By Christopher Sector

This site on the corner of South Main and State Streets has been the home of the O’Neil’s department store building since 1927. Prior to this current structure, this corner was the home to Merrill Pottery Works. East Akron used to be a hotbed for clay deposits, and in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries, Summit County was considered the sewer pipe capital of America. The Merrill family was one of the first throughout the country to master vitrification. In 1927, the Merrill Pottery Works building was bulldozed and the current building was built by the O’Neil family. The department store is known for holiday seasons in which O’Neil’s and its rival store, Polsky’s – across the street, would light up downtown with Christmas festivities and window advertisements. The building was originally an 800,000 square foot structure. It has undergone reconstruction, as it has been greatly downsized. Currently, the building has approximately 185,000 square feet. Improvements included demolition of the old parking deck and construction of a new 550 car parking deck, an atrium extending from the roof to the lowest level, and a Main Street public lobby. O’Neil’s department store saw its end in the late 1980s. Roetzel & Andress, Akron’s oldest law firm, now occupies 60,000 square feet on floors four, five, and six of the building. Ernst & Young occupies the third floor and McDonald’s Investments occupies the second floor. The first floor was sold to The George Group in 2001. They operate the Barley House, a restaurant and bar.