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Former pottery village transforms itself without losing historic past
Founded by the Sebring brothers in the late 1800s with the goal of building their own pottery town, the Mahoning County village of Sebring has evolved but remnants of its past remain. Frank Sebring’s home is the only one that remains on West Ohio Avenue, and it is now the location of the 30,000-square-foot Sebring Mansion Inn & Spa. The mansion was recently named one of the most romantic inns in the country. (Photo courtesy of the village of Sebring).
SHERRY KARABIN
Legal News Reporter
Published: March 7, 2013
Once known as the “Pottery Capital of the World,” the Mahoning County village of Sebring is now home to other types of manufacturing and businesses.
“In many ways we are like other small middle class towns,” said Sebring Mayor J. Michael Pinkerton, who grew up in the village. “We are a friendly and safe community with good schools and recreational facilities.
“We have a great diversity of businesses and several small independent employers.”
The largest employer in the village today is Crandall Medical Center, which is located in the heart of the Copeland Oaks Retirement Community Campus, but there are also a number of warehousing and manufacturing facilities like MPI Label Systems on Courtney Road, Salem-Republic Rubber Company on West California Avenue and TruCut Incorporated on Allied Drive, which the mayor said just completed the most successful year in its history.
The most recent addition to the scene was BPI Recycling on North Johnson Road.
Located in the southwest corner of the county, Sebring is home to about 4,500 residents and while it continues to evolve, there are still some historic remnants remaining paying tribute to its rich past, which dates back to the late 1800s when it was founded by the Sebring brothers, an East Liverpool family that dreamed of building their own pottery town.
The brothers began creating their pottery empire in April 1898, building the factories, stores and homes that would become known as Sebring as well as miles of paved streets, sanitary sewers with a modern disposal plant, electric lighting and two telephone systems.
The five beginning potteries employed about 3,300 workers and the industry flourished for years. Two cooperage factories served the businesses, making barrels and boxes for the packing of the pottery products. Other companies included Strong Enamel, and in 1912 a factory produced the “Sebring Six,” one of the first automobiles manufactured. The firm made 25 cars during its short time in existence, but only one model of the “Big Six.”
“The industry was thriving until the mid-‘70s when imports took over,” said Pinkerton. “Many of the businesses closed up.
“We still have a few small ones like Modern China and Americana Art China.”
Just like the decline of steel in Youngstown, the loss of the pottery industry had a major impact on the economy of Sebring.
“When I moved here in 1972, we used to have a lot of businesses in the downtown,” said Dery Zeppernick, co-founder of the Sebring Ohio Historical Society. “I can’t believe the change. We do have an industrial park that attracts some businesses but not enough to employ large numbers of people.”
The remaining pottery companies are not all that is left of the Sebring legacy.
When they arrived, the five Sebring brothers, their parents and their two sisters each built large mansions.The homes were all located on West Ohio Avenue, except for the one built by Fred Sebring, which was located at North 15th Street.
Frank Sebring’s home is the only one that remains on West Ohio Avenue, and it is now the location of the 30,000-square-foot Sebring Mansion Inn & Spa, which was recently named one of the most romantic inns in the country.
“Lynne Biery from Louisville, Ohio bought it and restored it. Each one of the rooms is named after pottery to celebrate the history,” said Zeppernick, who also works for the inn.
“A lot of the businesses put their consultants up at the inn since they don’t have upscale lodging for them,” Zeppernick said.
“Our original 5 and 10 (Ashton’s 5 & 10) and our original hardware store (Leonard Hardware) are still here.
“We also have Gromoll Drug Store, which has been existence over 50 years, and JP’s Snacks & Sodas, which has been around for about 10 years. We have an antiques shop and we are getting a yarn shop soon, so the mansion is helping to attract some businesses.”
The historical society is located in the Strand Theatre, which was built in 1915. The building was donated to the organization by Greg New in 1990. The theatre is used as a museum and for exhibition space. In 2003, the marquee was restored to circa 1940s and the building got a new roof. That same year, fundraising and donation money was used to renovate the interior, which now showcases Sebring’s pottery and local history.
“Every Christmas the theatre shows an old black-and-white movie, which is a great fundraiser,” said Zeppernick.
The Schreckengost Park Mural depicts the village’s founders and historic sites, attracting both residents and visitors.
During the summer a music series is held in the gazebo of the park.
The village relies on a 2 percent income tax, property taxes along with several levies to make ends meet.
“We have a half mil park levy, a half mil recreation levy, a half mil pool levy and a 3 mil fire levy,” Pinkerton said.
The village has a volunteer fire department but full-time police and service departments as well as water treatment and wastewater treatment plants.
“We have a contract with Smith Township to provide fire services,” said Pinkerton. “It is not a great source of income however.”
The mayor said the village did not see a dramatic drop in income due to the downturn.
“The small manufacturing companies proved to be an asset to us,” Pinkerton said.
The village was able to avoid service cuts and there were no layoffs during the downturn but there were a large number of foreclosures.
“The free flowing money of the early 2000s and the practices of some banks really hurt us. We lost 500 to 750 residents and we probably have about 30 empty homes under foreclosure status.”
The mayor said the village would use Ohio Moving Forward demolition money together with local funding to start taking down some of the properties.
The village is beginning to bounce back, and the mayor said it does have a lot to offer.
“We have a lot of recreational opportunities,” said Pinkerton. “We have a large community center with a gym. We have two parks with summer and winter children’s programs, picnic pavilion, playgrounds, ball fields and basketball and tennis courts.There is a swimming pool which charges reasonable rates for residents.”
The village is part of the Mill Creek MetroParks system, and Berlin and Milton lakes are less than 10 miles away. Both have boating facilities.
There are two schools, including Beatrice L Miller Elementary and McKinley Jr./Sr. High School.
“We are also surrounded by the West Branch School District, which offers a lot of opportunities for activities like school plays,” said Pinkerton.
“There are also family activities in our downtown, which has several restaurants.”
The mayor said there is a real spirit of volunteerism in the community. “It’s not unusual to see the fire department holding a fish fry or a local granges hold breakfast.”
A July 4th festival is held annually in Southside Park.
“What I’ve noticed is that we’re seeing a transition from the old Sebring family names to new people moving into the community,” said Pinkerton.
“One thing we’re focusing on is renovating our water treatment and wastewater treatment plants to make sure they are in compliance with all the EPA regulations which keep changing,” said Pinkerton.
“My goal for the future is to bring in new industry and create employment. Right now about half of the residents work outside the village.”
“The problem is a lot of the money goes to the big cities,” said Zeppernick. “We have not received much help. We are trying to reinvent ourselves, but we are still struggling. Hopefully the mansion will help.”