Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens

Stan Hywet Hall-Frank A. Seiberling House
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. National Historic Landmark
Location	714 N. Portage Path, Akron, Ohio
Coordinates
Built	1911
Architect	Schneider, Charles S.; Manning, Warren H.
Architectural style	Tudor Revival, Other
NRHP Reference #	75002058
Added to NRHP	January 17, 1975

Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens (70 acres) is a notable country estate, with gardens, located at 714 North Portage Path in Akron, Ohio. It is one of the largest homes in the U.S., and the largest in Ohio on the list of largest houses in the United States.

The estate was built between 1912 and 1915 for F. A. Seiberling, founder of the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, and his wife, Gertrude Penfield Seiberling. They gave it the name Stan Hywet, Old English for "stone quarry" or "stone hewn," to reflect the site's earlier use and the most prominent feature of the estate. Architect Charles Sumner Schneider designed the Tudor Revival house, with Hugo F. Huber as interior decorator. Most of the furnishings came from New York City, but some were purchased in England. The estate grounds, originally about 3,000 acres (12 km²) in extent, were designed between 1911–1915 by Boston landscape architect Warren H. Manning, and remain today one of the finest examples of his work. The English garden was redesigned in 1929 by noted landscape architect Ellen Biddle Shipman. In 1957, the Seiberling family donated Stan Hywet to a non-profit organization for its preservation. It is now a historic house museum and country estate, open seasonally to the public, in keeping with the stone inscription above the Manor House front door, "Non nobis solum", meaning "Not for us alone".

Three English country homes served as the inspiration for Stan Hywet's 65-room manor: Compton Wynyates, Ockwells Manor, and Haddon Hall.

Major gardens within the estate include the Birch Allee Vista, Breakfast Room Garden, the Dell, English Garden, London Plane Tree Allee, Grape Arbor, Great Garden, Great Meadow, Japanese Garden, Lagoon, and West Terrace. The largest of the Lagoon's pools measures 15 feet (4.6 m) deep and was created from the site's quarry. The estate also includes a fine greenhouse, the Corbin Conservatory, designed by architect Charles Schneider. The Corbin Conservatory, replicated from the design of the original building, opened to the public in 2005. Two tennis courts, croquet and roque courts, horse trails and an indoor swimming pool and gymnasium were some of the recreational outlets available to the Seiberlings and their house guests.

Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens hosts The Annual Classic, Antique & Collector Car Show every year on Father's Day, and the Ohio Shakespeare Festival.

Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens is open Tuesday through Sunday, April 1 through December 30. It is closed to the public on Mondays, except Memorial Day and Labor Day. An admission fee is charged.

• Stan Hywett Hall.JPG

  A view of Stan Hywet Hall.

• Stan Hywett Pool.JPG

  The reflecting pool at Stan Hywett Hall.

• Bridge at Stan Hywet Gardens.JPG

  A bridge in the gardens at Stan Hywet Hall.

See also

• Largest Historic Homes in the United States
• List of botanical gardens in the United States

External links

• Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens