CLIFFTON TOWN HALL - 1881

MEET CLIFFTON'S MAYOR

Charlotte Cliff was elected Mayor of Cliffton, Ohio in November of 1988 running as an Independent candidate with support that ranged throughout the community-- from the Cliffton Chapter of Americans For Family Values to the leadership of the Cliffton Gay and Lesbian Coalition. Now, as then, she strives to unite the citizens of this community in order to maintain the standard of the "Cliff Social Contract" initiated by her ancestor, Clifford Cliff, when he founded Cliff College and Township in 1849.

Mayor Cliff has spent almost all of her life here in Cliffton, having graduated from Cliffton High School in 1969 and Cliff College in 1973 with a degree in Political Science. She has stated that her passion for the possibilities of true democracy was probably a genetic tendency, given her family history, but was certainly brought to life during the spring and summer she spent in Greece, the cradle of Democracy, in 1970. She had always planned on continuing her studies abroad, but, following the tragic death of her twin brother, Clifford Cliff V, and his wife in 1978, Charlotte devoted herself to raising their twin children, Carly and Clifford Cliff VI, and to the community of Cliffton.

In 1982, Charlotte acquired and renovated the Cliffton Cinema. In 1984, she won the seat on the Cliffton Council from which she waged her now legendary campaign for community involvement in the Cliffton schools. Her plan for cooperation between the private sector and the school district has led to the enormous success of Cliffton's students and has become a paradigm for such efforts in communities throughout the nation. In 1990, she was recognized by President Bush as a "Thousand Points of Light kinda gal."

Mayor Cliff hopes to continue her work for her beloved hometown as its elected leader for many years to come and invites people from all over America and the world to come and see what she's so proud of.