Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens facts for kids
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Stan Hywet Hall-Frank A. Seiberling House
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 Location in Ohio
Location in the United States
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| Location | 714 N. Portage Path, Akron, Ohio |
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| Area | 70 acres (28 ha) |
| Built | 1911 |
| Architect | Charles S. Schneider, Warren H. Manning |
| Architectural style | Tudor Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 75002058 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | January 17, 1975 |
| Designated NHL | December 21, 1981 |
Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens is a huge estate in Akron, Ohio. It covers 70 acres, which is about 53 football fields! This amazing place is now a historic house museum, meaning it's a preserved home you can visit to learn about the past. It includes beautiful gardens, a greenhouse, a carriage house, and a giant main mansion.
The mansion is one of the largest houses in the United States. Stan Hywet Hall is also a National Historic Landmark. This means it's a very important place in American history. It was once the home of F. A. Seiberling, who helped start the famous Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company.
Contents
History of Stan Hywet Hall
How Stan Hywet Hall Was Built
The Stan Hywet estate was built between 1912 and 1915. It was the dream home of F. A. Seiberling and his wife, Gertrude Ferguson Penfield Seiberling. They named their "American Country Estate" Stan Hywet. This name comes from Old English words meaning "stone quarry" or "stone hewn." This name was chosen because the land used to be a place where stones were dug up.
The Seiberlings hired three experts to help them create their home. Boston landscape architect Warren Manning designed the outdoor spaces. New York City interior designer Hugo Huber decorated the inside. Cleveland architect Charles Sumner Schneider designed the buildings. Schneider first worked for a New York City firm, but he kept control of the project even after he left that company in 1913.
In April 1912, the Seiberlings, their daughter Irene, and architect Schneider traveled to England. They visited about 20 large manor homes to get ideas for their own house. Three English country homes especially inspired Stan Hywet: Compton Wynyates, Ockwells Manor, and Haddon Hall.
Inside the Mansion: A Look at the Rooms
The main house, called the Manor House, is very large. It has four floors and a basement, covering about 64,500 square feet! That's bigger than many school gymnasiums. When planning their dream home, the Seiberlings asked each family member what they wanted.
Gertrude wanted a big music room. The boys wanted an indoor swimming pool. F.A. wanted a private office. The house also had a formal dining room that could seat up to 40 people. There were five guest bedrooms, each with its own bathroom and walk-in closet. Plus, there were eight bedrooms for the people who worked and lived in the house.
Interior designer Hugo Huber worked closely with Gertrude Seiberling to furnish the home. They often went shopping in New York City. Huber even traveled to England with F.A. and Gertrude in 1915 to find old, antique furniture. Gertrude first wanted to fill the whole house with old Tudor-style antiques. But F.A. thought the large family would need more comfortable furniture. So, Huber found a mix of real Tudor antiques and new furniture that looked old to fit the home's style.
Beautiful Gardens and Outdoor Spaces
The estate grounds were originally about 1,500 acres. They were designed between 1911 and 1915 by landscape architect Warren H. Manning. His work here is still considered one of his best examples. Manning placed the house right at the edge of a quarry wall. This gave it amazing views of the Cuyahoga Valley and the rolling hills far away.
Around the house, Manning created special views that connected the home to nature. He made the two work together as one design. For example, the entrance to the property went through an old apple orchard. He also created long, open paths on the north and south sides of the house using carefully placed plants. Behind the house, Manning trimmed existing trees and plants to open up views of miles of untouched countryside. This showed off how much land the Seiberlings owned.
Around the Manor House, Manning designed different garden areas. He created formal garden "rooms" like the English Garden, Breakfast Room Garden, Perennial Garden, Japanese Garden, and West Terrace. These formal gardens were placed within the natural landscape. Manning used a technique where he grouped many native plants together. He combined leafy trees with smaller decorative trees and large areas of perennial flowers. This helped him create the views and gardens, giving his design shape and movement. The gardens were made for the Seiberling family to relax and entertain guests outdoors.
The Japanese Garden was built in 1916 by a Japanese landscape artist from Chicago named T. R. Otsuka. He followed the overall plan designed by Manning.
The English garden was redesigned in 1929 by another famous landscape architect, Ellen Biddle Shipman. The gardens have been restored twice. The first restoration was in 1984. A plan was made to bring the property back to Warren Manning's original design. The second restoration happened between 2000 and 2010. This rebuilt all the gardens and landscaping around the Manor House. All the historic gardens have been brought back to their original beauty. The last area to be restored was the Lagoon area in 2020. This area has five man-made ponds.
The estate also has a conservatory and greenhouses. These were built in 1915. The main greenhouse, called the Palm House, was very large. It had other sections for different types of plants, like orchids and vegetables. The original building was damaged in a storm in 1947. But in 2005, Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens built new conservatories and greenhouses. They were designed to look just like the original ones.
Fun and Games at the Estate
The estate grounds also had many places for the Seiberlings and their guests to have fun. There were two tennis courts (one for the family, one for the staff). There was also a roque court, which is similar to croquet. Horse trails wound through the property. There was even a four-hole golf course! The lagoons were used for swimming and boating. Inside the house, there was an indoor swimming pool and a gymnasium.
Keeping Stan Hywet Hall Special
In 1957, the six Seiberling children who were still alive gave Stan Hywet to a new group. This group was called the Stan Hywet Hall Foundation. It's a non-profit organization created to protect the estate. Now, it's a historic house museum and country estate. It's open to the public during certain times of the year. This follows the message carved above the front door of the Manor House: "Non nobis solum." This means "Not for us alone."
From 2015 to 2021, the Manor House went through a big restoration. Each room was carefully fixed up. This work was paid for by a successful fundraising effort called the "2nd Century Campaign."
Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens is open from Tuesday to Sunday, from April 1 to December 30. It is closed on Mondays. You need to pay a fee to get in, and there are different tours you can take.
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
