The Devil in Ohio

A rain of rocks
Mysterious pelting of Akron family creates a big sensation in 1878

By Mark J. Price
Beacon Journal staff writer

Published on Monday, Oct 26, 2009


Surely the devil was at work in Hell's Half Acre. What else could account for the strange manifestation that terrified a South Akron family in 1878?

German immigrant Michael Metzler Jr. and his wife, Maria, a native of Lorraine, France, felt the sting of fear when an unseen presence pelted their family with rocks for two weeks.

The Metzlers had 10 children, but only the first six were alive during the ordeal: Mary Elizabeth, 13; Emma, 10; Julia, 8; Joseph, 6; Charles, 3; and Frank, 19 months. Maria's mother, Bridget Noss, 72, also resided with them.

Michael worked as a plasterer. The family lived in a 1 1/2-story brick home on South High
Street extension, the modern-day path of South Broadway, between Thornton and Voris streets.

The neighborhood owed its devilish nickname to the Akron Iron Co., which operated a blast furnace and rolling mill a few blocks to the north.

''Many employees of the rolling mills lived in the vicinity of the plant and since many of them were heavy drinkers and often engaged in fights, that neighborhood was known for years afterward as Hell's Half Acre,'' Akron historian Karl H. Grismer wrote.

The family's troubles began Oct. 8, while Maria Metzler was shucking corn in a field next to the home. Without warning, a violent downpour of rocks fell on her. The stunned housewife couldn't tell where the projectiles originated, so she ran indoors for shelter.

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