Frazee House

A Historic Home in the Cuyahoga Valley

The Frazee House, built by Steven and Mehitable Frazee, demonstrates how the land and the canal helped people to prosper in frontier Ohio.

In 1806, Steven and Mehitable Frazee purchased 190 acres of Cuyahoga Valley farmland in what is now the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. During the early 1800s, especially before the Ohio and Erie Canal was built, this area was considered part of the Western frontier and the Frazee family produced almost all of their necessities need for life on the frontier. The family originally occupied a log cabin, but a series of economic fortunes befell the family, including winning a lawsuit over property damage during canal construction. The newly finished canal gave the family access to eastern markets for their farm produce and encouraged the growth of local businesses.

The Frazee's designed and built a large, two-story brick Federal style structure that still stands today. The Frazee house offers many vernacular architectural details, as the classic New England Federal style was interpreted to fit its rustic surroundings. Today, the Frazee House is part of Cuyahoga Valley National Park. The site is typical of a rural canal-era landscape, providing visitors with a connection between the house and its fields adjacent to the canal.