1	A Roar of Distant Waters :
2	Produced by the Akron Central School District As a 21^st Century Community Learning Centers Cultural Enrichment Initiative
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4	The “See-Un-Gut”
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6	Colonial Settlement of the “See-Un-Gut” Newstead was acquired in the year 1792, as part of the Holland Land Purchase. The Town of Newstead was separated from Clarence in 1823. The new Town was originally called Erie, but needed a name change due to confusion with other towns by the same name. In 1831, the name was changed to Newstead at the suggestion of the wife of then Governor, Millard Fillmore. Newstead was the home of Mrs. Fillmore’s favorite poet, Lord Bryon. Thus, our Town of Newstead was born.
7	"It was in 1826 that..." It was in 1826 that the Ogden Land Company cleared Seneca ownership of several thousand acres of Indian land. This land was offered to European settlers whose names can still seen in the cemeteries throughout Akron and Newstead today. Peter Vandeventer owned the first tavern in Newstead in In 1806, Archibald Clarke opened the first store outside of Buffalo, near Vandeventer’s tavern. In 1810 an Irish immigrant named Lawrence McMullen was the first white settler on the banks of the Tonawanda Creek.
8	Colonial Industrial Development of Akron In the year 1839, a man named Jonathan Delano discovered limestone on the banks of Murder Creek. A year later Delano built a small kiln and manufactured lime cement – the start of what was to become the backbone industry of early Akron. In the those days, it was necessary to be near water as a source of power. Grist mills were built to grind flour, a hotel and stores were built and the Village of Akron was born.
9	Akron, Yesterday The Official Seal of the Village of Akron Our Village of Akron was incorporated in 1849 in the Town of Newstead, NY. The name Akron comes from the Greek word “Akros” which means “a great height”. Other names were suggested including Millville, Leeds and Brighton. The official seal incorporates visual references to industry (the train) and the Onondaga Escarpment, known locally as “the Ledge” – two forces that shaped the formation and history of our 21^st Century Community.
10	Greater economic success was to follow. About 1840, a Seneca Native brought a piece of stone to a man named James Montgomery. The “stone” turned out to be a high quality grade of the mineral, gypsum or “plaster of Paris”. This discovery helped to create the National Gypsum Company.
11	"Russell Park features monuments to" Russell Park features monuments to Akron’s Veterans and citizens as well as an open-air Gazebo. Concerts have been performed in the Park since the founding of the Park in the 1800’s.
12	Akron’s Landmarks The Rich-Twinn Octagon House stands on Main Street as one of only two such structures in all of Erie County. The house was modeled after a Dutch type mansion and was built by Charles Rich for his wife in 1849. The Octagon House is home today to the Newstead Historical Society. Rich owned a general store on the present site of the Akron House Restaurant in from 1849-1862.
13	Akron’s Historical Highlights Akron’s streets were illuminated by gas lighting for the first time in 1896. The Akron Light and Fuel Company was started by Richard H. Bell. Mrs. W.N. Hoag – wife of the owner of Hoag Lumber Company started the Akron Chapter of the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union – a society against the consumption of alcohol. Akron’s first successful newspaper, the Akron Breeze was founded in 1878 by Frank G. Smith
14	Akron Central Schools The first school in Akron was taught by a man named Keith in 1807. In 1883 the Akron Union High School was organized and a large, brick school was erected in 1890. This building burned but was replaced in 1893. The fire destroyed many of the early records of the Village of Akron and Town of Newstead.
15	Our Children, Our Future Akron Central Schools instill a sense of community in its young people today just as it they did in days gone by. Akron’s children are our Guardians of the 21^st Century and the future of our vibrant, community. Statistics show that a majority of our young people will stay on in Akron after graduation.
16	Akron, Today Much has changed in Akron since its incorporation in 1849. One thing that hasn’t changed is the quaint, charm that the Village retains in its “hollow that time forgot”. World events have encroached upon the sanctity of this quiet, hamlet but the people of Akron continue to maintain the values of hard work and generosity which have sustained the Village of Akron throughout the centuries.
17	Akron, NY – A 21^st Century Community Akron, New York is in so many ways a 21^st Century Community. Born in the 18^th and 19^th centuries, Akron has always been on the cutting edge of industry and technology. What mystical power is it that has drew people to this place from across the sea in the late 18^th century? Was it fate? Was it destiny? Perhaps the answer lies in the calling that the Haudenosuanee answered so
18	Our Guardians of the 21^st Century “One hundred years from now, it will not matter what kind of cars we drove, what kind of houses we lived in, how much was in our bank account, nor what our clothes looked like. But our world may be a little better because we all were important in the life of our children.” author unknown
19	Acknowledgements This slide show is a presentation of Akron Central Schools as an initiative of the 21^st Century Grant Project. It was created in cooperation with the Newstead Historical Society, the Erie County Historical Society and the Buffalo and Erie County Public Library’s Local History Department.
20	Written Sources of Akron History Much of Akron’s early written history was lost tragically in a fire in 1890. Some of this written history has survived in other sources. They are : A History of the Town of Newstead , Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society. 1971. The History of the Holland Land Purchase, Orasamus Turner Western New York Land Transcations, 1804-1826 by Karen Livsey