William H. Crafts House

William H. Crafts was a prominent businessman and political figure of Mantua, Ohio.

The William H. Crafts House was owned and occupied by a prominent businessman and politician of Mantua Village in Mantua, OH. Mantua Village was settled in the early 1850s as Mantua Station, a stop of the Cleveland and Mahoning Valley Railroad, designating it as the center of commerce. William Crafts was born in 1849 and attended school in Mantua Township after the family moved in 1853. Crafts later attended Hillsdale College in Michigan and Hiram College close to home.

In 1876, Crafts became representative of a Boston dealer in calfskins to become the most extensive buyer in Ohio. In 1885, he partnered with Horace L. Hine to open Crafts, Hine and Co. Bankers, the first bank in Mantua Village. The bank later consolidated with First National Bank, in either 1894 or 1900, according to conflicting sources. Crafts played a role in the construction of the first Protestant Church in the village, the Methodist Church, in 1887. The building was soon destroyed by fire, but was rebuilt in 1890. Due to his aptitude for leadership and active participation in the Republican Party, Crafts was elected to the Ohio Legislature beginning in 1899, serving three terms.

Crafts purchased land and constructed his home in the village in 1882. The home embodies the distinctive characteristics of a nineteenth century home of Second Empire style architecture. While the architect is unknown, the house is one of two impressive structures that command the hilltop above the village commerce center, with the other being the Horace L. Hine House across the street. It remains the most well-preserved Second Empire style homes in the village. The home is two and a half stories of brick construction, with an attached garage on the back side (facing north). The veranda porch was a later addition to the home, but was designed to appear as original. The house was listed to the National Register of Historic Places on April 29, 1982 for its significance in local history and architecture.

1. Johannesen, Eric and Arthur Haylett. "Crafts, William H., House." National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination Form. Western Reserve Historical Society, 1980.