Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens
Stan Hywet Hall-Frank A. Seiberling House | |
Location | 714 N. Portage Path, Akron, Ohio |
---|---|
Coordinates | 41°7′7″N 81°33′5″W / 41.11861°N 81.55139°W |
Area | 70 acres (28 ha) |
Built | 1911 |
Architect | Charles S. Schneider, Warren H. Manning |
Architectural style | Tudor Revival |
NRHP reference No. | 75002058[1] |
Significant dates | |
Added to NRHP | January 17, 1975 |
Designated NHL | December 21, 1981 |
Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens (70 acres) is a historic house museum in Akron, Ohio. The estate includes gardens, a greenhouse, carriage house, and the main mansion, one of the largest houses in the United States.[2] A National Historic Landmark, it is nationally significant as the home of F. A. Seiberling, co-founder of the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company.[3]
History
Conception and creation
The estate was built between 1912 and 1915 for
Frank and Gertrude Seiberling hired three professionals to shape the outcome of their home building project:
In April 1912, the Seiberlings, with oldest daughter Irene and
The long, sprawling Manor House encompasses 64,500 square feet (5,990 m2) and includes four floors and a lower level (basement). In conceiving their dream home, the Seiberlings asked each family member what he or she desired. Gertrude requested a large music room, the boys requested an indoor
Interior design
Interior designer Hugo Huber worked with Gertrude Seiberling to furnish the home's interior. The pair made frequent shopping trips to New York City and Huber traveled with F.A. and Gertrude to England in January 1915 to look at antique pieces for the home. Gertrude initially wanted to furnish the entire home in period appropriate Tudor antiques but F.A. argued that the large family would need comfortable furnishings. Huber compromised by integrating a selection of Tudor antiques with contemporary 1915 furnishings that were made to look antique and fit the overall décor of the home.
Landscape design
The estate grounds, originally about 1,500 acres (610 ha)[5] in extent, were designed between 1911 and 1915 by Boston landscape architect Warren H. Manning, and remain today one of the finest examples of his work. Manning sited the house at the edge of the quarry wall, overlooking the Cuyahoga Valley and rolling hills in the distance.
Around the home, he created a series of vistas which related the home to the environment around it, intertwining the two in a unified design. The entrance to the property (through an existing apple orchard), and the two allées on the north and south sides of the house, provide examples of vistas created by Manning using arranged plant materials. Along the back of the house, Manning manipulated existing forest plantings, and removed growth to create outlooks over miles of undisturbed countryside to capture the endless expanse of the Seiberlings' property.
Around the Manor House, Manning designed a sequence of contrasting garden spaces which situated formal garden rooms – such as the English Garden, Breakfast Room Garden, Perennial Garden, Japanese Garden and West Terrace – within the existing natural landscape. Manning used a technique of plant massing where he used predominately native plant materials, grouping deciduous trees with small ornamental trees and swaths of perennial plantings, to carve vistas and gardens giving definition and movement to his design. The garden spaces were tailored to the needs of the Seiberling family and envisioned as outdoor rooms for the family to use for relaxation and entertaining.
The Japanese Garden was built in 1916 by Chicago Japanese landscape artist T.R. Otsuka to the overall layout designed by Manning.[5]
The English garden was redesigned in 1929 by noted landscape architect Ellen Biddle Shipman. The landscape has undergone two significant restorations: the first in 1984, when a master plan was created to return the property to Warren Manning's original landscape plan, and the second between 2000 and 2010, to rebuild all of the gardens and landscaping around the Manor House. All historic gardens have been restored; the final garden space to be restored was the Lagoon area, a series of 5 manmade ponds, which was restored in 2020.
The estate also includes a conservatory and greenhouses constructed by King Construction Company of North Tonawanda, New York, and specified the construction of a rectangular Palm House with a 24 foot wide greenhouse on the back with a wing on each side, for a cost of $18,330. The greenhouse space behind the Palm House was initially divided into a "general plant house," an "orchid house" and a "vegetable house." The original 1915 building was damaged in a wind storm in 1947. In 2005, Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens constructed a new conservatory and greenhouses based on the original historic designs.
Recreational spaces
The estate grounds also included many recreation areas for the Seiberlings and their guests: two tennis courts (one for servants), a roque court, horse trails, a four-hole golf course, lagoons for swimming and boating, an indoor swimming pool and a gymnasium.
Preservation
In 1957, the six surviving adult Seiberling children donated Stan Hywet to the newly formed Stan Hywet Hall Foundation, a
From 2015 to 2021, the Manor House underwent an extensive room-by-room
Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens is open Tuesday through Sunday, from April 1 through December 30. It is closed to the public on Mondays. An admission fee is charged, and various tours are available.[6]
See also
- List of largest houses in the United States
- List of botanical gardens in the United States
- List of National Historic Landmarks in Ohio
References
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ A&E, with Richard Guy Wilson, Ph.D., (2000). America's Castles: The Auto Baron Estates, A&E Television Network
- ^ "NHL nomination for Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens". National Park Service. Retrieved March 24, 2018.
- ^ General Facts About Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens: Inspirations. Retrieved June 18, 2010.
- ^ Memo written by Warren H. Manning to Mr. Seibeling, May 8–9, 1916, mentions "Mr. Otsuka" several times. Memo held by Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens archives.
- ^ James H. Shiere (May 27, 1981). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens (Frank A. Seiberling House)". National Park Service. and accompanying 10 photos from 1973
External links
- Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens
- Annasue McCleave Wilson (September 20, 1998). "English Manor In the Heartland". New York Times.