Reminderville had a truly grass roots beginning. It wasn’t incorporated until 1955 and its history is a great story. In the post war years, families came from Cleveland’s industrial labor force to build homes on isolated land at the end of a country road. They could only get to this area off old Rt. 43 in Aurora. It was a swampy area just over the county line in Summit County between Geauga Lake and Aurora Lake. Old timers in this area used to trek through woods, bog and creeks to fish and hunt.
As more and more families moved in, their isolation caused a unique collaboration between families. Necessity required working together in all aspects of their lives. When the number of families reached 50 they had a harsh realization. Their homes and cottages were in Summit County, at the end of a gravel road, and dependent on Fire services miles away in Aurora Township of Portage County. That reality caused them to form their own Volunteer Fire Department in 1952 as an extension of the Aurora Fire Department.
That volunteer organization was, in essence, the beginning of Reminderville. This little fire department quickly became the center of increasing social activities. The Volunteers were supported by the Women’s Auxiliary. Their first fire engine was an obsolete vehicle from Aurora’s Fire Department and they needed other types of equipment. So they started having various benefit events that built the community spirit to new highs. The dances, pancake breakfasts, potluck dinners, became a way of life.
The families felt the future of the community depended on getting their road built west through to Twinsburg Township and that could only happen if they were incorporated as a Village. After a while they decided the name of their Village should reflect one of the larger family’s names. The two most active family names in the area were the Reminder’s and the Grimm’s. They chose Reminderville. In April 1955, they swore in their first village government. (Third picture down, right to left: Clement Reminder, Mayor; Al Schneider, Treasurer; Lillian Toomey, Clerk; and Frank Klossen, President of Council.)
By June of 1956 Summit County had agreed to extend the dead end Orchard Street off of Rt.. 43, through to Liberty Road to the west and it was named Glenwood Blvd. Thus access to the Village of Reminderville was created, the developers and new residents moved in and the growth hasn’t stopped.
Aurora Shores started building in the early ’70′s. In the 90’s came the Glenwood Point Apartments. In 2000 we really took off. In 2001,The Crossings at Pond Brook started with 116 families. And in 2004 Willowbrook began. The annexation agreements with Twinsburg Township, Twinsburg, and Summit MetroParks were worked out. The Reminderville Municipal Center was completed in May 2005. Crosswinds Court was started. The retail plaza started, as part of the annexation. The roundabout was put in 2010. Herrington Place grew quickly in the worst of economic times and Liberty Ledges is now also a part of the neighborhood. In the last 65 years, Reminderville has gone from being the “smallest village in Ohio” to being named the “fastest growing community in Summit County”. In 2020, the village became a city as declared by the 2020 census with 5, 412 residents. No longer the best kept secret but always a great place to call home.
If you have information, memorabilia, or photos pertaining to those early days, please contact City Hall at 330-562-1234
