I think it’s time to set the record straight. My name is Adam Bradford Cleaveland. Yes, many people leave the infamous “a” out. Is it annoying? Sure. Do you get used to it? Yah. But people sometimes as, “Why the ‘a’?” Some even have the audacity to declare their version (Cleveland) is the correct one; after all, how do you spell the city in Ohio? With no “a”!
However, the truth is now here. The above photo (click on it) is taken in Cle(a)veland, Ohio and in the picture you will see a distant relative of mine: Moses Cleaveland. And if you read the inscription on the statue, it reads: “Gen. Moses Cleaveland: Founder of the City: 1796.” My relative, a Cleaveland with the infamous “a” is actually the founder of Cleaveland, OH. Then the family story of the town originally being named Cleaveland, and the name being one letter too long for the newspaper masthead, and then having the extra “a” dropped off so it could fit for the newspaper — it’s all true! I can sleep now.