Simon Perkins of the Western Reserve

In the course of his productive lifetime, Simon Perkins (1771-1844) was a surveyor, land agent, soldier, canal commissioner, insurance agent, banker, public official, educator, city founder, Indian negotiator, and an extensive land owner and philanthropist. His activities include involvement in the War of 1812, the Erie Land Company, the Ohio Canal, and the founding of the city of Akron. Based on original papers and records, including the extensive Perkins collection at the historical society, this is still the best available account of the Connecticut Land Company and the mode of determining ownership of the land in the Western Reserve. The author, an educator on the Greater Cleveland area, has written on a variety of historical topics.