In warm and lively prose, Written on the Hills explores the natural and human history of Akron, Ohio. Drawing on geological studies, state and municipal records, local histories and personal reminiscences, Frances McGovern shows how the landscape has influenced the development of Akron, and how the layers of Akron's history are revealed in its modern landscape. This midsize city, shaped by its rugged environment of steep hills, ravines, rivers, and wetlands, began life in 1825 as a service settlement on the Ohio and Erie Canal, flanking a staircase of locks over the North-South Continental Divide. The early 1900s saw the spectacular rise of the rubber industry, giving Akron a sudden flood of workers, a hierarchy of millionaires, and a new national identity. From bedrock to corporate boardroom, Written on the Hills reads the evolution of Akron in its parks and street patterns, its houses and factory walls. Its raw edges refined by the ancient beauty of its setting, Akron has weathered many changes in its history, redirecting its economy and institutions to become the very livable city among the hills that it is today.
| |||||||||||||||
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
About the Author
Frances McGovern served her native city of Akron in many capacities. Active in politics and community affairs, she was a three-term member of the Ohio House of Representatives and chair of the Ohio Public Utilities Commission; she has been a member of The University of Akron Board of Trustees, and president of United Way of Summit County.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A concise overview of why Akron is,
By A Customer
This review is from: Written on the Hills: The Making of the Akron Landscape (Ohio History & Culture Series) (Paperback)
This book describes in detail the "why"s behind Akron's crooked streets and abandoned canals. A complete overview of the growth of this industrial midwest city from before its founding up to 1996.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Down Memory Lane in Akron,
By
This review is from: Written On The Hills (Ohio History and Culture) (Hardcover)
I finally got around to reading Fran McGovern's "Written on the Hills" recently. I've no idea why I let this fine book gather dust on the shelf for over a decade; perhaps it was a reflection of my own long ambivalence about the city I left after high school. I'm glad I did open it at last and read, and I happily recommend this book to anyone who's curious about Akron, why it looks the way it does, its founding and evolution, even its place in history there at the very western boundary of Connecticut `s Western Reserve, up on the high point between the Cuyahoga and Tuscarawas rivers. The book will also interest readers who nurse a general interest in the dynamics of America's small to moderate midwestern cities.The au thor was a former lawyer and Ohio state legislator, a life long resident of Akron, and a booster. She's also a careful researcher, a wise woman, and a charming writer.For McGovern, Akron's story begins with the landscape, that is the hills and rivers, woods and minerals; she reminds us often, to understand any city's development, including Akron's, one must pay attention to the influence of location and environment as much as to the decisions of the individuals who made critical decisions. Both are here, from those first astute land purchases by Akron's founder Simon Perkins, and on through to the end of the twentieth century, Akron's boom and bust downtown, and finally the expansion of the park system and the university. Akron is a lot more than rubber, although that was a Very Big Thing for a while. But why rubber? Here in northeastern Ohio? Well, you have to read the book. I admit, the narrative kept triggering personal moments for me: explanations of half remembered experiences from my own girlhood (I left Akron 50 years ago after graduating from high school), pieces of trivia I wish I had learned--for example, that John Heisman of trophy fame was Buchtel College's first football coach, although I had to google to find out it was in Akron in 1893 that Heisman "invented" the now familiar shot-gun style center snap. Who knew? McGovern, however, is not really interested in football history. Satisfyingly she pays much more attention to Akron's "good bones"-- it's transportation systems (canals, railroads, streets and neighborhood patterns--although little about the Interstates); the rise and fall of businesses and industries, the city's sources of wealth and employment; changes of architecture, growth of the park system (I'd no idea Olmstead was consulted); the rise and fall of Akron's downtownS; land annexations; and the expansion of the university (established 1870 as Buchtel College, named for John Buchtel, owner of the Buckeye works, makers of mowers and reapers--again, who knew?). Much is covered in these 240 pages. The level of detail is about right, levened nicely by sprinklings of the author's own recollections of growing up in Akron (Fran was in fact a friend of my mother's). So I have spent the past two days most enjoyably. This is an easy read, though I did get out my map of Akron to reaquaint myself with how the streets work. Maybe I'll get myself back to Akron one day--check out what's happened downtown, walk through the new canal park, revisit the Ledges and Sand Run, watch for the ghosts of places still resident in my mind--the Copley swamp west of Hawkins where my brother trolled for frogs, the pot-holed on Mull Avenue (now certainly paved) which I bounced down on my bike, and the little trolley turn-around at Rose and West Market that I crossed every day as I walked to Portage Path School. It was a very liveable city then, and if Fran McGovern is right, it still is.
4.0 out of 5 stars
A beautifully written book..a must have for Akronites!,
By A Customer
This review is from: Written on the Hills: The Making of the Akron Landscape (Ohio History & Culture Series) (Paperback)
I was enthralled with this book. It brings together geography, history, and the people of Akron.I truly enjoyed it!
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items. |
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
