The Cleveland Centennial half dollar is a commemorative United States half dollar struck at the Philadelphia Mint in 1936 and 1937, though all bear the earlier date. Sometimes known as the Cleveland Centennial Great Lakes Exposition half dollar, it was issued to mark the 100th anniversary of Cleveland, Ohio, as an incorporated city, and in commemoration of the Great Lakes Exposition, held in Cleveland in 1936. In the mid-1930s, commemorative coins were increasing in value, and Cincinnati businessman Thomas G. Melish, a coin collector, lobbied Congress to authorize several new issues, of which he would be the sole distributor. He was successful with the Cincinnati Musical Center half dollar, from which he profited greatly, and with the Cleveland piece. Brenda Putnam designed the Cleveland coin, which was approved by the Commission of Fine Arts after suggestions by sculptor Lee Lawrie. Melish distributed the Cleveland coins through the exposition, at local banks, and by mail order from his office in Cincinnati. Sales were good, and the full authorized mintage of 50,000 was struck. Congress had inserted safeguards in the legislation to curb excessive profits, and though some of the coins were minted in 1937, there was no change of date, meaning collectors would have to purchase only one piece to have a complete set. Thousands remained in dealer inventories for years, and the coins remain inexpensive by the standards of commemorative coins of the era. Background After the American Revolutionary War, the area known as the Western Reserve, now in eastern Ohio, was the subject of dispute among the states, several of which claimed it as part of their territory. Although political rights to the area were given up to the federal government, Connecticut kept land ownership and used part of its holdings to resettle those whose homes had been destroyed by the British during the war. The remainder was sold to the Connecticut Land Company in 1795. Moses Cleaveland was a surveyor, a lawyer, and one of the company's directors. In 1796, by the shores of Lake Erie, he set out a townsite that came to bear his name. In 1830, a newspaper was founded, to be called the Cleaveland Advertiser. The editor found the name one character too long to fit in the printing form and dropped the first "a" in Cleaveland — a change that was adopted by the public. The town of Cleveland became a city in