AKRON'S MOST ECLECTIC NEIGHBORHOOD

For nearly a century, Highland Square has been a pleasant neighborhood for Akronites, including nationally recognized residents such as publisher John S. Knight, Senator Charles Dick, presidential candidate Wendell Willkie, industrialist Paul W. Litchfield, and Alcoholics Anonymous founder Dr. Robert Smith.

The region's oldest feature is the Portage Path, which passes along the street of that name. For decades, the statue of an Indian has watched over this famous pathway where Native Americans carried their canoes between the Cuyahoga and Tuscarawas Rivers. The Portage Path was part of the effective western boundary of the white and Native American lands from 1785 to 1805. When first erected, the Indian statue stood along the curb on West Market Street. The refurbished statue now stands on a landscaped site on the corner of Portage Path and West Market Street.

No one seems to know precisely when the name Highland Square was first applied to the area surrounding the intersection of Highland Avenue and West Market Street. The name was in common use by the 1930s, possibly because of the new Highland Theater, Coyle's ice cream store, several well patronized bars and restaurants and other commercial activities called attention to it.

Today, much of Highland Square remains much as they have been – livable areas close to the central city. Best of all, the district has retained its warm neighborhood flavor.