A streetcar is seen ascending the Mill Street Viaduct as it leaves downtown headed over the city’s main rail lines. At the right can be seen the Cleveland Akron & Columbus freight shed.
Author: tconte
Silver Lake Park – Bath House
In 1874, Ralph H. Lodge bought Silver Lake (all the land covered by water but no land around it) for $1,300. The next year, Lodge bought 35 acres of land at the South West corner of the lake. Prior to Lodge’s investment, a tribe of Seneca Indians summered at the South end of Silver Lake…
Akron High School
This beautiful piece of architecture was the city’s high school. The school was located on Forge Street, between College and Union Streets, facing Union Park. It was first established in 1857, but the pictured building was erected in 1885 at a cost of $135,000.
Akron University
The University of Akron was founded as Buchtel College in 1870 by the Ohio Universalist Convention, which was influenced by the financial support of industrialist John R. Buchtel.
Akron Gospel Tabernacle
A Shelter in the Time of Storm.
Peoples Hospital
Construction on the first building was completed on March 1, 1915. Akron’s new Peoples Hospital struggled financially in its early years. The institution relied heavily on donations, volunteer hours, and donated medical supplies to stay afloat.
Portage Hotel – Dining Room
The elegantly appointed dining room in the Portage Hotel.
Strand Theater
The Strand Theatre opened on September 2, 1915 with “The Island of Regeneration”. The theater had seating for more than 1200 patrons. It was demolished in 1990.
Allen Theatre WADC Broadcasting Station
WADC broadcasting studios located in the Towell Cadillac Building. WADC first broadcast as a temporary station for a 1925 car show at the Central Garage. The call letters were derived from the show’s sponsor, the Automobile Dealers’ Company. After the show ended, Allen Simmons, owner of the Allen Theater, bought the equipment and obtained a…
Central Garage
A testament to just how fast automobiles has grown in popularity, this massive parking garage was constructed in 1919.During the Cold War, the Central Garage was designated as one of 32 downtown air-raid shelters.
Summit Feeder
For much of the early 1900’s, the Summit lake area of Akron was among the most picturesque in the city.
City Hospital
It began as a dream by Boniface DeRoo, a Dutch immigrant whose will provided approximately $10,000 for the establishment of Akron’s first hospital. More than nine years elapsed after DeRoo’s death in 1883 before a group of 12 men organized the City Hospital Association. The association purchased the Bartges Homestead in 1892 and opened the…
B. F. Goodrich Company
On December 31, 1870, Goodrich formed the partnership of Goodrich, Tew & Company with his brother-in-law Harvey W. Tew and a group of Akron investors. After completing the construction of a two-story factory on the banks of the Ohio Canal, Goodrich was in business as the first rubber company west of the Allegheny Mountains.
Airdock – Goodyear blimps
At 1,175 feet long, 325 feet wide, and 211 feet high it is no understatement to say the airdock is massive! There is 364,000 square feet of unobstructed floor space, or an area larger than 8 football fields side-by-side. The Airdock has a volume of 55 million cubic feet.
Goodyear Research Laboratory
Built during World War II, the multi-million dollar Research laboratory of The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, located on Goodyear Boulevard in Akron.
Glendale Cemetery – Entrance
Akron’s Glendale Cemetery was established in 1839 by Dr. Jedediah D. Commins.
Main Street Looking South
Postcard view of Akron’s Main Street from Market Street looking south. Founded along the Little Cuyahoga River in 1825 by Simon Perkins and Paul Williams, the location of Akron carefully and strategically planned at the summit of the developing Ohio and Erie Canal.
Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. – Aeroplane View
“The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company is one of the largest rubber factories in the United States. Good year produced more than 110,000,000 tires since 1898. It employs thousands of people. The annual Payroll is over $43,000,000. Goodyear is the largest producer of auto tires and rubber heels in the world. 110,000,000 tires linked together would…
Robinson’s Clay Products Company
The Robinson Clay Product Company was a major producer of sewer pipe. Including its operations in Akron, the company had eight plants in Ohio and western Pennsylvania. Robinson’s was one of many clay product companies with operations in Akron. Others included: American Vitrified Products Company, United States Stoneware Company, Summit China Company, M. A. Knight Company, Camp Brothers…