Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States is divided into 21 townships.
When Cuyahoga County was founded, it was divided into civil townships for purposes of rural government, as were other Ohio counties. By 1990, this county was the most urbanized county in Ohio, and as a result, most of its townships have been annexed by the city of Cleveland or one of the other municipalities in Cuyahoga County. In Ohio, when the entirety of a civil township has been annexed by one or more municipalities, it ceases to have governmental powers and becomes a paper township, existing on maps, but possessing no governmental powers. Today, 19 of Cuyahoga County's townships are paper townships, with only a part of Olmsted Township and a tiny section of Chagrin Falls Township remaining as civil townships — just of Cuyahoga County's total area of .
Bedford Township
Although the land that became Bedford Township was bought by the Connecticut Land Company in 1795, no white settlers came until Elijah Nobles arrived in 1813, and the first permanent settler came only in 1821. The township was organized on April 7, 1823, and the city of Bedford was incorporated as a village on March 15, 1837. Throughout the rest of the century, the township remained an agricultural area with little industry, but major industries began to arrive in the early 20th century.
In 1915, the first political change occurred in the township since 1837, when Maple Heights was incorporated as a village. The rest of the township remained unincorporated until 1951, when it was divided between Bedford Heights, Oakwood, and Walton Hills. As of the 2000 census, these cities and villages had a total population of 57,812.
Brecksville Township
Brecksville Township was formed in 1807 and named for Massachusetts resident John Breck, the owner of significant lands in that vicinity. It included the modern community of Brecksville and part of Broadview Heights. The township was first settled in 1811 by the family of one Seth Payne, who came from Williamsburg, Massachusetts, and who was soon followed by several other families. Its first school was founded in 1814, with its first teacher being one of Payne's daughters. Within the township, the village of Brecksville was incorporated in 1921, and it gained the status of city in 1960.
Brooklyn Township
Brooklyn Township was organized on June 1, 1818. In its early years, it extended northward to Lake Erie, but most of the township incorporated into or was annexed by municipalities, the last of which was the city of Brooklyn in the southwest. Today, the township is divided between the cities of Brooklyn and Cleveland] and the villages of Brooklyn Heights, Cuyahoga Heights, Linndale, and Newburgh Heights.
Dover Township
In 1806, two residents of Dover, Connecticut purchased the northwestern corner township of Cuyahoga County and named it for their hometown. Although Europeans had visited the area before 1800, the first settlers did not arrive until 1810, a family from Vermont and a family from New York. The population grew rapidly; as early as the 1840 census, the township had a population of 960 people.
In the summer of 1901, the northern part of the township broke away and soon formed the village of Bay, which became Bay Village in 1950. Meanwhile, the village of Dover had been incorporated to the south of Bay in 1911. It, too, changed its name, in 1940, to Westlake. Today, most of the original Dover Township is divided between Bay Village and Westlake, although its southeastern portion has been part of North Olmsted since that village was incorporated in 1908.
East Cleveland Township
East Cleveland Township was organized in 1847 from the eastern end of the 1796 Cleaveland Township and the western end of Euclid Township. Part of the township incorporated as the village (now city) of East Cleveland in 1895. What had been this township today is divided between the village of Bratenahl parts of Cleveland, and the cities of Cleveland Heights, and East Cleveland.