Diamond Match Party Center

06/06/2026

Hip Hip Hooray! Summer is here! Let's "don our dookers" and "take a dip"!!

06/01/2026

We really do have the best people coming through our building!
Shout out to Jeff Bell for graciously donating this vintage wood planer! This is a nickel-plated Stanley #45 combination planer circa 1880-1895.
🤔Hmmm, now where to display it? You know we have quite a few unique treasures —mostly Diamond Match or Barberton. We are not just a rental hall—we are a step back in time!
We will gladly show you our treasures anytime by appointment!

06/01/2026

A room full of love for Carolyn!
And yes those balloons are biodegradable!

05/31/2026

What an amazing talented young man! Congratulations Kellen!💜

05/17/2026

05/17/2026

When this young lady came in wanting bright orange and hot pink for her 16th birthday, I was—-well, I’ll see what I can do….
Once again, the Diamond Match Party Center has pretty much everything to achieve your dreams! I must say she picked an amazing color scheme!!
Congratulations Audri! May you continue to achieve your dreams💕

05/16/2026

Thank you for posting this!

One of the things we're working on is an industrial walking tour exploring our rich history of industry and technology, where guests will even be able to visit existing structures like the lovely Diamond Match Party Center. As Barbertonians, we could introduce ourselves by company, like "Hello, my name is Jessica and I come from the B&W clan" and it would make perfect sense! These companies played such a strong role in our past that they are almost like ancestors themselves. In searching some history, I found a great article Steve Kelleher wrote about 10 years ago on these companies and the economy. Here's part 1:

"When O. C. Barber founded Barberton in 1891, he brought 5 major companies to town. This was because he either owned them or was president of all of them. This was the first wave of jobs to hit Barberton.

During the Panic of 1893 there was a major downturn in the U.S. economy. To insure Barberton's future, Barber decided to move the Diamond Match plant from Akron to Barberton. Moving "the Match" was not in Barber's original plan. From 1893 until late in 1894 they worked 24 hours a day, 7 days a week on building the Diamond Match factory in Barberton. When it got dark, kerosene spot lights were turned on the building that Barber had imported from all over the country.

Done in 18 months, this the largest match plant in the world, brought 1400 jobs to Barberton from Akron. Imagine the economic
impact of adding 1400 jobs in one day. Barberton boomed in 1894 and thus was given the name "The Magic City.""