Northampton renewal: Cuyahoga Falls giving face-lifts to former township landmarks

While Northampton Township is history, Cuyahoga Falls is giving some love to two of the community's landmarks that were absorbed into the city in a 1986 merger.

The Keyser-Swain farmhouse in Keyser Park, near West Bath Road, and the Northampton Town Hall, on West Bath Road, are undergoing improvements.

Work on the Keyser-Swain farmhouse, which had once been in danger of being demolished, started in mid-August, said Sarah Deitrick of Friends of the Keyser-Swain Farmhouse. The group was formed to help preserve the 19th century home, which was purchased by Alva and Leona Keyser in 1905. According to information from the Northampton Historical Society, the farmhouse was constructed in 1877.

Deitrick said A. Caspersen in Cuyahoga Falls has been contracted to do the work at the farmhouse — a project that preservation professionals call a "scene-setter," she said.

The work includes asbestos and mold removal, interior cleanup, roof repairs and deconstruction of additions made sometime in the 1950s, Deitrick said.

Separately, Deitrick said, the group is working with the city's Parks & Recreation Department to highlight the farmhouse's historical significance.

Kelli Crawford-Smith, director of the city's Neighborhood Excellence, Communications and Community Outreach Department, said the farmhouse will be used to enhance the aesthetics of Keyser Park and will not be turned into a rental facility.

How much did Cuyahoga Falls budget for the Keyser-Swain Farmhouse renovation?

The city allocated $50,000 this year for the external renovation, which will be funded through the recreation levy. The project could take anywhere from one to three years to complete, Crawford-Smith said.

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In addition to the nearly 73-acre Keyser Park, the farmstead formerly included land now occupied by Cuyahoga Falls Fire Station No. 4 and the Northampton Town Hall, according to information from the Friends group. Carrie Keyser-Swain, one of the daughters of Alva and Leona Keyser, was the last resident of the farmhouse. She sold the house and farm to Cuyahoga Falls in 1993 and died in 1995 at age 92.

Among other community contributions, Keyser-Swain had led an effort to purchase the former Center School, which had been at the southwest corner of Bath and Northampton roads, according to information from the Northampton Historical Society. She had it moved to the other side of the road onto the Keyser farm property, where it was turned into a schoolhouse museum. It was destroyed by a tornado in July 1992. Parts of the building and materials in the museum were found as far as 15 miles away in Streetsboro.

Town Hall served one of Summit Couty's 16 original townships

The 1986 merger of Cuyahoga Falls and Northampton was the first time a township and city combined in such a fashion in Ohio.

Northampton took its name form Northampton, Massachusetts, where Simeon Prior, his wife and 10 children moved from in 1802 to settle what became one of the 16 original townships in Summit County, according to information from the Northampton Historical Society. The Prior farm included 400 acres southwest of the current intersection of State and Chart Roads.

The Town Hall was constructed in 1937 and replaced a structure built in 1873.

Crawford-Smith said the Town Hall renovations, which are expected to take about six months, will cost $290,682, with $178,482 paid through the recreation fund and $112,200 paid out of a parks and greenspace improvement fund that's generated by fees for new community developments.

Work on the building includes accessibility upgrades such as an exterior ramp and an Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant first-floor bathroom. Workers will also update the windows, refinish the wooden floor, repaint the interior, repair the ceiling, improve interior and exterior lighting and repair the roof, Crawford-Smith said.

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The Town Hall has been made available as an event space through the Parks & Recreation Department, but rentals are on hold until the work is complete.

David Brown, president of the Northampton Historical Society, said the organization appreciates the city's involvement in the renovations.

"I hope to see the history of Northampton Township preserved," Brown said. "I hope the public will use the Town Hall."

Reporter April Helms can be reached at ahelms@thebeaconjournal.com

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Northampton Town Hall, historic farmhouse, undergoing renovations