Hoover-Era Houses in North Canton and Their Roofs

How did Hoover shape the town?

The village was platted in 1831 and named New Berlin. William H. Hoover, known as Boss, moved his leather business into the village in 1873. In 1908 his company began making an electric suction sweeper, and by the 1930s it was the largest vacuum cleaner maker in the world. The village changed its name to North Canton in 1918. It became a city in 1962. Production at the North Canton plant ended in 2007, and the old Hoover family home on the Walsh University campus is now a museum.

For a roofer, the useful part of that story is the calendar. Each stretch of growth at the plant left a ring of houses, and each ring has its own kind of roof.

The 1920s to the 1940s: houses within a walk of the plant

The oldest houses stand near Main Street and Maple Street, close to the Hoover plant on East Maple Street. They are bungalows, Cape Cods and narrow two-story houses. Their roofs are steep, often 8/12 or more, with dormers and a brick chimney.

A roof that age has been replaced several times already. What matters is how. On many of these houses a new layer of shingles was laid over the old one at least once. Chimneys were often patched with roof cement instead of new metal. And the deck is frequently made of boards, not sheets, with gaps a nail can miss. A new roof on one of these houses is as much about what is under the shingles as the shingles themselves. Our page on roofs near Main and Maple goes through it.

The 1950s and 1960s: the boom

The numbers are striking. The census counted 4,032 residents in 1950, then 7,727 in 1960, then 15,228 in 1970. The town nearly doubled twice in twenty years. Almost all of that growth was housed in single-story ranches and split-levels on new streets around the old center.

A ranch roof is the opposite of a bungalow roof. It is low, usually 4/12 to 6/12, and wide. It is easy to walk and quick to tear off. But the building habits of those years left weak spots:

• Drip edge was often left off, so water wets the fascia.
• Attics were vented through small gable louvers that move little air.
• A second layer of shingles over the first was a common way to save money.

The median house in North Canton dates to about 1971, and around Applegrove Street the figure is about 1968. If you own a house here, the odds say it is one of these. The page on mid-century ranch roofs in North Canton covers them.

The 1970s and 1980s: bigger ranches, split-levels and additions

Growth slowed after 1970, but building did not stop. Houses got a little larger. Family rooms were added to older ranches, often under a low roof tied into the main one. Skylights started to appear in kitchens and baths. Each addition created a new joint between old roof and new, and joints are where leaks begin. On a house from these years the owner looks first at any place where one roof meets another.

What do all three eras have in common now?

Age and layers. Even the youngest of these houses is past forty. Every one of them is on at least its second roof, and many are on a second layer as well. The residential code Ohio uses does not allow shingles over a roof that already has two layers. So for a large share of Hoover-era houses, the next roof has to be a full tear-off whether the owner planned on one or not.

That is not bad news. A tear-off is the first chance in decades to see the deck, fix soft wood, and add the parts the original builders skipped.

What does a Hoover-era house need from a new roof?

• A full tear-off to the deck, with bad boards or sheets replaced.
• Ice and water shield at the eaves and in the valleys.
• Metal drip edge, on a house that may never have had it.
• Real step flashing and counterflashing at the chimney.
• A ridge vent, and a check that air can get in at the soffits.
• Architectural shingles, which typically last 25 to 30 years in the Midwest.

That list is the standard scope for a roof replacement in North Canton through this site, so nothing on it is an upgrade.

How do you find out what is on your own roof?

You cannot tell from the driveway. The layer count shows at the roof edge, the deck shows from the attic, and the flashing has to be seen up close. The owner inspects every job himself and sends a photo report the same day, with the roof rated Good, Watch or Replace Soon. A roof that is finished gets one written price, and that price is good for a year.

Start with the free roof inspection. If the report says replace, the page on what a full replacement includes lists every step, and the price waits a year for you.