Remarkable Ohio

Counties

Below is a complete listing of all Ohio Historical Markers. To find a detailed marker listing including text, photographs, and locations, click on a county below. Our listing is updated by the markers program as new markers are installed and older markers are reported damaged or missing.

ALERT (June 2023): This marker has been temporarily removed. We will update our website when we receive additional information.

86-18 Cleveland East Ohio Gas Explosion

Side A: At 2:30 p.m. on Friday, October 20, 1944, an above ground storage tank that held liquefied natural gas in the East Ohio Gas Company’s tank farm began to emit vapor from a seam on the side of the tank that dropped into nearby sewer lines. It mixed with air and sewer gas and ignited, resulting in explosions and fires that brought damage to nearly one square mile of Cleveland neighborhoods. With 79 homes and two factories destroyed, nearly 700 people were left homeless, 131 killed, and 225 injured. The East Ohio Gas Company took responsibility for this tragedy to aid those in need through direct financial assistance and by rebuilding the community. The disaster also led to a movement by public utilities and communities across America to store natural gas below ground without tanks.
Side B: Same
Sponsors: East 61st Area North Action Group and The Ohio Historical Society
Address: Grdina Park, Grdina Avenue, 
Cleveland, 
OH, 
44122
Location: Between E 61st Street and E 62nd Street
Latitude: 41.5258879
Longitude: -81.6501143