Mentor ( ; Locally, ) is a city in Lake County, Ohio, United States, located on the south shore of Lake Erie. A suburb northeast of Cleveland, it is part of the Greater Cleveland metropolitan area; its population of 47,450 at the 2020 census makes it the largest city in Lake County.
Mentor was settled in 1797. In 1876, James A. Garfield purchased a home there, from which he conducted the first successful front porch campaign for the presidency; the house is now maintained as the James A. Garfield National Historic Site. The city is home to Headlands Beach State Park, the longest public swimming beach in Ohio.
The city is a major center of retail stores and restaurants. Mentor Avenue (US 20) is the city's commercial corridor, which includes Great Lakes Mall, and additional shopping is found along most major roads. Manufacturing in the city includes medical products, polymers, plastics, electric boards, and other peripherals that generally serve the computer and automation industries. Convenient Food Mart and medical equipment company Steris are based in Mentor. CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern railroads both pass through the city.
Name
Mentor is named after the Greek figure Mentor, in keeping with the Connecticut Western Reserve settlers' tradition, as well as that of most other Americans at the time, of celebrating aspects of Greek classicism. Nearby Solon, Macedonia, Euclid, and Akron received similar historic names.
The pronunciation of Mentor varies, with many residents pronouncing it as "men-ner" and outsiders using the more conventional "men-tore", while in the media and among most residents, "men-ter" is prominent. The city's former slogan, "It's better in Mentor," reflects this fact.
History
thumb|left|[[20th Century Limited derailment, 1905]]
Mentor was founded in the late eighteenth century by Charles Parker, who built the first settlement in 1797.
Ohio became the 17th state in the Union in 1803. The community was formally established in 1855, and earned the nickname "Rose Capital of the Nation" due to the abundant rosebushes that grew throughout the city. During the time this nickname developed, Mentor's tourist industry boomed due to Clevelanders trying to escape a dirty, industrial atmosphere. With the post-World War II spread of the automobile, Mentor saw an increase in middle and working-class families. By 2000, about 50,000 people lived in the city.
Flag
The flag of the City of Mentor was designed by Brad Frost in 1988 for a contest by Mentor Headlands. The flag's appearance resembles the State of Ohio's, with a similar shape, a large blue triangle, and stripes. The blue triangle represents Ohio's hills while the stripes represent roads and waterways. There is a white circle, symbolizing Ohio, with a Northern cardinal, the official bird of Ohio and Mentor, sitting in the middle. There are six stars surrounding the circle symbolizing the 6 original townships, including Mentor, surveyed in 1797.
Geography
thumb|Mentor Marsh Nature Preserve
Mentor is a suburb of Cleveland and is located on the south shore of Lake Erie. The Mentor Headlands area of Mentor, located in the northeast portion of the city, was settled in 1797 by Connecticut Land Company surveyors.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water.
Climate
The average temperature in Mentor is 49.90 °F which is comparable to the Ohio average temperature of 50.88 °F but lower than the national average of 54.45 °F. The annual average for precipitation is 42.87 inches which is higher than the national and state average, Mentor averages 93.4 days with more than .1 inches of rain. This is higher than Ohio's average of 80 days. Mentor expects about 61.25 days with 1 or more inches of snow. The wind average is 18.61 mph and humidity is 75.82%.