“Fun facts to know and tell.” From time to time, to get a feel for the residents of the City of Cleveland in 1850 and 1860, I have been paging through the U.S. Federal Censuses for those years. Predictably, there are plenty of people from the eastern states, from Germany and Ireland. But another place of origin that pops up frequently is “Isle of Man.”
I decided to investigate, and I didn’t have to look far. At the Genealogy Pages of Isle of Man I found a 100-year anniversary report that states the following: “at this time (1926) Cleveland is quoted as having the largest number of Manx people, and those descended from the Manx, of any place in the United States.”
A “Mona’s Relief Society” was even set up to help immigrants get on their feet once they arrived in town. The write-up on the Genealogy Pages indicates the first arrivals bought farmland in Warrensville. But the census indicates plenty of Isle of Man immigrants also resided in the city.
For various documents and information about the Ohio Manx population, click here.