Honoring and commemorating 200 years of historic contributions to American culture made by the city of Akron.

Honoring and commemorating 200 years of historic contributions to American culture made by the city of Akron.

Whereas the town of Akron was founded 200 years ago, on December 6, 1825;

Whereas the land that is now Akron was home to numerous native Tribes for thousands of years;

Whereas the land was owned by France under the papal doctrine of “conquest”;

Whereas, following the French and Indian War, the land was ceded to Britain;

Whereas, following the American Revolutionary War and the Treaty of Paris of 1783, Britain ceded claims to territories west of the Appalachian Mountains to the new confederation of States;

Whereas, in 1798, Simon Perkins, a 27-year-old land agent employed by the Erie Land Company, a group of investors that included Moses Cleaveland, came to the Western Reserve of Connecticut, where he helped build a town on the banks of the Cuyahoga River at Lake Erie;

Whereas, in 1803, Ohio became the 17th State and the first State carved out of the Northwest Territory;

Whereas, in 1806, Simon Perkins surveyed much of the Western Reserve, land that presently constitutes Summit and Portage Counties and was then part of the original Jefferson County;

Whereas, in 1807, the Ohio Legislature created Portage County, which encompassed most of present-day Summit County, including Akron;

Whereas, in 1810, early settler Major Miner Spicer from Groton, Connecticut, built a log cabin on land now owned by the University of Akron;

Whereas, during the War of 1812, Simon Perkins, now a brigadier general, led 400 men in the Ohio militia in defense of the State against British forces;

Whereas, in 1812, Paul Williams purchased 109 acres of land for $2.50 per acre for farming;

Whereas Paul Williams built a log cabin for his family near what is now the intersection of Buchtel Avenue and Broadway;

Whereas, in the summer of 1825, Simon Perkins asked Connecticut surveyor Joshua Henshaw to create a plat map of a new village that would rise on land straddling one of North America’s great watershed divides;

Whereas the founders named the town of Akron after the Greek word “ákros”, meaning “summit” or “high point”;

Whereas, on December 6, 1825, the plat map was recorded, and the town of Akron was officially established;

Whereas John Brown and his family lived in Akron, Ohio, between 1844 and 1854, during which he harbored enslaved persons traveling North on the Underground Railroad;

Whereas, in 1851, during the Women’s Convention in Akron, abolitionist and activist Sojourner Truth delivered her extemporaneous speech “Ain’t I A Woman?” highlighting the plight of Black women and encouraging equal treatment under the law;

Whereas the city of Akron became known as the “Rubber Capital of the World”, serving as headquarters for 4 major tire companies;

Whereas, during the Akron Rubber Strike of 1936, more than 5,000 workers and supporters protested for 5 weeks, leading to the recognition of the United Rubber workers union;

Whereas Akron continues to revolutionize the manufacturing and use of polymers through the Economic Development Administration’s Sustainable Polymers Tech Hub;

Whereas Akron is the birthplace of historic athletes such as LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and Butch Reynolds, leading to the city being referred to as the “Birthplace of Champions”;

Whereas Akron is the birthplace of generations of people who have impacted society, art, education, science, and American life, including world-renowned bands such as Devo and The Black Keys and musicians such as Chrissie Hynde and Howard Hewett;

Whereas Akron is the birthplace of renowned actors such as Melina Kanakaredes, Angie Everhart, Lola Albright, John Magaro, and Elizabeth Franz, and television personalities such as Hugh Downs;

Whereas Akron is the birthplace of American astronaut Judith Resnik, the first Jewish woman to fly in space, who tragically perished during the space shuttle Challenger disaster; and

Whereas Akron is the birthplace of Rita Dove, the first African-American to serve as the Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the House of Representatives—

(1) honors and commemorates 200 years of historic contributions to American culture made by the city of Akron;

(2) recognizes the city’s longstanding history of fighting for economic, gender, and racial justice; and

(3) encourages Akron to continue standing up to injustices and supporting workers’ rights for another 200 years.