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24-77 Astronaut Judith Resnik
“The future doesn’t belong to the fainthearted; it belongs to the brave. The Challenger crew was pulling us into the future and we’ll continue to follow…” President Ronald Reagan As the second American woman in space, Judith Resnik (1949-1986) paved the way for the future of women in space exploration. A gifted science and music […]
23-77 Franklin Augustus “F.A.” Seiberling and the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company
Industrialist and entrepreneur Franklin Augustus Seiberling (1859-1955) named his fledgling rubber goods manufacturing company “Goodyear” to honor Charles Goodyear, the man who invented the vulcanization process for curing rubber. Seiberling founded the company with his brother, Charles Willard, because of their desire to participate in an enterprise that afforded an “opportunity for invention.” Incorporated in […]
22-77 The Mustill Site / The Cascade Valley
The Mustill house and store are survivors of Akron’s canal era and date to the 1840s. Joseph and Sarah Mustill moved their family from England to Akron in 1833 and owned the store and Greek Revival house at Lock 15 on the Ohio & Erie Canal. Three generations of Mustills lived and worked the grocery […]
21-77 Western Reserve College and Academy
With the help of town founder, David Hudson, Western Reserve College and its Academy were founded in 1826. Often called “The Yale of the West,” the college saw success initially as all of its professors and college presidents were Yale College graduates. Nationally, Western Reserve College became involved with the Underground Railroad and anti-slavery movement […]
20-77 Silver Lake / Silver Lake Amusement Park
Silver Lake was previously known as Wetmore’s Pond, named for Judge William Wetmore, an agent for the Connecticut Land Company. In 1808, Wetmore built a cabin overlooking the spring-fed lake, which was then a part of Portage County. Local lore records his friendship and conscientious dealings with the Native Americans, likely Seneca, who inhabited a […]
19-77 Stan Hywet Hall
The former “country estate” of the Frank A. Seiberling family, Stan Hywet Hall is one of the finest examples of Tudor Revival architecture in the United States. “F.A.” Seiberling (1859-1955) co-founded the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company in 1898 and later the Seiberling Rubber Company, thus greatly contributing to Akron’s distinction as “The Rubber Capital […]
18-77 Ghent Woolen Mill
The Ghent Woolen Mill was one of at least thirteen mills built in the Yellow Creek Valley to take advantage of the water power available in the creek’s 400-foot fall across Bath Township. Erected by Messrs. Allen and Bloom in 1832, it was a marginal commercial success and changed hands several times during the 1800s […]
17-77 Howard Street District
The center of African-American culture in Akron during the mid-20th century, Howard Street was home to many of the city’s black-owned business and entertainment establishments, and provided an atmosphere in which minority-owned businesses could thrive. Attracted to the vitality of the neighborhood, entrepreneur George Mathews (1887-1982) established a barbershop here in 1920 and in 1925 […]
16-77 PPG Industries in Barberton, 1900-2000
Attracted by the availability of raw materials and railroad transportation, the Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company (PPG) built a plant here in 1899 to make soda ash for the company’s glassmaking operations. This plant began production in 1900 as the Columbia Chemical Company and represents the beginning of PPG’s diversified chemical manufacturing operations. During the 20th […]
15-77 The Pennsylvania and Ohio Canal
Officially opening on August 4, 1840, the Pennsylvania and Ohio Canal followed the route of present railroad tracks through Munroe Falls approximately one thousand feet south of this marker. This 82-mile long "feeder canal" connected the Beaver Valley canal system at New Castle, Pennsylvania with the Ohio and Erie Canal in Akron, thereby linking Pittsburgh […]