Beginning in 1873, oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller purchased 700 acres in East Cleveland Township, now in East Cleveland and Cleveland Heights. A failed hotel built in 1874-1875 became the family’s summer home until fire destroyed it in 1917, though Rockefeller’s son John, Jr., continued visiting the grounds. The Rockefellers spent much of their time outdoors, enhancing the land’s natural beauty with carefully designed carriage, foot, and bridle paths, scenic views, lakes, a lily pond, stone bridges, a horse track, and a golf course. In 1923, John, Jr. bought all of his father’s Forest Hill property and continued acquiring adjacent land. In 1938, John D. Rockefeller, Jr. and his wife, Abbey, donated part of the estate to East Cleveland and Cleveland Heights as an intercity park for public use, and Cleveland landscape architect A. D. Taylor designed the 235-acre park, incorporating paths and features from the estate. Forest Hill Park was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998.
