Brandywine Village, Ohio is a former settlement located near Brandywine Falls in Summit County,

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. It is within the boundaries of the

Cuyahoga Valley National Park Cuyahoga Valley National Park is an American national park that preserves and reclaims the rural landscape along the Cuyahoga River between Akron and Cleveland in Northeast Ohio. The park is administered by the National Park Service, but within ...

. The site lies on the border between Northfield Center Township and Sagamore Hills Township.

History

The Village of Brandywine was first settled in 1814 when George Wallace, taking advantage of the

water power Hydropower (from el, ὕδωρ, "water"), also known as water power, is the use of falling or fast-running water to produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by converting the gravitational potential or kinetic energy of a wa ...

, built a

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensi ...

at Brandywine Falls. It was a thriving community. Over the next decade, the Village of Brandywine added a whiskey

distillery Distillation, or classical distillation, is the process of separating the components or substances from a liquid mixture by using selective boiling and condensation, usually inside an apparatus known as a still. Dry distillation is the heati ...

gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the Mill (grinding), grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist i ...

, woolen mill, and a dozen houses. In 1824, Wallace transferred his property to his sons who then formed the Wallace Brothers Company. Business thrived for the next 30 years. Eventually, Brandywine's prosperity dried up. The

Ohio and Erie Canal The Ohio and Erie Canal was a canal constructed during the 1820s and early 1830s in Ohio. It connected Akron with the Cuyahoga River near its outlet on Lake Erie in Cleveland, and a few years later, with the Ohio River near Portsmouth. It also ...

, and later the railroads, shipped goods to the cities of

Akron Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city prop ...

and

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

, leaving towns like Brandywine behind. Except for the barn and house built by James Wallace in 1848 only a few hidden foundations remain of the Village of Brandywine. Near the falls, some foundations of the old gristmill can still be seen. The James Wallace House has been restored and now serves as a

bed and breakfast Bed and breakfast (typically shortened to B&B or BnB) is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast. Bed and breakfasts are often private family homes and typically have between four and eleven rooms, wit ...

, The Inn at Brandywine Falls.

References

Gallery

{{gallery , width=160 , height=170 , lines=4 , align=center , File:Cuyahoga Valley National Park marker for Brandywine Village.jpg, National Park marker for Brandywine Village , File:Cuyahoga Valley National Park Inn at Brandywine Falls.jpg, Inn at Brandywine Falls , Image:Barn and house built by James Wallace in 1848.jpg, Barn and house built by James Wallace in 1848 Ghost towns in Ohio Populated places established in 1814 Geography of Summit County, Ohio 1814 establishments in Ohio