So far the Plain Dealer and the Herald newspapers have been mentioned. If, as stated below, the Advertiser was the first newspaper, it seems the most likely candidate. Whether lacking an "a" one day or having a type-fitting problem, the fact is that it was changed to the present version. Or was it? I don't know about this particular case, but before about 1880 I find that many of my ancestors were appearing as Cleaveland, Cleeveland, Clevland, you name it. Consistent spelling of names was not such a big deal then. Most of the time we see Cleveland though, even way back when, and even moreso today. I think it's simply the spelling that most people liked and/or decided to settle for. Perhaps even Captain Moses spelled it that way sometimes. On his statue in the City of Cleveland, however, it is spelled "Cleaveland." The following is from this US Army Corps of Engineers site, which also has a photo of Moses' statue in Cleveland: <http://www.hq.usace.army.mil/history/vignettes/vignette_10.htm> "Moses Cleaveland (1754-1806) served during the American Revolution as a captain in one of the three companies of Sappers and Miners in the Corps of Engineers. A native of Connecticut, Cleaveland graduated from Yale University before entering the Army as a lieutenant in 1777. After the war Cleaveland practiced law, rose to the rank of brigadier general in the Connecticut militia, was a delegate to the state convention to ratify the U.S. Constitution, and served for more than 18 years in the general assembly. Cleaveland took a special interest in western land speculation. He was one of 36 investors who formed the Connecticut Land Company in 1795 to develop 3.3 million acres in Connecticut’s Western Reserve (located in the northeast corner of present-day Ohio). Cleaveland became one of the company’s directors and superintendent-in-charge of surveying and settling the territory. In 1796, he led a party of 52 persons to negotiate with local Indian tribes, survey the land, and identify purchases. That July, General Cleaveland landed at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River. Observing the surrounding country and proximity to the river and Lake Erie he decided it was an excellent location for a town. Cleaveland had the area laid out in lots and the members of his party named it Cleaveland in his honor. The town grew slowly at first; the population reached only 150 by 1820. But Moses Cleaveland’s little town on the Cuyahoga was destined to become one of the leading cities of the region. Legend has it that when Cleveland's first newspaper, The Cleveland Advertiser, was established in 1830, the editor dropped the "a" from Cleaveland’s name in order to fit the masthead on the page -- the change stuck." -rex cleveland