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October 20, 2006
GUIDEBOOK HIGHLIGHTING AKRON’S LOCAL BUILDING STONES AND CULTURAL GEOLOGY NOW AVAILABLE FROM ODNR
New book joins similar publications for Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and Dayton
 COLUMBUS, OH - A new guidebook that explores the building stones and cultural geology of the City of Akron is available from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR). The Akron publication joins similar guidebooks that explore the cultural geology of Cleveland, Cincinnati, Columbus and portions of Dayton.
People interested in the history of the City of Akron as it relates to the various uses of stone for construction in the region will be fascinated by the instructive text and rich illustrations of the 75-page guidebook.
The ODNR Division of Geological Survey published the Guidebook to the Building Stones and Cultural Geology of Akron, which was authored by Joseph T. Hannibal of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. It explains the types of locally occurring stone and how those types were used for construction in Akron. The guidebook also explains the geologic distribution of the stone-bearing formations and the quarrying methods used.
The guidebook contains 80 illustrations, including photographs and sketches of buildings, bridges, and monuments in the city, along with interesting discussions of the character and origin of the various types of stone used in those buildings.
The particular types and uses of stone for construction in Akron were determined by the proximity to good local sources of high-quality material. The Berea and Massillon sandstones, and the Sharon Formation (sandstone and conglomerate) were the earliest rocks used in Akron for construction. The guidebook lists distinguishing characteristics of each formation and gives examples of buildings utilizing these sandstones, along with the locations of historic quarries where the stone was extracted.
The guidebook discusses the geologic significance of popular points of interest in Akron that were constructed using locally quarried stone. These include Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens, the Perkins Stone Mansion, the Akron Zoological Park, various monuments and buildings at Glendale Cemetery, several stone structures along the Ohio & Erie Canal, selected government buildings in downtown Akron, and a number of buildings on the campus of the University of Akron. The guidebook, created in 2006 for an annual section meeting of the Geological Society of America, has descriptions of 28 major stops with some having multiple points of interest.
The Guidebook to the Building Stones and Cultural Geology of Akron and other Ohio geological guidebooks may be ordered from the ODNR Division of Geological Survey, Geologic Records Center, for $11, plus handling and tax for the county to which the merchandise is being shipped (for Ohio addresses only). Orders for the guidebook can be placed by calling 614-265-6576, or by writing the ODNR Division of Geological Survey, 2045 Morse Road, Bldg. C-1, Columbus, OH 43229-6693.
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