Progress Through Preservation (PTP) actively encourages and promotes the preservation, maintenance, restoration, and adaptive reuse of buildings, sites and neighborhoods that are of historic or architectural importance in Akron and Summit County.

May 19 , 2008

Akron’s rubber boom impacted the built environment so significantly that few structures remain from the nineteenth century.  The inordinate success of rubber created a demand for boarding houses, hotels, shanty towns and tent cities in order to accommodate thousands of young rubber workers. Industrialists, including F.A. Seiberling and H.S. Firestone, eventually recognized that comfortable and affordable housing would combat the unwholesome environment of transient living and hopefully result in a stable workforce.  To meet this need, they built the housing developments of Goodyear Heights and Firestone Park.  These neighborhoods are part of Akron’s working class built environment.

Schools and parks are also part of the common built environment.  They evince the efforts of the working class to provide their children with the opportunity to learn and the efforts of cities to create recreational venues and placid environments in urban settings.  These places anchor neighborhoods and provide a patent continuum across generations.

Preservationists in Akron, as a matter of course, have endeavored to prevent the loss of the nineteenth century historic fabric.   Additionally, within the past forty years, preservation efforts involved the recognition and appreciation of the high-style architecture that was evocative of the wealth of the rubber-boom.  The attempt to recognize the structures and environments that are more common in nature is more difficult to engender support.

Currently PTP is involved in raising awareness and advocating for the responsible historic preservation (either through adaptive reuse, restoration, or responsible maintenance) of schools and parks and in the past has led guided tours of Goodyear Heights and Firestone Park.  Preservationists in other cities have made strides as well.  Efforts to preserve the built environment of the working class will be examined on May 19th at a most unlikely location, the Tudor Revival mansion of Raymond Mason, grandson of Goodrich senior executive Frank Mason on the west side of Turkeyfoot Lake.

The obvious aesthetic appeal of the mansion contrasts profoundly with the historic significance of worker housing, and as preservationists we need to learn to take all types of structures into consideration.  Our speaker will be Dr. Donna DeBlasio, director of the Center for Historic Preservation at Youngstown State University.  Dr. DeBlasio’s involvement in working class studies began with the early development of Youngstown’s Labor and Steel Museum in the renowned Michael Graves building.  She has also worked for Ohio’s State Historic Preservation Office, and currently chairs the Oral History Association’s annual meeting.  Research topics include working class housing and leisure activities.  Dr. DeBlasio will discuss both the importance of appreciating the structures of the working class and share specific examples of Youngstown’s recognition and preservation of worker housing including the features that define neighborhoods and lend to an area’s sense of place.

Locations and Times:  A May evening on the lakefront will be lovely and seating is limited to 30, so respond early, if you will.  A casual tour of the Tudor House will begin at 7:00, and will precede the 7:30 discussion.  Additionally, you are welcome to join us at the Olde Harbor Inn after the discussion (562 Portage Lakes Drive) at 8:45 for desserts and coffee.  Please RSVP to Gloria at the PTP office:  330-374-3787 or ptpakron@att.net by May 15th.

Directions:  Tudor House (655 Latham Lane), from Route 224, take Manchester Road south to Renninger Road turn left on Renninger, left on Roble, right on Rawlins, and left on Latham Lane, parking is to the right (the Tudor House is about 20 minutes from downtown Akron).  Please call the PTP office if further directions are needed (330-374-3787 or check our web-site www.ptpakron.org).  Olde Harbor Inn (562 Portage Lakes Drive), travel back to Manchester Road north, turn right (east) on Route 619, left at Portage Lakes Drive (past the Upper Deck/Old Whitehouse Tavern), follow past the coves of North and West Reservoirs, and the restaurant is on the right.  Parking is across the street on the left.  Directions back to Akron:  follow Portage Lakes Drive east to South Main Street, turn left (north) and follow back to Route 224.