{"id":135,"date":"2019-11-21T17:25:07","date_gmt":"2019-11-21T17:25:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/roundaboutakron\/?page_id=135"},"modified":"2019-12-09T15:22:27","modified_gmt":"2019-12-09T15:22:27","slug":"jazz-on-howard-street","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/roundaboutakron\/jazz-on-howard-street\/","title":{"rendered":"Jazz on Howard Street"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A Culture of Fame<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

From the 1940s to the 1960s, Akron was absolutely rich with the culture of jazz, boasting the appearance of famous musicians such as Cab Calloway, Duke Ellington, Tommy Dorsey, Ella Fitzgerald, Ray Charles, and a slew of others. Initially, this may be surprising due to perceptions of the Akron we think of today\u2013it\u2019s a small city in the Midwestern United States, filled with the ghosts of a rubber industry that is far from its peak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, Akron has what was, at the time, an extraordinary advantage. That is, it is located fairly equidistantly between New York City and Chicago<\/a>, two of America\u2019s cultural centers. There was actually a train station in Akron called the Union Depot<\/a>, which was a key stop between Chicago and New York from 1891 to 1950. As a result of this\u2013and, according to jazz club owner Tony Troppe, Akron\u2019s comparatively low cost of lodging and living\u2013many famous musicians passing through from one city to the other ended up stopping to stay and perform in Akron. At the time, the greatest of the jazz clubs were located on Howard Street. Some of these more famous clubs included the Green Turtle, the High Hat, the Cosmopolitan, and Benny Rivers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A look down Howard Street featuring the Green Turtle Cafe, 1960s, courtesy of Akron Beacon Journal<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Hotel Matthews and Segregation <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Hotel Matthews monument <\/a>stands near the original Howard Street and Martin Luther King Boulevard in downtown Akron. Made of red brick, a single green door, and a barbershop light, the monument serves as the sole physical reminder of the jazz era on Howard Street. An inscription on the monument reads, \u201cA Monument To A Man\u2026 A Time\u2026 And a Place.\u201d During a time of racial segregation, Howard Street was a place where blacks and whites could coalesce at jazz clubs and set aside their differences. Not only that, but Howard Street was also home to many of the city\u2019s black-owned businesses and has been described as \u201cthe center of African-American culture in Akron during the mid-20th century.\u201d Thanks to George Mathews, owner of Hotel Matthews<\/a> on Howard Street, famous black musicians had a place to stay when no other hotels in town would rent them a room. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Couples dancing joyfully in a jazz club, 1960s, courtesy of Akron Beacon Journal<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Declining but Not Gone<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As the rubber industry declined in Akron, Howard Street and the city\u2019s jazz culture also declined. When a portion of Howard Street was demolished near downtown in the early 1970s to make way for the Innerbelt Freeway, the last of the city\u2019s jazz culture seemed to go with it. However, in an interview with UA Director of Jazz Studies and renowned trumpeter Jack Schantz<\/a>, there has been a recent resurgence of jazz culture in Akron. Young graduates of The University of Akron School of Music are staying in the area due to popular venues such as Blu Jazz<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Check out these audio snippets of interviews with Jazz musicians who performed in Akron from the Cascade Locks Park Association<\/a>‘s CD, Hot Jazz: The Legends of Howard Street<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n