Hough in Cleveland in Cuyahoga County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Charles Waddell Chesnutt

Photographed by Christopher Busta-Peck, April 4, 2009

1. Charles Waddell Chesnutt Marker

Inscription. Charles Waddell Chesnutt was born in Cleveland on June 30, 1858 and died November 15, 1932. He has been called "The pioneer of the color line" and was an author, crusader for racial and social justice, humanitarian, and forerunner of the Harlem Renaissance, a black literary movement from World War I through the mid-1930s. With the publication of The Conjure Woman in 1899, he emerged as the first person of acknowledged African descent to be published by an established publisher of the day. During his diverse career, Chesnutt operated a successful court reporting business, passed the Ohio Bar in 1887 with the highest score, championed the cause of equal rights for all people without regard to caste or color, and published six books: The Wife of His Youth and Other Stories of the Color Line, Frederick Douglas, The House Behind the Cedars, The Marrow of Tradition, and The Colonel's Dream.

Erected 2003 by the Ohio Bicentennial Commission, Cinergy Foundation, and the Ohio Historical Society. (Marker Number 59-18.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Arts, Letters, Music • Civil Rights

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. In addition, it is included in the Ohio Historical Society / The Ohio History Connection series list. A significant historical month for this entry is June 1874.

Location. Marker has been reported missing. It was located near 41° 30.52′ N, 81° 37.079′ W. Marker was in Cleveland, Ohio, in Cuyahoga County. It was in Hough. It was on Lamont Avenue 0.1 miles east of East 97th Street, on the left when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker was at or near this postal address: 100 East Blvd, Cleveland OH 44106, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker was on Ohio’s Lake Erie Shore

and in the Western Reserve.

It was also in the American Midwest

and on the Great Lakes.

Globally, it was in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it found itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this location: University Circle (approx. 0.3 miles away); University Circle's Central Park And Center Stage (approx. 0.3 miles away); Cleveland Museum of Natural History (approx. 0.3 miles away); Banded Iron Ore (approx. 0.3 miles away); University Circle District (approx. half a mile away); Fields of Ideals (approx. half a mile away); a different marker also named University Circle District (approx. half a mile away); University Hospitals (approx. 0.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Cleveland.

Regarding Charles Waddell Chesnutt. The spelling of Frederick Douglas is taken verbatim from the marker, rather than the standard spelling of his name (Frederick
Photographed by Christopher Busta-Peck, April 4, 2009

2. Charles Waddell Chesnutt Marker location
Douglass).

Also see . . . Charles W. Chesnutt and his works. (Submitted on April 4, 2009, by Christopher Busta-Peck of Shaker Heights, Ohio.)

Credits. This page was last revised on September 3, 2024. It was originally submitted on April 4, 2009, by Christopher Busta-Peck of Shaker Heights, Ohio. This page has been viewed 2,225 times since then and 19 times this year. Last updated on September 2, 2024, by Grant & Mary Ann Fish of Galloway, Ohio. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on April 4, 2009, by Christopher Busta-Peck of Shaker Heights, Ohio. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.