Barberton’s post office opened in 1891, and 34% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 86% of U.S. towns · #226 of 993 in Ohio. What drives it
9 places in town are on the National Register, among them four historic districts with 219 buildings between them. Below: 5 old photos and papers, maps from 1903 on, and the census since 1900.
The Barberton post office opened in 1891, the earliest record of the town by name. Three smaller post offices, New Portage (1823), Johnsons Corners (1850) and Johnson (1894), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 4,354 in 19002020 census: 25,191135 years
How historic is Barberton?
A
More historic than 86% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Barberton post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Barberton’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Barberton is more historic than 86% of U.S. towns, #226 of 993 in Ohio. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Barberton’s overall grade.
Ohio towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Ohio town has 2.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Barberton’s 90.2 sits above most of its state (92% of Ohio towns have fewer) while its 224 historic buildings outnumber those of 94% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A+. The pre-1940 share (±2.7 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Barberton’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Barberton was founded in 1891 by industrialist O.C. Barber, who planned the town according to his vision of industry, progress and community. In 1894 he moved the manufacturing operations of the Diamond Match Company, which he formed from a merger of 11 companies, from Akron to Barberton. He soon was producing 250 million matches a day. In the valley running parallel to the Tuscarawas River and the Ohio & Erie Canal, he oversaw the construction of factories, residential neighborhoods and a compact commercial downtown. In the center of the new city was Lake Anna, named after Barber's only daughter, Anna Laura Barber.
Passages that mention Barberton, cut from the printed page as they were published.
Centennial history of Summit County, Ohio1908 · page 141Read the page →
Read the text
The Akron and Barberton Belt Railroad, opened in 1892, extends in and around the city of Barberton and is thirteen miles in length.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Centennial history of Summit County, Ohio1908 · page 846Read the page →
Read the text
1903, T\hen he located at Johnson's Corners, in Norton Township, where he was made health officer, having previously served in that office at Barberton. He remained in that village until July, 1906, when he returned to Barberton, locating on the corner of Baird and Fourth Streets. Dr. Stall is an enthusiast in his profession and keeps fully abreast
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Barberton, 1823 to 1964
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Barberton. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1903Akron sheet · 1:62,500
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Barberton.
Every building
Barberton, building by building, 1916–1927
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
The Barberton post office opened in 1891, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Barberton rank for history?
Barberton is more historic than 86% of U.S. towns, #226 of 993 in Ohio. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Barberton?
9 listings: 5 buildings, among them the O. C. Barber Barn No. 1 (listed 1973, the first), and 4 historic districts with 219 contributing buildings. 224 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Barberton?
34% of Barberton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.7 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1955.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (5), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (9), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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