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Local History

History & Genealogy Programs
Wed, Oct 23, 7:00pm - 8:30pm
Dover Room
Knowing a little bit about fashion trends and styles can help narrow down when those hard-to-date family photographs were taken.

Sun, Oct 27, 3:00pm - 5:00pm
Porter Room
Women in History brings you the renown Gossip Mavens, Hedda Hopper and Louella Parsons, as they take you on a journey through the Golden Age of Hollywood. (Sorry, no hair pulling aloud!)​

Tue, Nov 05, 7:00pm - 8:30pm
Porter Room
Representatives from the Cleveland History Center will present on the experiences of America's Doughboys in the trenches of Europe during World War I.

Wed, Nov 06, 7:00pm - 8:30pm
Porter Room
Suzanne Seifert takes us through the ways we can discover the history of our homes using various records available to homeowners.

Fri, Nov 08, 2:00pm - 4:00pm
Porter Room
Join us at the library as we honor our veterans with a coffee reception and light refreshments.

History in the Blogs

Check out some posts about history— from old Dover township to the world— on our blog site. Our knowledgeable staff loves sharing information!

Dover Township Trustees and City Council Minutes and Legislation

Denise Rosenbaum, Clerk of Council for the City of Westlake, digitized all the existing copies of the Dover Township Trustees minutes and City Council minutes and legislation and made them available online through the city’s website. The Dover Township minutes date from the years 1831-1893 and the City Council minutes and legislation date from 1910 to the present.

The minutes and legislation can be found by going to the portion of the city’s website that houses its documents.

  • Under the dropdown list under Select Search Type choose “CNL - Legislation/Minutes - Web Access.”
  • Next, scroll down until you find the box labeled Meeting Type. There you will type either “Dover Township Trustees” or "Council."
  • Finally, click Search and all the digitized minutes and/or legislation documents will be available for you to read.

You can view the transcriptions here as PDFs in four volumes, plus a record of Dover Township officials.

These documents provide a unique view of the city’s history.

Westlake 175th Anniversary Quilt

The North Coast Needlers Guild members made a special quilt to commemorate Westlake's 175th anniversary in 1986. The quilt is on permanent display in the Quiet Room of Westlake Porter Public Library and available for viewing during regular library hours.

  • Full quilt on display at WPPL
  • Central panel landscape
  • Dover Center School
  • Dover Congregational Church
  • The Phillips "Union House" Hotel
  • The Dover Methodist Church
  • Village Pump
  • The Clague House
  • The First General Store
  • Brick Yard and Tile Plant
  • Old Porter Library
  • Steam-powered Grist Mill
  • Quilters
leftright

History of the Library

Leonard G. Porter's signaturephoto of Leonard G. PorterIn 1884, Leonard Porter, a school teacher and a leader in the Dover Literary Society, bequeathed $1,000 and his collection of personal books to form a library for the citizens of Dover Township (now Westlake).

 

The first building to house the newly established library was a former saloon bought by the library trustees in 1886. It was located on Center Ridge Road next to the town hall. This building served as the home of the library for over 60 years until the size of the building could no longer keep up with the growing demands and population of the City of Westlake.  

5 photos of the library building through the years

In 1952 the library relocated to the former Ohio Bell Trinity Exchange at 27059 Center Ridge Road. An addition was completed in 1961. This location served as home to the library throughout the 1960s, 1970s, and the early 1980s. 

In August 1985 the library moved into its new (and current) home at 27333 Center Ridge Road. The library moved into a temporary facility in 1999 as the building underwent a needed renovation and expansion. In 2002 the library moved back into its newly renovated home. 

 
 

In 2009, we celebrated 125 years of service to the Westlake community. This video, 125 Years of Sharing Stories, was part of that celebration.

Girl looking at a computer

Download & Stream

Girl looking at a computer

Download & Stream

adults in library

Adults

adults in library

Adults

Kris delivers in the library van

Outreach & Homebound

Kris delivers in the library van

Outreach & Homebound

foreign language materials from CPL

Language Resources

foreign language materials from CPL

Language Resources