DinkLife

Hello and welcome to DinkLife! Today, we’re diving into the story of a famous local mansion – but not the one you might be thinking of. While Stan Hywet often steals the spotlight, we’re shifting our focus to the remarkable O.C. Barber Mansion.

O.C. Barber, famously known as the “American Match King,” was born in Akron in 1841. His father pioneered handmade match production, and young O.C., along with his brothers, sold matches door to door. By the age of 20, Barber had become a partner in his father’s business, and by 21, he was leading as general manager.

Despite the hardships of the Civil War and the loss of his brother, the company flourished, becoming Ohio’s largest match manufacturer by 1880. In 1881, Barber orchestrated a merger with 11 other companies forming one of the first trusts called the Diamond Match Company, which controlled 85% of the U.S. market.

Barber was a ruthless businessman, notorious for his frugality; he was known to cancel checks after gambling losses to avoid payment and paid less than $100 a year in taxes during the 1890s, while his peers were contributing thousands. He offered the lowest wages in Akron, employing women and children in grueling conditions that often led to “phossy jaw,” a devastating condition caused by phosphorus exposure.

Beyond matches, Barber’s empire extended into a range of industries, from boilers and matchboxes to rubber, pottery, sewer pipes, steel tubes, concrete blocks, fertilizer, and even his own railroad – the Akron-Barberton Belt Line. His reach was global, with factories around the world. Barber crossed the Atlantic more than 30 times, delighting in sharing his travel stories.

Despite his controversial business practices, Barber left a significant mark on Akron. He built and was head of Akron City Hospital, a role he held until his death.

Barber’s ambitions extended far beyond Akron’s boundaries. When Akron’s county tax auditor threatened his empire, the “Match King” moved his operations out of the city, creating his own. In 1891, he acquired land from Norton Township to expand his business, founding Barberton, a city designed as a model of industrial and residential growth. The city flourished quickly, earning the nickname “Magic City.”

In 1900, O.C. Barber announced plans to build a mansion in Barberton, but the project was postponed until he could personally oversee it. At the time, his business was booming. By 1905, Barber’s wealth had grown significantly, leading him to embark on his final major endeavor—developing a scientific farm and purchasing over 3,000 acres.

In 1909, Barber commissioned the construction of a three-story, 52-room mansion in Barberton, which took 18 months to complete. Designed in the French Renaissance Revival style by Akron architects Harpster & Bliss, the mansion spanned over 300 feet in length and covered 25,000 square feet. The construction cost exceeded $400,000 at the time (equivalent to $13.2 million today 2025). The mansion boasted luxurious amenities, including 16 bedrooms, an elevator with a glass skylight capable of holding 30 people, a solarium, extensive gardens, and a 40-acre park designed by a Chicago landscaping firm. A 200-foot tunnel connected the mansion’s basement to the carriage house . The mansion’s Great Hall measured 30 by 90 feet and featured a gold leaf ceiling. A mile-long driveway wound through the estate’s 50-acre front yard, leading to a scenic lake adorned with white and pink water lilies.

Barber imported English and Scottish servants, Italian plumbing, French and Greek furnishings, and replicas of paintings from the Louvre in Paris. In 1909, he traveled to Europe to purchase 200 cattle and shrubs for the property. The mansion, described as the “finest between New York and Chicago,” became home to the Barber family by October 1910. The house was filled with costly art and furniture, but one of Barber’s most prized possessions was a simple basket he once used to peddle his father’s matches. The house featured full electric lighting and a boiler system that connected to the carriage house via an underground passage. The floors were constructed with 10-inch reinforced concrete on steel joints.

Beyond the mansion, Barber constructed 35 additional buildings for his Anna Dean Farm, named after his daughter Anna and her husband, Dr. Arthur Dean Bevan. His vision was to create a farm as efficient as any industrial operation, and the property was open to the public on Sundays for educational purposes. Barber’s facilities were among the largest in the world, raising high-quality livestock. The farm featured 12-acre greenhouses heated by a dedicated heat house and Barn No. 3, the largest barn in the world in 1912. At its peak, the farm housed 50,000 chickens, 140 thoroughbred Belgian draft horses, 600 purebred Guernsey cows, 75,000 Peking ducks annually, purebred Airedales and Scotch collies, pigs, sheep, and hundreds of beehives.

From 1909 until Barber’s death in 1920, Barberton became a tourist attraction. Every Sunday from April through October, visitors flocked from across Ohio and neighboring states to tour the Anna Dean Farm. Model T’s lined Anna Dean Lane as tourists explored the grounds freely. Although they could peek into the mansion’s windows, entry into the buildings and interaction with the livestock were strictly prohibited.

OC Barber passed away on February 4, 1920, at the age of 79 in the mansion, having lived there for only five years. His funeral was held in the gold drawing room of the mansion, with his bronze casket surrounded by red roses arranged in diamond patterns. He became the first multi-millionaire to be buried at Glendale Cemetery. Barber had intended for the farm to become the O.C. Barber Agricultural & Industrial School, a part of Western Reserve University, after his death. However, his daughter contested the will for six years, causing significant debts, totaling approximately $1,000 a month. Barber’s mansion became a landmark, one of the area’s first monumental structures, surpassing even Stan Hywett in significance for many locals.

The mansion, gatehouse, several additional buildings, horse barns, and 275 acres were sold in April 1927 for a rumored $150,000 to Arthur O. Austin, renowned as “the man who works with thunder and lightning.” Austin, head of the Ohio Insulator Company, transformed the property into a truly extraordinary place. The horse barns became his workshop, filled with strange and impressive machinery, including a massive high-voltage transformer capable of generating 1 million volts. Austin’s company specialized in manufacturing high-power radio station insulators to combat radio interference, drawing engineers from around the globe to his workshop to solve electrical challenges.

Austin lived in the mansion for 39 years, creating a home for his family. In the dining hall, behind the draperies, was a wall with a growth chart marking the family’s heights, with parallel lines that had not been painted over in years. Austin meticulously cared for the property until his death from a two-month illness at the age of 84 on July 7, 1964.

After Austin’s death, the family attempted to sell the mansion and its five acres for $90,000 to civic organizations. The house required $3,000 in monthly upkeep, and there were discussions of demolishing it for future development. The Barberton Civic Group expressed interest but lacked the funds. The Barberton Area Chamber of Commerce proposed forming a corporation to convert the mansion into a semi-public community center, possibly including a restaurant, meeting rooms, and spaces for clubs, banquets, and weddings. A fundraising effort was launched to raise $45,000, but by the February 21, 1965 deadline, only $6,200 had been collected, falling far short of the goal.

The Austin family offered to donate the mansion for $1 if the city council passed a rezoning plan to develop 25 acres into the Austin Square shopping center, which would include a $3.75 million shopping complex for Montgomery Ward. However, the proposal was rejected 6-3. The family, eager to rid themselves of the financial burden, hoped to have the mansion off the tax rolls by July 1965, requiring demolition to begin several months in advance.

On April 3, 1965, the Austins held an auction from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., marking the last opportunity for the public to tour the house. A final attempt was made to raise $25,000 by the community, with volunteers even going door-to-door. If successful, this would have delayed the demolition by one year. However, if the funds were not raised, the State Rd. Wrecking & Lumber Company was set to begin demolition on April 19, 1965. The demolition was delayed briefly to allow a meeting at City Council, where a large group of supporters showed up to hear Mayor Stuart Moss propose a $0.4 million levy on the ballot for 10 years to restore and maintain the mansion. Unfortunately, no agreement was reached, and demolition began on April 19. The fixtures, paneling, paintings, and furnishings were removed and sold, and a wrecking crane was brought in to dismantle the once-stunning symbol of a bygone era. Despite the community’s efforts to save the mansion, it was ultimately demolished.

Some of the artifacts from the O.C. Barber Mansion were purchased and displayed at Birnbaum’s, a store in the newly opened Summit Mall. Among the treasures was a magnificent white marble fountain with gold sienna marble arches, white Corinthian columns from the mansion’s ballroom, and an elegant chandelier.

The Barberton Historical and Cultural Society was established in 1965 following the demolition of the O.C. Barber Mansion. After becoming inactive in the late 1960s, the Barberton Historical Society was founded in 1974 to prevent the demolition of O.C. Barber’s Barn No. 1.

Today, only eight of the original 35 Anna Dean Farm buildings remain, including the Colt Barn, Heating House, Piggery, and Barn No. 1. The Barberton Historical Society currently owns five of these surviving structures.

Do you know what happened to O.C. Barber’s cherished basket? If you do, share your thoughts in the comments below! Have any ideas for future weird history topics around Summit County? I’d love to hear them.

If you enjoyed this video, don’t forget to like and subscribe for more fascinating history content. Thanks for watching – and keep exploring!

Here are a few legendary stories showcasing O.C. Barber’s infamous frugality and unyielding determination:

Story #1: O.C. Barber was a notorious gambler, famous for his reluctance to pay his poker debts. Known for his skill at the poker table, Barber frequented various clubs, often winning and losing large sums of money. Despite his gambling prowess, Barber was infamous for not tipping employees and for stopping payment on checks to cover his poker losses.

One memorable incident involved Barber losing heavily in a poker game and issuing checks to the winners. When the winners attempted to cash the checks, they found that Barber had stopped payment on them. Seeking revenge, the winners enlisted the help of a stern sheriff and a judge to track Barber down. They eventually found him and forced him to pay his debts.

Story #2: In the mid-80s, O.C. Barber and his daughter Anna were riding their sleigh through the snowy streets of downtown Akron. The father-daughter duo was enjoying the wintery outing until a young man named John Wetzel unexpectedly collided with them. The impact caused damage to Anna’s luxurious sealskin coat, which was cherished by Barber. Outraged by the incident, Barber demanded that Wetzel pay for the damages to the coat.

However, Wetzel refused to comply with Barber’s demands, instead asking if he could keep the damaged jacket since he had to paid for it. Determined to recover the cost of the coat, Wetzel decided to get creative. He organized a raffle where participants could purchase a chance to win Anna’s sealskin coat for just $1. The raffle quickly garnered attention, and many people, including Barber himself, entered the contest in hopes of winning the prized coat.

As the raffle progressed, Barber found himself paying multiple times to increase his chances of winning the coat back. Despite his efforts, luck was not on Barber’s side, and Wetzel ultimately came out on top.

**Video and Reference Materials**

-Publication dates and photos of Beacon Journal articles are noted on each slide.

Info from Barberton Historical Society: http://www.annadeanfarm.com

Barberton Public Library: 602 W Park Ave, Barberton, OH 44203

Voice Over: Chanda Porter

Credits: Producer/Writer/Editor: Wesley Sigler

Piggery: 248 Robinson Ave, Barberton, OH 44203

Heat House: 360 Robinson Ave, Barberton, OH 44203

O.C. Barber Dam: 41.009592, -81.591256

Wishing Well: 1149 Mansion Dr, Barberton, OH 44203

Colt Barn: 72-188 Shenandoah Blvd, Barberton, OH 44203

Concrete Bridge: 41.008431, -81.593873

Creamery: 365 Portsmouth Ave, Barberton, OH 44203

Barn #1: 147-103 3rd St SE, Barberton, OH 44203

Feed Barn: 41.006711, -81.594920

Poultry Manager’s House: 139 2nd St SE, Barberton, OH 44203

Brooder Barn: 112 2nd St NE, Barberton, OH 44203

Youtube Link:

Anna Dean Farm Map:

Mansion Grounds Map:

What’s left?