How many times can a city dedicate the same monument? Akron has dedicated the John Brown Monument four times: in 1910, 1938, 1975 and September 2025. None of those ceremonies made the monument any easier to reach. The trailhead that opened on Sept. 22, 2026, is the first change aimed at that problem.
Here is how that played out over 116 years:
- 1910. The German-American Alliance put up the monument to mark the 50th anniversary of Brown's death. Its sandstone pillar came from the first Summit County courthouse.
- 1938. Akron's Negro 25 Year Club added benches, a fountain and a stone and bronze marker. Emmer Lancaster, a civil rights leader and lawyer in Akron, led the effort.
- 1940. A tornado took the eagle that originally stood on top of the column.
- 1975. Lancaster came back to Akron in 1974 and found the monument in disrepair. It was restored and rededicated a second time the next year, during Akron's 150th anniversary.
- 2000. The Akron Zoo bought the land under the monument to protect it from more damage. The City of Akron still owns the monument itself.
- September 2025. The monument was rededicated for the fourth time, and Signal Akron reported then that it might reopen to the public.
- Sept. 22, 2026. The John Brown Monument Trailhead opened.
Why the Hidden Spot Kept Causing Trouble
The monument stands on land the Perkins family once owned, the same ground the Akron Zoo now occupies in Sherbondy Hill. Signal Akron contributor Melanie Mohler has written that Brown and his family lived in Akron from 1844 to 1854 and worked land belonging to Col. Simon Perkins, son of Akron co-founder Gen. Simon Perkins. According to Cleveland.com, the monument went up on that property in 1910 because it was close to Brown's family home on Diagonal Road.
The tucked-away spot that made sense for a memorial also left it exposed. Vandals targeted it for decades. "Over the decades, the public awareness of this monument slipped, and it fell into disrepair," Akron Zoo President and CEO Doug Piekarz said at the dedication.
The zoo's purchase in 2000 stopped the damage, but it brought a new problem. Dave Lieberth, president of the Akron History Center, who pushed for years to preserve the site, put it this way:
"The good news is, the vandalism stopped. The bad news is, no one could get to it."
Until last week, you could only see the monument during special events and tours, or on a separate pathway that required a zoo staff member to walk you in. Lieberth gave many of those tours himself over the past few years. "Far too often, that monument has been out of sight, out of mind," Mayor Shammas Malik said during the ceremony.
What the Trailhead Changed, and What It Didn't
The new design keeps the protection and adds public access. The zoo's old bus stop in its parking lot now holds signs about the monument's history. Next to it, a newly cleared path runs a tenth of a mile through the woods to the memorial. Summit Metro Parks designed and built the trail. Akron200 and the Akron Bicentennial Commission paid for it, and the zoo cares for the monument together with the Summit County Historical Society.
Here's what the walk costs, compared with a trip into the zoo. Off-season general admission runs $11 to $21, and the monument is free. Cleveland.com reports that you don't need zoo admission to visit the monument and that parking is free. The zoo's own site also lists parking at 505 Euclid Ave. as free.
The trail does follow the zoo's schedule. It's open during zoo hours, weather permitting, and it closes 30 minutes before the zoo does. That matters this week. The zoo's peak-season hours of 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. end today, Sept. 30. Starting Thursday, Oct. 1, the zoo is open 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily, so the monument trail is open from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Those off-season hours run through spring. The zoo's site says they last through April 4. Cleveland.com printed April 3.
The monument also still shows its history. Some graffiti and carvings remain visible, and the stone spheres that once sat on the base around the monument are gone. Michelle Camou, the zoo's director of external affairs, said more restoration would take more funding. The path is a nature trail and doesn't meet Americans with Disabilities Act standards. Visitors who need ADA access can call 330-375-2550 to schedule a visit. Summit County Historical Society President and CEO Leianne Neff Heppner said the group would like to add an accessible path if more money becomes available, but no restoration work is scheduled right now.
Where Boo at the Zoo Fits
Three October weekends complicate the plan. Boo at the Zoo runs Oct. 10–11, 17–18 and 24–25, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Everyone except infants under two who aren't trick-or-treating needs a ticket, including member observers who get in free. Tickets cost $16 to $20 for trick-or-treaters and $13 to $17 for observers.
None of the sources say whether the public monument trail follows the longer Boo hours or the regular 4 p.m. close on those days. The trailhead sits in the same parking lot Boo visitors will use. On weekdays in October the 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. window is confirmed and you won't be competing with an event crowd.
| October 2026 | Zoo hours | Monument trail | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weekdays | 11 a.m.–4 p.m. | 11 a.m.–3:30 p.m. | Free, no zoo admission needed |
| Non-Boo weekends, Oct. 3–4 and Oct. 31 | 11 a.m.–4 p.m. | 11 a.m.–3:30 p.m. | Free parking at 505 Euclid Ave. |
| Boo weekends, Oct. 10–11, 17–18, 24–25 | 11 a.m.–7 p.m. for ticketed Boo guests | Hours not confirmed | Boo ticket sales close at 6 p.m. |
Pairing It With the House on Diagonal Road
The monument was placed where it is because of the Brown family home, so a visit leads naturally to the house. The John Brown House at 514 Diagonal Road and the Perkins Stone Mansion are both part of the Summit County Historical Society's tours. Tours run Wednesday through Saturday at 1 p.m., 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. The Society lists its property address as 550 Copley Road and its parking address as 465 S. Portage Path. It is closed Saturday, Oct. 3. The Society's hours page doesn't list a current tour price, so call 330-535-1120 before you go.
Because tours start in the early afternoon, a weekday visit fits together well. Walk the monument trail late in the morning after the 11 a.m. opening, then make a 1 p.m. or 2 p.m. house tour. Either way you finish well before the trail closes at 3:30.
The first weekend in October has another link between the two sites. On Sunday, Oct. 4, the free Walk Portage Path gathers at the vacant lot across from Portage Path CLC at 55 S. Portage Path. The walk starts at 1:30 p.m. and covers one kilometer, ending at the John Brown House. Elders and students of the Northern Cheyenne Nation walk alongside Lippman School students and local partners. Anyone can also join at the John Brown House for drumming and dancing on the lawn at 2 p.m. The event is held ahead of North American First People's Day in Akron and Summit County. Earlier that morning, Summit Metro Parks staff lead a free hike from Big Bend Trailhead at 1337 Merriman Road to the northern terminus statue on the Portage Path, starting at 10 a.m.
Oct. 4 is a non-Boo Sunday, so the zoo keeps its regular 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. hours. You could fit the monument in before the 1:30 p.m. start and still finish on the John Brown House lawn.
The Story the Signs Tell
You'll find the history signs at the old bus stop. For context before you go, Cleveland.com, citing the Akron Zoo, describes Brown as an abolitionist who argued for armed resistance to end slavery. In October 1859 he led a raid on the federal armory at Harpers Ferry, Va., hoping to start an armed revolt by enslaved people. Sixteen people were killed in the raid. Brown was convicted of murder, conspiracy and treason and was executed Dec. 2, 1859. The 1910 monument marked 50 years since his death. The 1938 marker, the 1975 restoration and this year's trailhead were each a later group's effort to make sure the site stayed visible.
At the dedication, Akron resident Melissa Haskins, a member of the zoo's history committee, photographed the monument at the end of the path. Seeing it no longer means waiting for a guided tour or a special event. Through April, it's a short wooded walk you can take any day between 11 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.
The Bartlebaugh Team enjoys sharing Akron's history and the places that make up everyday life on the west side, from Sherbondy Hill to Diagonal Road. If you walk the new trail this month and want to talk about the neighborhoods around it, Nancy Bartlebaugh and the team would be glad to hear from you. Let's Connect.
