Cascade Valley in Akron in Summit County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Wheel Power

Photographed by Ian Lefkowitz, May 24, 2025

1. Wheel Power Marker

Inscription. By 1876 Schumacher had modernized the mill and installed a new water wheel. His wheel, made of iron, was enormous in scale. It weighed 37 tons, measured 35 feet in diameter and 10 feet in width, and had 96 buckets that filled with water. The representation above you matches the diameter of Schumacher's wheel, but is narrower.

Gravity supplied the energy that turned the wheel. Water was directed from the Cascade Race to the buckets at the top of the wheel. The weight of the water in the buckets turned the wheel three and a half times a minute.

An overshot wheel like Schumacher's was more efficient than the undershot wheels used by other mills in the valley. It made better use of the energy provided by falling water. A standpipe siphoned water from the race to the top of the wheel.

Erected by Summit Metro Parks.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical year for this entry is 1876.

Location. 41° 5.435′ N, 81° 31.035′ W. Marker is in Akron, Ohio, in Summit County. It is in Cascade Valley. It is on West North Street west of North Howard Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 57 W North Street, Akron OH 44304, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Greater Cleveland

and in the Western Reserve.

It is also in the American Midwest.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers

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are within walking distance of this marker: Ferdinand Schumacher's Cascade Mills Stood Here (here, next to this marker); The Oatmeal King (here, next to this marker); Made in Ohio, Produced for America (here, next to this marker); Becoming an American Company (here, next to this marker); The Legacy of Schumacher (here, next to this marker); Schumacher's Cascade Mills (here, next to this marker); The Cascade Race (a few steps from this marker); Generations of Power (a few steps from this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Akron.

Schumacher's Mill Wheel image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Ian Lefkowitz, May 24, 2025

2. Schumacher's Mill Wheel

This work is representative of the wheel mentioned in the marker. Like the diagram on the marker, this work was designed by Chuck Ayers, an Akron resident who was also the co-creator of the comic strip "Crankshaft."

Cascade Locks Park image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Ian Lefkowitz, May 24, 2025

3. Cascade Locks Park

The Cascade Race can be seen in the foreground of this photo.

Credits. This page was last revised on July 10, 2025. It was originally submitted on June 21, 2025, by Ian Lefkowitz of New York, New York. This page has been viewed 103 times since then and 17 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on June 21, 2025, by Ian Lefkowitz of New York, New York. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.