By Deanna Adams
President James A. Garfield and his wife, Lucretia, are among the most famous names in Mentor. However, there is another Garfield who is also a highly regarded figure in our history. She shares the same last name – not through DNA but through marriage – and also displayed her own brand of smarts, ambition, and a bold vision, that has had an impact on our city to this day.
History of a Dynamo
Eleanor Borton was born in 1899, the daughter of a Cleveland stockbroker. In the 1920s, she embraced the flapper craze; she enjoyed jazz music, dancing, exhibited a zest for life, and was a well-known and admired Cleveland socialite.
She served as the muse for Edward “Ned” Jordan, owner of Cleveland’s own Jordan Motor Company. At a country club function, she mentioned to him that she needed a car, but that they were all “too drab, too dark, too big, or too small,” thus inspiring the design of the Playboy Roadster in which she spirited around town.
Eleanor attended prestigious Brown University. After graduation, she returned to the area and married the President’s grandson, Rudolph H. Garfield, in 1925. The couple raised two children before her husband unexpectedly died at the age 47.
Throughout her lifetime, Eleanor was described as brilliant, pretty, energetic, ambitious, and a “girl of action.” The death of her husband seemed to motivate her even more. She soon opened up her own furniture refinishing business and became a member of the Mentor Girl Scout Council. When she learned the local Episcopal church didn’t have enough money for a steeple, she obtained a real-estate license, sold three homes, and paid for the steeple out of her commissions.
First Lady of Mentor
Garfield ran for mayor in 1952. The two men she ran against argued that they were more qualified. As it related to politics, that may have been true, but it didn’t stop her from running a vigorous and successful campaign. Mentor’s first, and only, female mayor served just one term, but her boundless energy and ambitious nature proved to be a great asset for our community.
She forged a reputation for getting the job done and has been referred to as our “industrial strength mayor” as well as the “iron lady” for her tough stance on issues concerning what was at the time, Ohio’s fastest-growing county.
Hands-on doesn’t even begin to describe her involvement in the community.
Once, she hid in the bushes of the Old Newell Estate (which later became Garfield Park) with Mentor’s police chief during a stake-out to gather evidence to break up an illegal gambling operation.
She also petitioned (although some would say, strong armed) then-governor C. William O’Neill to relocate the Lakeland Freeway (SR-2) to accommodate an industrial park along Tyler Boulevard between
SR-306 and SR-615. Ray Dawson, longtime Mentor builder/developer and planning commission member, helped her with that cause, as well as other endeavors.
This industrial corridor served as the foundation for Mentor’s economic growth and stability over the decades and was vital in funding the range of city services and facilities that we enjoy today.
There is no doubt, that Eleanor Garfield changed the face of Mentor, Ohio. She played an essential role in the development of property in our community as well as the consolidation of the Mentor Village and Township school districts. She also played a pivotal role in creating the park that is now named in her honor.
Eleanor B. Garfield Park
What was known as the Newell Estate was a 65-acre property located a block west of Lawnfield. The estate originally served as a summer resort for John Newell (brother of Helen Newell Garfield, wife of Garfield’s second son, James R.). The family sold the property in the 1940s. It was eventually abandoned by subsequent owners and the home (located where the swimming pool is today), fell into disrepair before being destroyed in a fire. The old carriage house still stands and is used by the City’s parks department.
A citizens group, led in part by Eleanor, directed the charge to raise funds to purchase the property for the establishment of a private community park. The result of their efforts became Mentor Recreation Park.
The city of Mentor purchased the park in 1980 and renamed it in Eleanor’s honor. Her grace and wry sense of humor cut through while accepting the honor. “I’m alive and get to see my name on a park,” she quipped, “Usually they do this type of thing once you are dead.”
Today, Garfield Park is one of the City’s most-utilized public spaces with an outdoor pool, playground, baseball/softball diamonds, basketball court, picnic pavilion, five-acre fishing pond, soccer fields, lighted tennis courts, barrier-free restrooms, and a wildlife area.
After retiring to South Carolina in her later years, Eleanor B. Garfield moved back to northeast Ohio in 1991 to be closer to family. She died on June 30, 1994 at the age of 95 and is buried near her husband in Mentor Municipal Cemetery.
She was a colorful, driven, innovative, and effective leader in a time when it was considered a man’s world and her impact on our community is felt to this day.
This article originally appeared in Mentor City Magazine 2020.