUARE. Figures of a midshipman and a sailor boy, also sculpted by Walcutt, were placed on either side of it in 1869.
PERRY, ELEANOR (ROSENFELD-BAYER-PERRY) (13 Oct. 1914-14 March 1981) went from writing whodunits with her first husband in Cleveland to writing screenplays for her second husband in New York and Hollywood. A Cleveland native, she earned a B.A. and M.S. from WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY and married local attorney Leo G. Bayer.
PERRY, HILBERT W. (3 May 1922 - 20 Sept. 1997) was a civil rights worker and advocate for needy families and the rights of the elderly.
PERRY, SAMUEL V. (10 June 1895-14 May 1968), Cleveland lawyer, safety expert, and private investigator, was appointed as Ohio's first African American parole officer, in charge of Cuyahoga County parolees (1930-32). From 1932-48, Perry worked in various municipal offices, including the Streets Department (1933-47), and Municipal Court, first as clerk (1951-53), then information consultant (1953-64).
The PERRY-PAYNE BUILDING at 740 Superior Ave. W. was built in 1888-89 by HENRY B. PAYNE, prominent lawyer and railroad executive, who named it for himself and his wife, daughter of Nathan Perry, Jr. The building was occupied primarily by shipping and iron-ore company offices.
PERSIAN GULF WAR. Clevelanders felt shock and anger on 2 Aug. 1990, upon hearing news reports that Iraqi armies had invaded Kuwait. The aggression by the large, well-equipped army of Iraq against a small and all but defenseless neighbor enraged many Clevelanders, who saw Iraq as the proverbial bully.
PETERS, HARRY ALFRED (4 Aug. 1879-15 May 1961) doubled the enrollment, solidified the finances, and created a new campus for UNIVERSITY SCHOOL during his term as headmaster (1908-47, afterwards, headmaster emeritus). Under his administration, the school established its reputation as one of the area's top PRIVATE SCHOOLS.
PETERS, RICHARD DORLAND (29 May 1910-27 Oct. 1984) spent a major part of his journalistic career with the Scripps-Howard organization in his hometown of Cleveland. The son of Dr. Harry A. Peters, longtime headmaster of UNIVERSITY SCHOOL, "Dick" Peters graduated from Yale in 1932 and broke into journalism with the Washington Daily News.
PETRARCA, FRANK J. (31 July 1918-31 July 1943) Congressional Medal of Honor winner for service during WORLD WAR II was the son of Dominic and Bettina (Tondia) Petrarca. One of 10 children, Frank grew up in Cleveland, attending St. Marian's parochial school and graduating from East High School in 1938.
PETRASH, LOUIS (1 Jan. 1891-13 Oct. 1967), lawyer and municipal judge, was a member of CLEVELAND CITY COUNCIL from 1921-31, the first native-born Clevelander of Hungarian descent to be elected to public office. Petrash was born in Cleveland to Michael and Mary (Fesco) Petrash and attended St. Ignatius High School. He graduated with an A.B. and an A.M.
PETTIBONE OHIO CORP., A DIVISION OF THE PETTIBONE CORP., existed for many years as the Cleveland Frog & Crossing Co. Geo. C. Lucas and N. P. Bowler organized the Cleveland Frog & Crossing Co. in 1884 to produce their patented railroad frog which permitted a train traveling on one track to pass over an intersecting track.
PFLAG CLEVELAND is a support group for LGBTQ people, their parents, families, and friends that was founded in 1985 by Jane Daroff, a licensed clinical social worker, and Jes Sellers, a licensed psychologist. PFLAG Cleveland is a local chapter of the national organization Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays which was founded in 1973 and incorporated as a non-profit in 1981.
PHALEN, GEORGE S. (2 Dec. 1911-14 Apr. 1998) was a CLEVELAND CLINIC physician when he identified carpal tunnel syndrome. Born in Peoria, Il., he graduated from Bradley University in 1932. He earned a master's degree in anatomy and a medical degree at Northwestern University in 1937. Dr.
PHILANTHROPY. Philanthropy in Cleveland sprang from a strong basis in RELIGION.
The PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA was the first substantial orchestra in Cleveland drawing its members from the community. Although an earlier ensemble of the same name flourished ca. 1853-60, the orchestra in question was founded in 1881 by FERDINAND PUEHRINGER. Originally called the Philharmonic Society, it consisted of 30 amateur musicians augmented later with professionals.
The PHILHARMONIC STRING QUARTET was founded in 1886 by Geo. Lehman, A. Reinhardt, Julius Hermann, and Chas. Heydler (from the newly organized PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA). Its purpose was to bring to life the classics of music and to contribute to the cultural development of Cleveland. Concerts were given in Cleveland, Akron, Oberlin, Tiffin, and Erie.
PHILLIPS, (BISHOP) CHARLES HENRY (17 Jan. 1858-11 Apr.
PHILLIPS, JOHN (19 Feb. 1879-15 May 1929), physician, faculty member of Western Reserve University School of Medicine, and a founder of the CLEVELAND CLINIC FOUNDATION, was born in Welland, Ontario, Canada, the son of Robert and Ann Jane (McCullough) Phillips.
The PHILLIS WHEATLEY ASSOCIATION was established in 1911 in Cleveland as the Working Girls Home Association by JANE EDNA HARRIS HUNTER. Hunter created the Phillis Wheatley Association to house and help unmarried African American women and girls, newcomers to the North often preyed upon by unscrupulous employers or agencies.