December 10, 1854 Edwin C. Berry, businessman, was born in Oberlin, Ohio, but raised in Athens, Ohio. Berry was often called the “Black Horatio Algier” because he erected a 22 room hotel which was one of the finest and most elegant hotels in Ohio. At the time of his retirement in 1921, he had a reputation as the most successful black small city hotel operator in the country. Berry, who was a member of the National Negro Business League and a trustee of Wilberforce University, died in 1931.
