Author Archives: Donna Webb

(Ornithogalum umbellatum) Greenish white flowers arise from a clump of grasslike leaves. Also called sleepy dick from its early-closing flowers. It grows from a bulb. Very popular in old fashioned gardens; it naturalized in the … more →

A flight of locks in Akron (#1-15) which allowed canal boats to travel from Summit Lake down to the level of the Little Cuyahoga river or up to Summit Lake from the level of the … more →

(Rhyus typhina) A small weedy native tree with red fruit and leaves in the fall. The flower stalks and branches are velvety-pubescent, like young antlers. The fruit was used to make a drink like Kool-aid.

Canal slang for a drink.

(Acer saccharinum) A small tree, fast growing and common along stream banks in America. It has deeply cut leaves that are light green above and silvery white beneath.

Vitrified ceramic tubes used as drainage pipe for farmers and as piping for water and sewage systems. Akron remained the center of this industry from the l840’s until the end of the century.