PEPPER PIKE - The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History

PEPPER PIKE, originally part of Orange Twp., incorporated as a village on 1 Oct. 1924 and as a city in 1970. It is located 13 miles east of Cleveland and bounded by LYNDHURST and MAYFIELD HEIGHTS on the north, HUNTING VALLEY on the east, WOODMERE, ORANGE, and MORELAND HILLS on the south, and BEACHWOOD on the west, and occupies 7 sq. mi. In 1815 the first pioneers began settling in Orange Twp. (organized in 1820), which included the modern communities of Pepper Pike, Orange, Moreland Hills, Hunting Valley, and Woodmere. The origin of this city's name remains unknown, although some say that an early settler's name was Pepper. The area developed during the first 100 years primarily as a farming community (see AGRICULTURE), and by the late 1880s, cheesemaking had become the primary INDUSTRY. Although still rural at the turn of the century, the Chagrin Falls-Cleveland interurban railway made the community accessible to the city (see INTERURBANS). As the population increased, with development by ORIS P. AND MANTIS J. VAN SWERINGEN† and others in the 1920s, so did the need for more local government representation. Residents of northern Orange Twp. voted to separate and form the village of Pepper Pike. The city of Pepper Pike operated under the mayor-council form of government. The population was 6,200 by 1995, contracting slightly to 6,040 in 2000. Pepper Pike is part of the Orange School District. Pepper Pike is home to URSULINE COLLEGE, various recreational facilities, and the Orange Branch of the CUYAHOGA COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY SYSTEM (CCPL).

Fant, Kathleen Griffin. Orange Township . . . Orange Community, a History from 1815 to 1924 (1982), Orange Community Historical Society.

See also SUBURBS.

Related Article(s)

• SUBURBS