Warner and Swasey Observatory

The Warner and Swasey Observatory on Hanover Drive in East Cleveland was gifted to the Case School of Applied Sciences in 1919 by the Warner and Swasey telescope company. Unfortunately, by 1950 the inevitable growth of the urban landscape resulted in too much ambient light into the night sky and the  telescope had to be moved to Arizona.  The observatory continued to conduct astronomical research into the 1970s but the site was completely abandoned in 1982. In 2005, real estate mogul Nayyir Al Mahdi repurchased the property with plans of turning it into a luxury home. Two years later, he was convicted of fraud and sent to jail, putting a halt to all renovation efforts.  Today the observatory continues to stand off Taylor Road as a symbol of beauty and decay under the stars it once used to gaze upon.