Hower House was completed in 1871 by John Henry Hower, a
leading Akron industrialist who was active in the milling, reaping and
cereal industries. Hower and architect Jacob Snyder designed this house in
the Second Empire Italianate style. The floor plan, known as the "
Akron Sunday School Plan", features rooms radiating from a large
octagonal center hall. The plan was used for churches across the United
States. This 28-room mansion is capped with a mansard roof and soaring
tower, and is filled with hundreds of treasures and furnishings the Hower
family collected from around the world.
In 1901, John Henry's son Milton Otis, his wife Blanche, and their two
children, Grace and John, came to live in the house. The elderly Hower and
his second wife moved to a smaller home nearby. Blanche continued to live
in the house even after John Henry and Milton Otis both died in 1916.
Sometime later, Grace and her husband, John, moved into Hower House with
Blanche. The house was occupied by the Hower family for 100 years before
it was deeded to The University of Akron in 1970. In 1973, Hower House was
placed on the National Register for Historic Places.
The house has three floors with a ballroom on the third floor. Two and
a half acres of lawn and stately trees provide a green island of
tranquility for The University of Akron campus community.
Today, Hower House remains one of the finest and best preserved
examples of its style in the country. It is supported by private
donations, the Friends of Hower House, the Hower House Victorians and The
University of Akron. The house has become a lasting symbol of an era of
elegance in America.
Visitors are welcome to view the unique architecture and rare treasures
of this National Historic Landmark 11 months of the year. It is closed
during the month of January.
