Euclid History Museum, located at 21129 North St., is housed in the old North Street School which when opened in 1896 was the first high school of what was then Euclid Township.
Now the current president of the museum, Harrison McCreight, hopes to bring new life to the old building by way of making the once centrally located school a new gathering place for the community in general.
“We used to be open Tuesday to Saturday, 1-4,” McCreight said. “That was because of John Williams who was retired at that point and was able to be here every day. But we are young, and we have a lot to do so we can’t do the same.”
Williams was previously the president of the museum. He died in 2021.
Evan Botzki, vice president of the museum, also wants to see the museum play a larger role in the community as the area the school was in was once one of the major business centers in a Euclid that was much different than today.
“We know this isn’t a much-trafficked area,” he said. “This was the location of the old downtown Euclid. Being the intersection between Chardon Road and Euclid Avenue, I would describe it as downtown Willoughby, that’s kind of what it was like before.
“Before the buildings were razed and replaced with other things and now it’s all car dependent,” he added. “That’s why this is here; this was the central area in Euclid. This is where everyone came to meet, that kind of thing.
“The parking lot was the location of Old Town Hall before it burned down.”
Now the challenge that Botzki and the museum are facing is reminding the community of their history and the fact that the museum even exists.
“We are trying to take on a new lecture series, have people come in and give talks on what the community was like,” he said. “A spin-off that we really want to do is Black history. Considering the demographic of Euclid that is important. We want people to come here and feel like it’s for everyone. That’s our main goal.”
The museum is open from 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesdays. Anyone wanting to help the museum can check out their Facebook page.
