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First skyscraper in Akron dedicated by Odd Fellows in September 1896
By Mark J. Price
Beacon Journal staff writer
Published on Monday, Aug 27, 2007
In September 1896, Akron welcomed its first skyscraper: a seven-story structure at Main and Mill streets.
Yes, seven stories.
The sky was a little lower in those days.
The Independent Order of Odd Fellows, a secret society with a regal history, built the temple as a meeting place for its 11 Akron lodges.
Joining a fraternal group was almost a prerequisite for social activity in the late 19th century. Akron had about 40 secret societies when the city's population was a mere 40,000.
At least 2,000 residents were Odd Fellows.
The order, which originated in England in the early 1700s, established its first Akron lodge on Sept. 16, 1845. Charter members were Edward Rawson, A. Porcupile, Samuel Gardner, Ralph A. Ingersol, J.K. Knight, Timothy G. Clark, Warren F. Smith, S.L. Shaw and I.E. Carter.
Under the motto of ''Friendship, Love and Truth,'' the group dedicated itself to elevating humanity through benevolence and charity. Its women's auxiliary, the Daughters of Rebekah, consisted of the wives, mothers and daughters of Odd Fellows.
Lodge members conducted grand ceremonies with elaborate rites. At official functions, they carried swords and wore military-style uniforms with plumed hats. The Odd Fellows were always a commanding presence at Akron parades.
Unfortunately, the old temple at Market and Main streets had grown too small for all those plumes. Member A.C. Bachtel led a drive to build a new one.
The Akron Odd Fellows Temple Co. was incorporated in 1894 with $40,000 in stock. The board elected Bachtel as president and selected a construction site near the northwest corner of South Main and Mills streets.
Architect Charles Henry designed a classical-style building that impressed everyone.
Seven stories? Astounding!
The temple measured 100 feet long, 50 feet wide and 150 feet tall. It required 800,000 bricks, 170,000 pounds of iron, 300,000 feet of lumber, 6,200 cubic feet of stone, 200 windows, 110 doors, 10 miles of electrical wiring and three miles of plumbing.
Contractors Andrew Jackson and Alfred Lyman broke ground for the $100,000 building in 1895. In today's dollars, the temple would cost about $3 million.
It took more than a year to build. Trimmed with Amherst stone, the brown-brick structure featured Ionic columns, intricate carvings and a copper cornice. A U.S. flag flew at the peak.
The first floor contained retail space for M.D. Brouse & Co., a dry goods store, and Frank, Laubach & Nutt, a jewelry store. The second floor had offices for doctors and other professionals. The third floor was home to Actual Business College.
Please see Temple, D2
The Odd Fellows' quarters began on the fourth floor with a banquet room, kitchen and offices. The fifth floor had a hall for dances and military drills. The sixth floor was the lodge room. The seventh floor had a library, a reception room and a balcony overlooking the lodge room.
Connecting them all was an electric-powered elevator ''the finest in the city.''
More than 5,000 Odd Fellows from across Ohio arrived by train for the dedication ceremony Sept. 3, 1896. The city was decorated in flags and banners.
''This is a glorious day for Akron,'' Mayor E.R. Harper told a downtown crowd. ''We are indeed proud of our guests today. It is a great pleasure and a high honor, which I fully appreciate on behalf of the citizens of Akron, to formally welcome you to our beautiful city.''
The Odd Fellows invited the public to watch the mystical ceremony at 80 S. Main St.
Dressed in colorful robes, turbans and sandals, four noblemen constructed an altar in the lodge room. W.H. Rook, Herald of the North, positioned a white stone of purity for the foundation. C.H. Warner, Herald of the South, topped it with a pink stone of friendship. Charles Eddy, Herald of the East, carried a blue stone of love. John Wagoner, Herald of the West, added a scarlet stone of truth.
Higher and higher the altar rose. Heralds brought a green stone of faith, a golden stone of hope, a purple stone of charity.
''Thus stands our completed altar,'' said Grand Marshal A.C. Cable, wearing a purple robe trimmed in green and gold. ''It is fitting now that the dedicatory ceremony should proceed.''
Formal proclamations and flowery speeches filled the hall for hours. The four heralds sprinkled water, scattered grain, tossed petals and ignited a small fire on the altar.
When the rites were complete, Grandmaster John C. Whitaker announced: ''Hear! Hear! Hear! All men: By the authority and in the name of the grand lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows of the state of Ohio, I dedicate this hall to the business and purposes of Odd Fellowship, to the dissemination of friendship, love and truth, and to the diffusion of benevolence and charity in their fullest extent to all its worthy members, and by this solemn act, I hereby declare it to be duly dedicated.''
Although it rained all day, thousands of Odd Fellows paraded through downtown streets. Crowds braved the weather to watch the majestic display.
A public reception and grand ball were held that evening at the temple. The night concluded with a burst of fireworks and an incandescent display of 1,000 red, white and blue lamps.
Spectators stood on South Main and oohed and aahed.
Akron had a skyscraper.
The Odd Fellows enjoyed their magnificent temple for more than 20 years. They had planned to stay longer, but no one knew the city was going to grow so fast.
Akron's population surged to 200,000 over the next two decades. The downtown business district engulfed the temple. Constant noise from South Main and South Howard streets disrupted lodge activities.
In 1917, merchants Bert A. Polsky and Harry Polsky bought the building for $250,000, the highest price ever paid for Akron property up to that time.
The Odd Fellows remained on the top three floors until they found a new home at Union and Mill streets. They bought the former mansion of J.T. Johnson, superintendent of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, and dedicated it as their new temple in 1920.
The mansion, which still stands, was built in the 1870s. Its original owner was Andrew Jackson, the same contractor who built the 1890s temple.
The Polskys leased the South Main Street building to the S.S. Kresge Co. The five-and-dime store operated for nearly 40 years in the former temple.
Newer, taller buildings dwarfed Akron's original skyscraper. In 1951, workers removed the top two levels, tearing out the old lodge room, library and balcony.
A decade later, Kresge was gone, too.
Urban renewal changed the downtown skyline. Buildings were demolished between Main and Howard streets to prepare for the Superblock project.
The last building on the block was a sad-looking former temple
Get the full article here.
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