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Reservoir: This site was formerly a reservoir, made by damming a spring that flowed through the area. The reservoir was used by the railroad to supply water for the steam engines. The reservoir was also a source of ice in the days before refrigeration, and it was also used as a skating pond.Hazel Park: By the 1920s the reservoir was no longer needed and the area was turned into a city park. Named for Hazel Purcell Rodman, wife of C. J. Rodman, the park had a shelter, a playground and a softball field. It was used for high school sports and band practice and sometimes hosted a visiting circus. In 1958 the land was purchased from the city for $1 as the site of the new library.Rodman Public Library: Public library service in Alliance has its origins in 1886, when school superintendent C. C. Davidson started a book collection. A Carnegie Free Library was built just south of the old high school on the northeast corner of Arch Avenue and High Street in 1904. In 1961 Rodman Public Library was built, and the new library was named for its major benefactor, C. J. Rodman.

Rodman Public Library ribbon cutting ceremony, February 9, 1963

A view of Rodman Public Library looking southwest from East Broadway Street.

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Timeline of Significant Events in the Library's History

This site was the location of a reservoir for the Lake Erie, Alliance and Wheeling Railroad that passed through what is now part of the Iron Horse Trail. Ice was harvested here in the winter and it was used for ice skating. Later, the reservoir was filled in and became Hazel Park. It was used for sports and band practices for the high school and even visiting circus performances. In 1963, this library building was opened and it was renamed for its benefactor, C. J. Rodman.


Reservoir / Hazel Park / Rodman Public Library

Alliance was incorporated as a village in 1854 and included the villages of Williamsport, Freedom, and Liberty. This walk along the Iron Horse Trail will take you from Rodman Public Library's trailhead north past Main Street and into the original village of Freedom, ending at the Mabel Hartzell Historical Home.

Alliance's Freedom Trail Walk

Reservoir: This site was formerly a reservoir, made by damming a spring that flowed through the area. The reservoir was used by the railroad to supply water for the steam engines. The reservoir was also a source of ice in the days before refrigeration, and it was also used as a skating pond. Hazel Park: By the 1920s the reservoir was no longer needed and the area was turned into a city park. Named for Hazel Purcell Rodman, wife of C. J. Rodman, the park had a shelter, a playground and a softball field. It was used for high school sports and band practice and sometimes hosted a visiting circus. In 1958 the land was purchased from the city for $1 as the site of the new library. Rodman Public Library: Public library service in Alliance has its origins in 1886, when school superintendent C. C. Davidson started a book collection. A Carnegie Free Library was built just south of the old high school on the northeast corner of Arch Avenue and High Street in 1904. In 1961 Rodman Public Library was built, and the new library was named for its major benefactor, C. J. Rodman.

W. J. Egli &amp; Company fabricates metal products and display fixtures including, retail racking, wire cutting to specifications, tubing fabrication, and powder coating. They also package, distribute, and warehouse products for their clients. The company was established in 1968 by Shirley and Bill Egli, and moved to this location shortly afterwards. The building located here was originally built in 1935, and has included various businesses through the years, including Linerode Feed Mill, Bogg’s Feed &amp; Supply Store, and a Junior Achievement Center. The "Big Snow" of November 1950 caused the roof of a storage room between the grinding room and the garage of Linerode Feed Mill to collapse under the weight of the snow.

W. J. Egli & Company fabricates metal products and display fixtures. The company was established in 1968, and moved to this location shortly afterwards. The building located here was originally built in 1935, and has included various businesses through the years, including Linerode’s Feed Mill, Bogg’s Feed & Supply Store, and a Junior Achievement Center.

W.J. Egli & Company

Knam’s Brewery. This was the location of the Florian Knam Brewery. This pre-Prohibition brewery operated between 1874 and 1879. It was built into the side of the hill and had a very deep cellar. This was an advantage as it allowed better temperature control for the product. By the 1880s, many local breweries began disappearing, being driven out of business by bigger companies. Lembright Bakery. This was for many years the site of Lembright Bakery. Lembright Bakery was founded in Alliance about 1907 by D. Fred Lembright. Three Lembright Brothers ran bakeries at several locations, before purchasing this location in 1916. The building was formerly the home of the Schaefer-Black Company of Canton. By 1959 the company had about 35 employees and specialized in making breakfast rolls for other bakeries. The company lasted until the mid-1960s. The building burned and was demolished in 2008.

Knam's Brewery and Lembright Bakery were located on the southwest corner of East Market Street and Mechanic Avenue beginning in 1874. Florian Knam operated a brewery here between 1874 and 1879 in the days before Prohibition. It was built into the side of the hill and had a deep cellar, allowing temperature control for the beer. Lembright Bakery was located here beginning in 1916 and closing in the mid-1960s. The building burned in 2008.

Knam's Brewery / Lembright Bakery

County tax records indicate this building was built in 1892. It was originally occupied by the Alliance Building Company, then in 1893 it became the home of the Alliance Pant Company. When the pants company burned out in 1899, the building was rebuilt and Hillgreen, Lane &amp; Company moved there in 1900.Hillgreen, Lane &amp; Co. was a pipe organ company, founded in 1898 by Alfred Hillgreen and Charles Alva Lane. Their first organ was sold and installed in the nearby First Methodist Church (now Christ United Methodist) located at E. Broadway Street and Linden Avenue. The church was dedicated in 1899.According to Eric Johannessen, the building is one of the better examples of late nineteenth century factory architecture. Hillgreen, Lane operated until 1972. After that, the building was occupied by several businesses up until the mid-1990s, including Electronic Circuit &amp; Design. It is now owned by the Alliance Land Reutilization Corp.

This building on the north side of Market Street between Park Avenue and Mechanic Avenue was home to Hillgreen, Lane &amp; Company from 1900 to 1972. It was built about 1893 for an agricultural implement company, and was later occupied by the Alliance Pants Company. After a fire at the pants company, the building was repaired and Hillgreen, Lane &amp; Company moved in. The company was founded by founded in 1898 by Alfred Hillgreen and Charles Alva Lane. They continued to build pipe organs until it closed in 1972. The building then served as the home of Electronic Circuits &amp; Design until 1986.

Hillgreen, Lane & Company

The southeast corner of this intersection was home to a RAILROAD FREIGHT WAREHOUSE. The three-story freight house/office building was located on the corner. Behind this, and running along the tracks towards Columbia, was a long one-story freight warehouse. In 1898, the building was being used as a flour and feed store/warehouse. The railroad enlarged the warehouse when they started using it, sometime between 1898 and 1904.The northeast corner of E. Market and Mechanic was the location of the one-story passenger depot and freight office for the Lake Erie Alliance &amp; Wheeling Railroad, in service from 1911 to the 1960s.By 1947, the building was used for storage and sales, and it housed the Alliance Cycle Shop in the 1960s. Now home to a restored caboose, the lot is used for community events and concerts. The caboose is a reminder of days gone by when the Lake Erie, Alliance, and Wheeling Railroad passed through downtown Alliance. The track line is now part of the Stark Parks connector trail linking the Iron Horse Trail with the Mahoning Valley Trail.

This was the location of the one-story passenger depot and freight office for the Lake Erie, Alliance &amp; Wheeling Railroad, in service from 1911 to the 1960s. By 1947 the building was used for storage and sales, and it housed the Alliance Cycle Shop in the 1960s. This location is now home to a restored caboose, which is used for community events and concerts.

Main Street Caboose

Now the home of the Alliance Area Chamber of Commerce and its parking lot, the northeast corner of E. Main Street and Mechanic Avenue was the site of the first of three depot locations on the rail line. Later, this lot would be the home of Temple of Economy, Shafer Building and the Owl Grill, and today's Alliance Area Chamber of Commerce.In the 1880s and 1890s there was a one- and two-story rectangular depot on the front corner of this lot. According to historic Alliance maps, the first depot was a separate building on the front half of the lot. About 1897 the depot moved across Main Street to the southeast corner of E. Main Street and Mechanic Avenue, and the old depot became the location of a store called the Temple of Economy, a restaurant, a cigar factory, and some residential units.The old building here was soon moved off the lot to make way for a new building, the Fogg or Shafer Building, which was built about 1901; this building’s most famous tenant over the years was the probably the Owl Grill, a bar and restaurant known for its coney sauce. The Owl Grill lasted into the 1980s, and the building was taken down in the early 1990s. The building had a twin tower feature that made it very recognizable in old photographs. The Chamber building, which sits on the next lot to the east, was built in 1965.

The northeast corner of E. Main Street and Mechanic Avenue was the site of the first of three depot locations on the Lake Erie, Alliance &amp; Wheeling (LEA&amp;W) rail line in the 1880s and 1890s. This lot later became the home of Temple of Economy, Shafer Building and the Owl Grill, and today's Alliance Area Chamber of Commerce.

Alliance Area Chamber of Commerce/Owl Grill/Depot

The site of Kale’s Auto Repair Service (K.A.R.S.) at 157 Prospect Street has had many uses over the years. In 1858, a frame structure was dedicated here by the Presbyterian Church. This site has also been used as a public auditorium, a skating rink, and the armory for Co. K of the 8th Ohio Volunteer Infantry. The present building dates from 1924, when it was built for the Alliance Buick Co. In the 1920s and 1930s, the King Bee Milling Company was located on the northwest corner of this intersection. It was operated by J. C. Henschen. The Milling Company building is often visible in old photos of the downtown area. They ground feed and milled flour for bread, cakes, and pastries. McKandy’s Oil, a Phillips 66 service station was also located here. The service station building now serves as an office for Buddy Bolog’s US Coach bus business.

The intersection of Prospect Street and N. Mechanic Avenue has been an active part of downtown Alliance's business history throughout the 20th century and remains so today. The southwest block has been home to a Presbyterian Church, service garages, a skating rink, and the armory for Company K of the Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Today, Kale's Auto Repair Service continues to service automobile customers as it has since 1996.

On the northeast block, the King Bee Milling Company, operated by J. C. Henschen, was located here during the 1920s and 1930s. In later years, McKandy's Phillips 66 station was also located here. The service station is now the office for US Coach.

N. Mechanic Avenue and Prospect Street

Carl Tanner and Company ran wholesale and retail cheese businesses on this site, and Arnold Tanner was the third generation of the family to conduct the business. The former Tanner Cheese Company building that used to sit here was constructed in 1880. Before it was a cheese house, it served as a planing mill in the 1880s. The business was sold to Bud Twyman in 1973 and was called Carl Tanner and Co. and Twyman Cheese Company until the mid-1980s. The building was purchased by Buddy Bolog of US Coach Tours in 2012 and torn down and salvaged in 2016. The PITTSBURGH, FORT WAYNE &amp; CHICAGO RAILROAD was known originally as the Ohio &amp; Pennsylvania Railroad. It is a major east-west rail line today. Service between Alliance and Pittsburgh began in January 1852. By 1865, the line was running four trains daily each way through Alliance. It took just over 17 hours to go from Alliance to Chicago. A few years later it would become part of the Pennsylvania Railroad operations.

Carl Tanner and Company ran wholesale and retail cheese businesses on this site, and Arnold Tanner was the third generation of the family to conduct the business. The former Tanner Cheese Company building that used to sit here was constructed in 1880. Before it was a cheese house, it served as a planing mill in the 1880s. The business was sold to Bud Twyman in 1973 and was called Carl Tanner and Co. and Twyman Cheese Company until the mid-1980s.

The PITTSBURGH, FORT WAYNE & CHICAGO RAILROAD was known originally as the Ohio & Pennsylvania Railroad. It is a major east-west rail line today. Service between Alliance and Pittsburgh began in January 1852.

Tanner Cheese Company / Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad

Matthias Hester and John Miller laid out the village of Freedom in 1838. Originally 60 lots, the village was bounded by Vine Street, Walnut Avenue, Wayne Street and Union Avenue. Several additions were made before the village was incorporated into the new village called Alliance in 1854. Hester was a tailor by trade. He married Susan W. Gaskill in 1818, and they had 10 children. In 1834, he went to Mount Union and opened a grocery store. The story goes that no one in Mt. Union village was interested in starting a Baptist church, so he bought some land a few miles north where he could make sure to provide for a church, which he did. Hester was a good businessman, and he must have had an inkling that the coming of the railroads would help the area prosper. In 1848, Hester gave up his mercantile business to devote his time to real estate. Hester later added lots to the village of Freedom and laid out North Freedom and Hester Avenues parallel with the new C &amp; P RR. Matthias Hester donated to the community more than $6,000 worth of real estate for public, railroad, and church use. He was a member of the first city council when Alliance was founded. OCTAGON HALL / HESTER PARKAcross Hester Avenue from the Hester Block and home is Hester Park, a triangular plot, which was made a park by the Alliance Woman’s Club. On this plot of ground in early days stood a public hall on high piers. During a school exhibition in 1858, some of the piers gave way causing the floor to collapse, and throwing the audience to the street level. One young child was killed and several other people were hurt. HESTER BLOCK (405-411 HESTER AVENUE)The brick house at 405-411 Hester Avenue, is the oldest brick house in the city of Alliance. It was built by Matthias Hester, the founder of Freedom. The house is a fine example of the late Federal style of architecture, with its parapet gable and double chimneys. The Hester Block (Note: A block is a multistory building, not necessarily what we think of today as a “city block.”) was built just south of the original village. It was built in what became Hester’s first addition to the town of Alliance sometime between 1838 and 1842. The bricks were made in kilns on S. Union Avenue in front of the present Glamorgan Castle. Clay for the bricks was obtained from pits where the lakes are now located The bricks cost $2.50 a wagonload, delivered. The Hester Block was home to Mathias Hester and his family, and was also the first general store in Alliance. In 1948, the Hester Block contained four apartments. Only half of the block is still standing, as part of the landmark was condemned and razed in 1992. HESTER HOUSE / CHARLES HESTER (326 N. MECHANIC)The Hester house was located at the corner of Hester and Mechanic. In 1869, Matthias Hester built a new brick house on the southwest corner of Hester and Mechanic Avenues. Hester lived in this house until his death in 1890. It became the home of Matthias’s son Charles Hester, and was later owned by Clarence McDonald. The property most recently served as a beverage drive through. William Magrath recalls that north of the house in the yard there was a clay lion that adorned the yard for many years.

Matthias Hester and John Miller laid out the village of Freedom in 1838, bounded by Vine Street, Walnut Avenue, Wayne Street and Union Avenue. Several additions were made before the village was incorporated into the new village called Alliance in 1854.

Located at the intersection of N. Mechanic and Hester Avenues, Hester Park, the Hester House, and the Hester Block are reminders of the life of Matthias Hester and his legacy.

The park once was home to an Octagon Hall, used as a public building. It was built on high piers. During a school exhibition in 1858, some of the piers gave way causing the floor to collapse, and throwing the audience to the street level. One young child was killed and several other people were hurt.

The Hester Block is the oldest brick building in the city of Alliance. Originally, it had four apartments, but due to structural problems, now only has two.

In 1869, Matthias Hester built a new brick house on the southwest corner of Hester and Mechanic Avenues. Hester lived in this house until his death in 1890.

Hester Park / Hester House / Hester Block

A large Union School with two-stories and six rooms was built on the southwest corner of N. Park Avenue and Washington Street in 1856. It began the new era in the Alliance public school system. In 1867, 625 pupils attended the school. Many notable meetings were held here, one of which was addressed by James A. Garfield. The building was used until 1892, when it was razed. for the building of North Park School, otherwise known as Building No. 1. Mabel Hartzell taught first grade in the North Park School in 1899. The same plans for this building were used for North Franklin School. This building was partially destroyed by fire in 1942, and remained here until it was demolished in August 1964. All that remains of the school grounds are the cement steps that led up to the school's sidewalk.

Alliance began a new era in public school education with the building of the Union School on the southwest corner of N. Park Avenue and Washington Street in 1856. The two-story building had six rooms and employed eight teachers. The Union School was razed in 1892 when the North Park School, otherwise known as Building No. 1, was built. The North Park School suffered a fire in 1942. It stood vacant until it was demolished in August 1964.

Union School / Park Street School

Built by Samuel Shaffer, a German immigrant who moved to Freedom from Pennsylvania, in 1842, he operated a store here. After the opening of the Cleveland &amp; Pittsburgh Railroad in 1851, the house served as the first railroad station in Alliance. It was later known as the Gehret House and was a grocery store. This building was torn down in the mid-1980s. Alliance Rubber was founded in Alliance as a hobby in 1923 by William H. Spencer. It grew from 1 person in a basement to a company of 90 employees by 1955. The company made 300 varieties of rubber bands, and it was the largest company of its kind in the world. Spencer came to Alliance permanently in 1917 with the Pennsylvania Railroad. In 1923, the Rubber Manufacturer’s Association decided to eliminate second grade inner tubes, which opened up a market for good scrap rubber. Spencer introduced package tying rubber bands. As the business grew, Spencer moved it to 633 N. Union Ave., former site of Ideal Laundry Company. The property was later sold to Crest Rubber in 1992. In 2017, the area was named a federal EPA Superfund site, and a cleanup costing $1.6 million was undertaken. The oldest part of the plant on N. Union Avenue was razed in 2019. The city owns the property, and an expanded gas station is planned along Union Avenue. Plans for the remaining buildings on N. Park Avenue have not been announced yet.

Built in about 1842, Samuel Shaffer, a German immigrant who moved to Freedom from Pennsylvania, operated a store here. After the opening of the Cleveland & Pittsburgh railroad in 1851, the house served as the first railroad station. This building was torn down in the mid-1980s.

Alliance Rubber was founded in Alliance as a hobby in 1923 by William H. Spencer. It grew from 1 person in a basement to a company of 90 employees by 1955. The company made 300 varieties of rubber bands, and it was the largest company of its kind in the world.

Shaffer Home / Gehret House / Railroad Station / Alliance Rubber

PUBLIC SQUARE OF FREEDOM (KEYSTONE &amp; PARK, FORMERLY MARKET &amp; MAIN)When Freedom was platted in 1838, there was a public square here on the west side of N. Park Avenue, just south of Keystone Street. A stone erected by the Alliance Historical Society in 1956 marks the square today. There was at least one old well here used for firefighting purposes, and a well cap is visible near the marker stone. Originally, some of the streets of Freedom had different names. Union Avenue was called Liberty Street, North Park Avenue was Main Street, Keystone Street was Market Street, Perry Street was North Street, and Vine and Wayne Streets were originally unnamed. Walnut is the only street to keep its original name. FIREFIGHTINGIn the early days of Alliance, there were two volunteer fire companies in the area, the Babcock Hook and Ladder Company headquartered on S. Freedom Avenue, near City Hall, and the Keystone Company, stationed on the north side of Keystone Street between N. Park and Walnut in the old village of Freedom. (The latter company also went by the names of Freedom and Shaffer - https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p16007coll36/id/19451.) About 1880 this building was moved to N. Freedom Avenue at the Walnut intersection. Early firefighting was primitive, using powdery fire retardants, leaky sap buckets, and hand pumps with heavy leather hoses. Firefighters would sound the alarm by striking a metal plate at public square with a sledge hammer for a resounding gong. The fire companies would compete instead of working together, resulting in less than ideal results. William Aungst became the first paid Fire Chief of the city about 1893, and the Central Fire Station on E. Market Street, now the Firehouse Theater, was built in 1905. RAILROADThe Cleveland and Pittsburgh Railroad, formerly known as Cleveland and Wellsville, had its first passenger service to the village of Freedom from Cleveland on July 4, 1851. All that day a train ran back and forth between Freedom and Limaville, treating people to free rides. Names of the first engines were Meteor, Borealis, and Philadelphia. Matthias Hester was an enterprising liberal man, and a warm supporter of railroads in a day when they were regarded as risky and uncertain.

When Freedom was platted in 1838, there was a public square here on the west side of N. Park Avenue, just south of Keystone Street. A stone erected by the Alliance Historical Society in 1956 marks the square and the location of the village well today.

In the early days of Alliance, there were two volunteer fire companies in the area, the Babcock Hook and Ladder Company headquartered on S. Freedom Avenue, near City Hall, and the Keystone Company, stationed on the north side of Keystone Street between N. Park and Walnut in the old village of Freedom.

The Cleveland and Pittsburgh Railroad, formerly known as Cleveland and Wellsville, had its first passenger service to the village of Freedom from Cleveland on July 4, 1851. All that day a train ran back and forth between Freedom and Limaville, treating people to free rides.

Keystone Street & N. Park Avenue / Public Square (Freedom) / Cleveland & Pittsburgh Railroad

The most prominent of the homes that used to sit along this stretch of N. Park Avenue was the Philip Sharer home with its second story projecting over the first in order to form a front porch. Born near Coblentz, Germany, Sharer was a cabinet maker who settled in Freedom (now Alliance) about 1841. In 1868, Philip's eldest son, John H. Sharer went into partnership with his father in opening a furniture business on the northwest corner of E. Main Street and N. Seneca Avenue. The business focus gradually shifted from furniture to undertaking over the years. The Sharer-Stirling-Skivolocke Funeral home on South Union is now considered the oldest continuous business in the city. The Sharer house on N. Park Avenue was torn down in the mid-1980s.

The most prominent of the homes that used to sit along this stretch of N. Park Avenue was the Philip Sharer home with its second story projecting over the first in order to form a front porch. Born near Coblentz, Germany, Sharer was a cabinet maker who settled in Freedom (now Alliance) about 1841. The Sharer house was torn down in the mid-1980s.

Philip Sharer House

Built by Matthew Earley in 1867, the home is Victorian Italianate style, with seven Italian marble fireplaces inside. Matthew Earley and his wife Mary Edwards Earley lived here with their adopted daughter Miss Mabel Hartzell. Matthew was a tanner by trade, a businessman, and a city councilman. Mary was a homemaker, and Mabel was a lifelong educator and a community leader. Mabel was the first woman elected to the Alliance Board of Education in 1912, and was a founder of the Alliance Historical Society in 1939. When she passed away in 1954, she willed her beautiful home to the Alliance Historical Society to be used as a museum. The home is on the National Register of Historic Places and is also designated as a Local Landmark. EARLEY’S TANNERY (NW CORNER VINE &amp; WALNUT)Although we are not sure when the tannery was built, it likely was operated by Earley from the 1860s to the 1890s. It was near the driveway entrance to Earley’s Hill Park, the land for which was donated to the city by Mabel Hartzell in honor of her adoptive father.

Owned and operated by the Alliance Historical Society, this house was built in 1867 for Matthew and Mary Edwards Earley. The style is Italianate and features wide eaves supported by pronounced bracketing. The front porch runs along the entire front and a portion of the side of the house. The Earley's adopted daughter, Mabel Hartzell lived here until her passing in 1954. She willed the home and its contents to the historical society to be used as a museum for the city of Alliance.

Alliance's Freedom Trail Walk

Reservoir / Hazel Park / Rodman Public Library

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