History of Stanford House

Rena Hatch Fiedler likes to reminisce about her time spent as a child in the Stanford House, a Greek Revival structure just north of the village of Boston in Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Every memory is a good one—the farm animals she played with; the abundance of food, expertly prepared by her grandmother; and, perhaps most enjoyable of all, her grandfather, an affable man who joked with her relentlessly. She was welcomed into this world in the front, ground-floor bedroom in 1926, and 20 years later, she and her husband traded wedding vows in the living room, just across the hallway.

That’s a lot of history for one building to lay claim to. For roughly 135 years, the Stanford House and its surrounding farmland played the role of strong, silent provider to the people who lived there, keeping them nourished, grounded, and—for the most part—safe from harm. After the National Park Service purchased the property in 1978, the Stanford House would receive new life, offering a peaceful retreat for travelers, students, and others who wished to develop a more personal bond with the region and its beginnings.

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