Public Square
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- This article is about the plaza in Cleveland. For the concept, see town square.
Public Square is the central plaza in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, USA. It takes up four city blocks; Superior Avenue and Ontario Street cross through it. Cleveland's three tallest buildings, Key Tower, the BP Tower and the Terminal Tower, face the square. Other Public Square landmarks include the 1855 Old Stone Church and the former Higbee's department store made famous in the 1983 movie A Christmas Story.
A 125-foot monument to Civil War soldiers and sailors occupies the southeast quadrant of the square. City founder Moses Cleaveland and reformist mayor Tom L. Johnson each have statues on the square.
Public Square was part of the original plans for the city in the 1790s. It first served as a common pasture for settlers' animals. In 1879, Public Square became the first street in the world to be lit with electric street lights. The square was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 18, 1975.
Incongruously, a parking lot now faces the northwest quadrant of the square. A 12-story building was built on the spot in 1913. In 1990, the building was demolished so a 1,197-foot skyscraper could be built. But before construction began, the bank that was to be the building's main tenant was acquired by Society Bank, which was planning to relocate to the Key Tower (originally known as the Society Center). As Society did not need two skyscrapers, plans for the building on the west side of the square were scrapped.
U.S. routes 42, 322 and 422 and several Ohio state highways begin at Public Square. U.S. Route 6 passes through the square on Superior, and U.S. Route 20 enters from the west on Superior and leaves via Euclid Avenue.
Public Square is often the site of political rallies and civic functions, including a free annual Independence Day concert by the Cleveland Orchestra.
