42 Room Mansion Built by Wealthy Akron Industrialist
Hower Mansion, Akron Ohio
- Categories:
- Ohio
- Second Empire
- House
- Mansion
The finest of the few remaining large Victorian houses in Akron, the Hower Mansion is a superb example of an architectural style from an era when wealthy men built pretentious homes to display their wealth.
John H. Hower, the designer and first owner of the house, was a leading Akron industrialist. In 1861, he helped organize the Excelsior Mower & Reaper Company in nearby Doylestown, and he later served as Vice-President of another farm machinery company, the J.F. Seiberling Company. In 1881, he formed Hower & Company, a milling firm that was an important forerunner of The Quaker Oats Company.
In 1871, the Hower Mansion was completed, and 100 years later, Mr. Hower's grandchildren, Mr. John M. Crawford and John B. Hower, deeded the mansion to the University of Akron.
Property Description
The Hower Mansion, situated on a high, well-landscaped 2.5-acre plot, is a picturesque red brick Victorian Mansion in the French Second Empire style. Typical of the style are the many projecting pavilions, each with its own roof. Spacious verandas connect the projecting bays, and the wide eaves are supported by ornamental brackets. Also typical are the high mansard roofs of fishtail slate shingle and the elegantly detailed dormers. There are several chimneys, each with great decorative detail. A four-story tower at the northeast corner accents the boldly modeled composition.
The tower, with its mansard roof, arched and round dormer windows, and bracketed eaves, is surmounted by a wrought iron railing and a weathervane which indicates the year the building was completed, 1871.
There are 42 rooms in the mansion, many embellished with black walnut trim, marble fireplaces, and parquet floors. The furnishings include priceless art objects and antiques brought from Europe. Among the notable interior details are the beautifully etched door and overdoor panels in the front hall and the main stair, which rises four stories to the observation tower. Beyond this stairway is a central octagonal hall which leads to all the other rooms on the ground floor.
North Elevation (1973)
