In 1810, the first physician came to Cleveland to minister to the needs of the area’s 57 inhabitants. He ran a local store to supplement his income. 

By the late 1830s, there were two dozen physicians and surgeons. By the 1850s, first canals and then railroads connected the isolated market town to other major centers. In barely 40 years, a town established with less than 1,000 people grew to more than 40,000.

There was talk of a medical school.