Howe, Richard, 1799-1872.

Richard Howe was one of the first settlers of Akron in 1829. He was born in St. Mary's County, Maryland, on March 8, 1799, and came to Ohio in 1812 with his widowed mother and six brothers and sisters. They settled at Franklinton, near Columbus. Richard Howe was later adopted by Lucas Sullivant, a wealthy landowner in Franklinton. Sullivant, who as a practical surveyor and engineer, began to instruct Howe in his profession. He gave Howe his first job, which was to survey and locate a road from Columbus to Cincinnati. Upon the organization of the first Board of Engineers to survey and locate the Ohio Canal, in 1824, Howe was selected as one of its members and he retained his position as Civil Engineer from 1824 to 1850, attaining the rank of President Engineer. He was responsible for the surveying and mapping of the Ohio and Erie Canal between Cleveland and Massillon. The Ohio and Erie Canal was built to connect Lake Erie at Cleveland with the Ohio River at Portsmouth in order to provide transportation and promote the state's economic development. Construction began in 1825, and the canal was officially opened between Cleveland and Akron on July 4, 1827. The entire canal was 308 miles long and required 146 locks. After 1850, canal use and maintenance declined as the use of railroad transportation increased.

Engineer for the Ohio & Erie Canal, 1824-1850.