Buchtel, Ohio

John R. Buchtel Founder of Buchtel College in Akron, Ohio And founder of Buchtel, Ohio in Athens county Born: Jan. 18, 1822. Died: May 23, 1892. Left photo by Sandra Quinn

"The Akron Beacon Journal: John R. Buchtel
Best known as: Founder of Buchtel College, which later became the
University of Akron.

Other accomplishments: He was the first president of the Buckeye
Reaper and Mower Co. and one of the largest contributors to
Akron's public library system and to several churches.

Education: To support his impoverished family, Buchtel went to
work at a young age and did not get an education.

Personal life: Born in Green Township, he married Elizabeth
Davidson in 1844. They didn't have any children. He died virtually
penniless.

Remembered by: Buchtel Hall at the University of Akron, Buchtel
High School, and Buchtel, a town in Athens County, where he bought
1,400 acres for the Akron Iron Co., which he helped finance."

John R. Buchtel built the Akron Iron Works in Buchtel, Ohio in 1880.  The Works produced 40 tons of  foundry iron per day.  The foundry was fueled by the Buchtel Coal Mine which produced 492 coal loads of coal per week.  John also built a foundry in Nelsonville in which the items he needed for the Iron works were produced. (The Athens Messenger and the  History of the Hocking Valley) 

Click on boxes below for photo's and history.

 Dr Ivan M. Tribe. Was first published in Northwest Ohio Quarterly, Maumee, Ohio

Postcard photo owned by the Athens Messenger

Scan of these coins found on Ebay.com

Ohio University Library Archives Photo (Frank Buhla collection) 1909

permission of Athens Messenger

First Catholic Church beside the New Catholic Church and Home for Priest and Nuns

The first Catholic Church was used as the high school. Photo owned and submitted by Mary Klienhentz.

Photo owned and submitted by Steve Brown

Photo owned and submitted by Steve Brown

Permission to display from Athens Messenger

Photo owned and submitted by Sharon McDonald Dunkle and Mary Kleinhentz

2 sons of Lewis and Mary Jane Collins Davis of Buchtel in photo

Photo owned and submitted by Audrey Davis Mitchell

Copyright of the Athens Messenger 1998 reprinted with permission

Audrey is the niece of Ed and Andrew Davis pictured above article, daughter of Thomas and Sophia Spurgeon Davis and granddaughter of Lewis and Mary Jane Collins Davis of Buchtel who are buried in the Buchtel Catholic Cemetery.

Thomas and Sophia (Spurgeon) Davis, Thomas was the son of Lewis and Mary Jane Collins Davis

Lewis "Possum" Davis was a saloonkeeper for Mahaffey's Saloon in Buchtel 1900-1920 and a coal miner in the Buchtel coal mine from 1880-1900. He was the son of Nathan and Lucretia Russell Davis of Middleport. Mary Jane Collins was the daughter of Civil War Soldier Thomas Collins and wife Maugerite Leonardt Collins of Ireland. Sophia Spurgeon was the daughter of Thomas and Josephine Morrison Spurgeon of New Straitsville, and granddaughter of Civil War Soldier Reuben Spurgeon and wife Emilia Allen Skinner Spurgeon of New Straitsville.

photo owned and submitted by Tom Collins

 Photo owned and submitted by Perry Palumbo

Photo owned and submitted by Mary Kleinhentz

Photo owned and submitted by Mary Kleinhentz

Photo owned and submitted by Tanna Allman

submitted by Joan Robson Grube

Sowers family genealogy compiled by Eldon Sowers

HTML created by webmaster - Sandra Mitchell-Quinn

Great-great grand daughter of Lewis and Mary Jane Collins Davis of Buchtel, Ohio

 graduate of Nelsonville-York High School in Buchtel, Ohio and the  Buchtel College of Arts and Sciences in Akron, Ohio at the University of Akron

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