Historic Akron, Ohio Pictures

Akron, Ohio! When said to someone from Florida, California, Boston, New York City, etc., they may say, "I've heard of that place. Isn't it somewhere around Cleveland?" But for those of us that have been raised in Akron, we know where it is...and how important it has been to the growth of America.

Akron is where the rubber industry began. There was a time when every single automobile, truck, trailer and bus rode on tires that came from Akron, Ohio. Akron was the rubber capital of the world.

AA was founded there by Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob. It was actually founded on the estate of one of Akron's rubber barons, Franklin Seiberling. It's ironic because Frank Seiberling himself didn't drink. One of his daughters-in-law got together with these men to form the organization.

Akron had it's own airport. The Rubber Bowl was, and is, in Akron. At one time, in the 1890s, Akron had no less than 209 rubber companies that made everything from tires and tubes to shoe souls and rubber bands.

There was a time around the turn of the 20th century that, if you lived in Akron, you could buy anything and everything that you needed right there. Akron was a leading farming community at that time. 30 to 40 percent of the citizens in and around Akron were farmers. 60 percent of the residents of Akron worked at several rubber factories. Goodyear, B.F. Goodrich, Seiberling, Firestone, General, Mohawk, Diamond, and several others. Akron was divided into sections such as the Italian section, German village, the Irish section and so on. In the early 1900s, the population of West Virginia dropped terribly as thousands flocked to Akron for jobs in the rubber industry. Akron was jokingly referred to as "Little West Virginia". The fact was, the highway between Ohio and West Virginia was filled every weekend with cars of West Virginians heading home on Friday nights to visit family and returning on Sunday. To house their employees, Harvey Firestone and Frank Seiberling built complete residential areas. Firestone Park and Goodyear Heights were created and homes could be purchased by the company's employees for very low prices. Frank Seiberling, of Goodyear Rubber Company had a clause in his home buyer's agreement that stated if an employee was injured on the job, became ill or had a family emergency that required them to miss work, that buyer's house payments would stop until they were able to return to work. Then the payments would continue. This way, no Goodyear employee would have to worry about losing their family's home.

Quaker Oats was only one of a few mills in Akron that produced cereal. In the 1860s, Quaker Oats contracted with the U.S. Government to supply union troops with cereal.

The trucks for streetcars all over the United States came from Akron. (Trucks were the wheel frames for streetcars and railroad cars).

Sewer pipe was made in Akron. O.C. Barber's match company began in Akron. Later he would move it to neighboring Barberton.

The famous Goodyear Blimp was manufactured in Akron at the Akron Airdock. Many other blimps were made there as well.

Movie stars, sports figures, senators, governors and others were born and raised in Akron. And many celebrities came to Akron to be a part of the All American Soap Box Derby. We have even had several motion pictures filmed in Akron.

I could go on and on about Akron's history. But the city today is a sad example of it's former self. A town that was once so prosperous is now no different than any other community. The University of Akron has taken over most of the downtown area. If someone did not wish to sell their property to Akron U, the university simply took it. Now we have a big football stadium sitting in downtown like a huge white elephant. The landscape down there is mostly plain, drab apartment complexes for students. Akron U even owns the historic Quaker Oats building and it too is apartments for students.

I thought that progress was supposed to improve an area. That sure didn't happen in Akron. That's why we moved to Tallmadge.

But with that said, let's forget about the Akron of today for a little while and head back to the Akron of yesterday. The Akron that most of us "old-timers" remember. There's a lot of photos here of the city that will be before your time. But many will remember the buildings of your childhood. And remember, this is a two-page blog. Remember to look at page-2 for more pictures. So, let's get started...

Letter recieved 9-21-2010

Hi, there, Mr. Ed,

Thank you for all the work you've done collecting photos and creating a timeline for Akron. It's been quite a trip down memory lane. It was interesting to realize all the crisp, fresh memories that are still in my head.

I was born and raised in Akron. I remember when they ripped the trolleys up. It made me so sad that I cried. It still makes me sad, especially now that I know the history of that time, that the oil barons bought them up and tore up the tracks so that people would be forced to buy cars to get around. How nice those trolleys were! So convenient, so friendly.

I remember Polsky's (and O'Neil's, too -- are they still there?) and lots of smaller stores that my grandmother took me to, like Darago's, where she could indulge her love of hot pepper and fiery chili. Or was that the butcher shop/deli that my grandfather carried me to on his shoulders, and where he'd buy me a big pickle from time to time? I know the butcher shop/deli was just up the street from Leda Place, where we lived, on Spicer as I recall. We moved when I-76 was built long, long ago.

One grandfather worked on the line at Goodrich, one at Firestone, and one grandmother worked at Sun Rubber. My grandfathers told me about having to work 22 hours a day if they wanted to keep their jobs. (I assume that was during the Depression, but I don't know that.) They told me how the men would take turns catching a few winks in the broom closet, and cover for each other when the supervisor would come through. They didn't say much about the time of union formation, except that there was violence against the strikers, and against the scabs. If I ever get a breather, I want to learn about that time -- if I dare. It sounds really painful.

My uncle (and later, his sons) drove truck for many of those tire deliveries all over the country. I remember his excitement when he got his first truck driving job when he got out of the Army. I remember his telling me how he had to drive as many miles as possible in order to keep his job, and how hard it was to stay awake. He showed me the small cotton tube that the men would take out of the inhalers (for sinus congestion) and chew on to help stay awake. They had Benzedrine in them, what we now know as an "upper." That was the beginning of my uncle's drug addiction -- although no one called it that in those days. Benzedrine was legal then, and there were no regulations that gave the drivers so many hours off to sleep, and then they had to keep a log. His boss made him keep two, one for the regulators, and the real one for the boss. He said that was the hardest part of his job!

I remember the Soap Box Derby, and what a big deal was made of it. I felt left out (I was only a girl, in those days when there was a lot of deprivation built into that). I was really impressed until my dear friend Frank Conrad was hit by a car and killed in his soapbox car. I remember the Goodyear blimp always hanging around. It even followed me when I moved! (or so it seemed -- I know it was just everywhere.)

Most of those photos date from before my time, but I seem to have my own memory photos!

I attended the University of Akron initially. I stayed in Orr House (you can imagine the jokes people made about that name!), the first women's dorm, and went to classes in the morning and evening, so I walk to work at Western Union downtown from 11 - 7pm. In those days, you could smoke in classes that were not the older wood buildings. And most people did -- can you imagine? How did we all breathe??

My roommate was from Asbury Park, NJ, and she is what was then called Negro, although the nomenclature was shifting to "colored," and some were beginning to call themselves "black." There was a lot of discussion about that. It was the beginning of a new era, and I was so very blessed to draw Tina as a roommate. Disciplined, hardworking, intelligent, patient, affectionately humorous and kind, she was a godsend to the scrawny and ill-bred waif that I was. She turned the course of my life around, with love and amusement. "Get up, Long! This place is a wreck, and today is the day to get clean and organized!" she would announce every Saturday morning at (what seemed to me to be) the crack of dawn. She single-handedly raised my consciousness about AfroAmericans (or is it "people of color" now?), without that's ever being anyone's intention. She was just trying to help me learn about life (and trying to get me to do my half of the work she saw that had to be done!). I had met only one black person prior to college. I find it most amusing that, before getting to know my college classmates, I thought "they all looked alike"! That was an amazing opportunity, and I will always be grateful. Those memories of my ignorance help me to be tolerant of others who were not so fortunate.

One of my memories of the beautiful and well-architected dorm at the University was of a delicious spring day, blue skies, gentle warm breeze, which invited opening a window first thing. Upon my return from my morning classes, in preparation for going to work, I decided to shut the window, in case of rain. For some reason I wiped the windowsill, and was shocked to see on my hand the oily black smear of carbon black that had fallen in the two hours I had been at class that Monday. (I know it was clean before, because Tina saw to that on Saturday!) That was before the EPA existed, and before scrubbers or catalytic converters. AND there was lead in the gasoline!

I remember Akron as an excruciatingly dirty place, growing up, from the polluted air to the sewer gas along my walk to elementary school. Not as bad as Steubenville, with its brown-leaved trees and almost opaque windows, but not clean.

You know, most of my memories of Akron make me remember why I couldn't wait to get out of there, and the xenophobia of my high school classmates and much of my family reminds me how much better my life is as a result of having left. The contrast you've presented does my heart good. Thank you, Mr. Ed!

Yours truly,

Lucy

City Hospital. 1898. Several of the city's wealthy citizens banded together in the early 1890s and gathered enough funds to buy and convert the East Market Street home of Dr. S. W. Bartges into the first city hospital. The first patients were admitted to the Bartges mansion in late 1892. Operations were performed wherever room could be found, including in the alcove at the head of the stairs. While the wealthy residents of Akron were the main contributors to the funding and purchasing of the City Hospital, its opening aroused much interest in the citizens and many groups made contributions not only of money, but also of linens, food supplies, and other practical items.

Here are the newspapers that could be read in Akron...all before 1854

The home of O.C. Barber on East Market Street, across from John F. Seiberling's house, in Akron, Ohio. Barber began working at his father's Barber Match Factory at age 15, eventually becoming the president of the company and consolidating 37 other match factories to create Diamond Match. Barber relocated the company from Akron to Barberton in 1894, where it produced 250 million matches a day. For this reason, Barber was often referred to as "the Match King." In addition to Diamond Match, Barber pursued many other successful business ventures, including his 3,500 acre Anna Dean Farm in Barberton, Ohio. In 1909, Barber channeled some of his great wealth into the construction of an extravagant 50,000 square foot, 52 room mansion just outside the city limits of Barberton, Ohio.

Letter Recieved 11-7-2015, "Thank You"

Somehow I stumbled on your bog. I cried. Thank you so much. One of my first memories is going 'downtown' with my Grandma to go to Polskys Department Store ( it was on Main Street close to the Viaduct from North Hill). I remember the first time I saw the Street Cars rounding the corner at Main and Market. I was born and grew up in Stow and during the War (Mom worked at the Ravenna Arsnel and Dad was in the Navy)lGrandma would take my sis and I downtown once a week and have waffles at the Georgian Room in O'Neil's In the 50's my sister and I went to movies (there was a bus that went from Akron to Ravenna a couple times a day. My first date was at Lowes Theater, but my sis and I frequented the Colonial and Strand also. The bus station used to be where the Edison building was, just across the bridge from North Hill. Anyway, didn't mean to reminisce, we old people do that lots. I moved away the summer of 1959 and when I came home in 1961 Akron was dying. I moved to Chicago in 1981 and Akron was all but dead. General Tire and a few small Goodyear plants were all that was left. I still resent that the Akron I loved is gone and will never come back. Still have my memories. Thanks again.......Marge ~

Letter Recieved 10-14-2010

BLESS YOU, MR. ED!!!
My friend, Kevin in Akron sent me the email with the Akron pics. I lived in Akron all my life (48 years) until 8 years ago, and moved to Jacksonville, FL, and now St. Augustine which is the oldest city in USA. Big tourist town. I'm a pianist, and there is tons of work for me here.
I send this with tears of joy. It was a fun game to scroll down, not exposing the picture title, and guessing what each picture was of. I could probably name about 70% of them. But, interesting enough, I FOUND MY MOTHER IN THE PICTURE of Buchtel's class. She was a midget, and was no doubt, standing on books for that picture. Second row, far left. My father is buried in Glendale Cemetery.
The old Robinson house belonged to the Robinson Rubber family, making rubber floor tiles. Then selling the formula to Goodrich. The mansion was eventually renovated and became "The Florence Critenden Home (for unwed mothers)", housing young unmarrieds in from across the USA to secretly have their babies and put them up for adoption, mostly by affluent families that the girls brought shame to. Most were have rumored to be "visiting their aunt" during the pregnancy. Last I knew, it was Steinway Hall when I moved in 2002.
The Hotel Akron, I believe, is the old Portage Hotel, that my ex's mother used to run as head housekeeper. They lived in the hotel. My aunt-in-law was then put in that hotel when it became Portage Manor (nursing home).
I used to play with a little girl who's parents were the caretakers of the Perkins Mansion, living in the servant's house behind the main building. I remember playing tag through the rose gardens, and swimming in the pool, before they filled it in.
I easily identified John Brown's home from the cobblestone wall, which we would balance carefully as we walked across them on our way the back entrance of the Zoo, cutting through the woods.
I graduated from Buchtel in 1972.
My step-father worked at Seiberling Rubber.
I thank you for taking such great time to share this over the internet. Who'dathunkit that you would be touching someone's heart in FL!!!?

Jamie

This photo was taken at the turn of the century when Akron's original street car tracks were being refurbished to carry heavier modern electric street cars. Akron's original horse drawn "Herdics" began operation in 1883 but were soon replaced by electric cars, one of which is seen here. The Empire House, built in 1847 and long the city's finest hotel, had lost some of its bloom by the time this photo was taken and would be replaced by the Portage Hotel in 1912. The Portage Hotel would be torn down in the middle 1990s

A few facts about Akron's History...

INDUSTRY

1874

3,349,500 gallons of stoneware were dug out of the ground.

2,365,716 bushels of coal were mined.

540 tons of stoves were manufactured.

1,000 tons of car wheels were produced.

(Car wheels for trains & streetcars).

7,000 tons of bar & nail rod iron were produced.

15 steam engines were built.

45 steam boilers were built.

10,100 mowing and reaping machines were built and shipped to the Pacific Coast, the Sandwich Islands, South America and Europe plus some stayed to be used locally.

1891 - 28,919 mowers and reapers were sold.

A few of Akron's earliest companies:

A. Rice Foundry

Akron Silver Plate

Akron Selle Gear Co.

Whitman & Barns Co. Knife Works

J. C. McNeil Co. (Boilers)

Burger Iron & Wire Works

Akron Paint & Varnish

Baker, McMillen & Co.

Akron Porcelain & Plastics Co.

Renner Brewery

Burkhardt Brewery

Thomas Phillips & Co.

Biggs Boiler Works

Robinson Brothers $ Co. (Sewer pipe, clay products)

RUBBER COMPANIES

B.F. Goodrich (India Rubber Co.) 1870s

Diamond Rubber Co. 1894. Originally Sherbondy Rubber Co. Organized by O.C. Barber. It merged with B.F. Goodrich in 1912.

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. 1898. The Goodyear clock tower was constructed in 1915.

Firestone Tire & Rubber Co. 1900

General Tire Co. Founded by Will O'Neil in 1915. He was the son of M. O.Neil of O'Neil's Department Store.

Seiberling Rubber Co. Founded by Frank Seiberling in 1921 in Barberton.

Rubber Company Employment

1920 - 75,000

After the panic of 1920 - Less than 20,000

1930 - 58,000

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First telephone company - 1877.

By 1920 Akron had between 80 to 120 millionaires.

By 1834 Akron had 746 miles of streets.

321 miles were paved, but 425 still were not.

Kenmore area began in 1901. The center of Kenmore Boulevard was used for streetcar tracks.

In 1891 Akron had four fire stations:

Church St., downtown. Middlebury, Maple St., and Thornton St.

POPULATION

1874 - 10,006

1891 - 27,601

1900 - 42,728

1910 - 69,067

1920-208,435

1930-255,040

UNDERTAKERS

J.F. Viall. Funeral & Furniture.

Baldwin & Weeks. Funeral & Furniture.

George Wulle. Funeral & Livery Stables.

Billow Co. Funeral.

OTHER BUSINESSES

O'Neil & Dyas. (1st department store, 1877, corner of Main & Market St.'s) Built new store on Main St. in 1928. Closed down in 1989.

Abram Polsky. (Howard St.) Built new store on Main St. in 1930. Closed down in 1978.

Yeager's Department Store. (Main St.) Closed down in 1961.

Hower Depatment Store. Located on East Market St. in the old Middlebury section.
Sisler & Hoy, Chemists & Druggists. Howard St.

Quaker Oats. The old mill was built in 1832, razed in 1909. New building was built in 1913 at Mill and Howard St.'s.

First Automobile Dealers.
Chevrolet
Hudson
Ford
Cadillac
White
(All were located downtown).

1910 - Guth & Hammel's Fancy Grocers
46 E. Market Street.

LODGES
Knights of Pythias
The Elks
Masonic Lodge
Odd Fellows (Hall was built in 1895)
The Eagles
The Owls
Military Order of the Serpent

Theaters
Coloniel
Orpheum
Strand
Palace
Lowes
Civic

Akron Hotels
The Buchtel

Empire House, torn down in 1912.

The Portage Hotel. Replaced the Empire House.

The Mayflower.

Howe Hotel. Built in 1914 across the street from O'Neil's Department Store. It replaced Pingree's Livery Stable.

Pendleton

Howard Hotel

Tylor Hotel

The New Stag

Black Whale Inn

The Thuma

The Gilt Edge

The Bond. Became the Anthony Wayne Hotel.

Exchange Hotel

Glendale Hotel

Windsor Hotel

The Anthony Wayne

The Akron Hotel. Opened in 1917 on the southwest corner of E. Market and Broadway Streets.

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Jackson's Livery Stable was torn down in 1911 and replaced by the Jackson Block. It is now the site of Main Place.

First courthouse in Akron was built in 1843.

Seiberling Rubber Company in Barberton began in 1921.

The Metropolitan Building was built in 1918.

Northern Traction and Light was built in 1917 and later became the Ohio Edison building.

First National Tower was built in 1930/31. It stands 28-stories tall.

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Rubber founder's homes...

Stan Hywet Hall: Frank Seiberling. Founder of Goodyear Rubber Co. Home is still there today. Open to the public for tours.

Harbel Manor: Harvey S. Firestone. Founder of Firestone Rubber Co. Torn down, land used for condos and St. Paul's Episcopal Church.

Rockynol: Frank H. Adams. President of Goodyear Rubber Co. Now Rochynol Retirement Community.

Elmcourt: Arthur Marks. President of B.F. Goodrich Rubber Co. Now Our Lady of the Elms School.

Famous Airships from Akron

The Akron. 1931

The Macon. 1933

(Both Crashed)

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Letter recieved 9-29-2010

The Empire Barley Mills ~

The Old Summit County Home ~

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Harbel Manor ~

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Remember Lawson's?

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Akron's Crown Jewel Burns ~

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1868 Ad ~

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Letter recieved 9-21-2010

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Akron Hotels ~

1880 Ad ~

1885 Ad ~

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Letter recieved 9-24-2010

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Here are the newspapers that could be read in Akron...all before 1854

Akron Homes ~

Letter Recieved 11-7-2015, "Thank You"

A few Acme grocery stores ~

Construction of the Akron Airdock ~

Letter Recieved 10-14-2010

Earliest Akron Industries ~

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. ~

Glendale Cemetery, 1890s ~

A few facts about Akron's History...

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