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The 1982 Annual Report of
The Cincinnati Historical Society
Despite difficult economic times, the Cincinnati Historical Society reached
new levels of growth and service in 1982. The annual reports of the librarian, the education coordinator, and the director of community development and public relations each chronicle aspects of the institution's service
to the people of Cincinnati during the past year.
One result of the Society's recent commitment to offering new programs
for the general community has been increased use of the library collections.
Through its long history, the Cincinnati Historical Society has built a rich
collection of books, pamphlets, manuscripts, paintings, prints, photographs,
and other materials that document the history of this city and region. Over
the years, and particularly since the Society's move to its Eden Park facilities
in 1964, the number of library users has increased. But neither the boom in
graduate school programs in the 1960's nor the "roots" phenomenon in the
1970's generated as many researchers for the library staff to serve as has the
recent series of television programs, the Metro History Fair, the Cincinnati
Neighborhood Studies Project, and similar efforts to share the history of the
city with more people. To the degree that our historical society measures its
success by the number of people who seek to learn about their city's history
through research in the library, our public programming has proven to be a
highly effective method by which people become motivated enough to come
to the library to carry out personal research projects.
This success has revealed how years of inadequate resources, which
forced the Society to neglect the proper care and organization of its collections, make it increasingly difficult for the staff to serve effectively the public
that comes to use the library. One essential element of a library is its catalog.
Only through properly maintained finding aids can materials be predictably
found and efficiently retrieved. The Society has rarely devoted adequate resources to the work of creating and maintaining catalogs for the collections,
forcing the staff itself to become finding aids through personal assistance of
the researchers. With more researchers using the library, however, the staff
has less time to spend with each even though the new library patrons are
frequently less experienced and in greater need of assistance. The resulting
frustration for both staff and researchers is destined to grow. Crowded con249
ditions in our building already mean that the collections are squeezed together to maximize the use of limited space. In the years ahead, shifting and
re-shifting collections will be necessary to live within the confines of the
building. Furthermore, long years of not investing adequately in the care of
books through re-binding, construction of book boxes, and the substitution
of xeroxes and microforms for original materials mean that our collections
cannot stand up to the increased use being placed on them. Thus, at a time
when the public in greater numbers seeks access to their own history, the
Society finds itself frequently unable to accommodate and satisfy that interest. Solutions exist. Our recent Sesquicentennial Challenge Grant Fund
Drive enabled us to initiate larger conservation and preservation programs
in 1982. But affording the cataloging staff and the expenses of participating
in computer-assisted cataloging systems are presently beyond the reach of
the Society. Ours is now the only professionally staffed library in Cincinnati
that has failed to enter the computer age.
Yet, the trustees and staff of the Society have a rare opportunity in
the years immediately ahead to create an institution that can more effectively serve the people of Cincinnati. In few cities in the country are its
residents as proud of their city and its heritage. In few cities is there a collection as rich and as valuable as the Society's. In few cities has there been such
limited opportunities for people generally to experience, to share, to explore
the history of their community. As Greater Cincinnati contemplates how
it will commemorate the 200th anniversary of its founding on December 28,
1788, the Society has an unparalleled opportunity to serve and, possibly, an
unequalled capacity to be of service to the community. To realize this
potential, the Cincinnati Historical Society must define itself for a new
Cincinnati century.
Over the past few years, the staff of the historical society has extended
itself in the service of the community to the point where current trends
cannot be sustained. If the television programs, the publication of Cincinnati: The Queen City, the sponsorship of the Metro History Fair, the Fourth
Street History Gallery, and the Neighborhood Studies Project collectively
fail to generate greater support from the community, then the institution's
trusteeship of the collections will force it to retreat until a future time when
other people will have an opportunity to attempt the work we seek now to
perform. That prospect promises to make the years immediately ahead fully
as busy and as critical for the Cincinnati Historical Society as those just past.
Gale E. Peterson
Director
250
Report of the Treasurer
for the Fiscal Year Ending June 30,1982
General
Fund
Receipts:
Investment Income
Membership Dues-Individual
Membership Dues-Corporate
Gifts and Grants
Reproduction Fees and Services
Profits from Sales
Special Events
Operating Transfers
Miscellaneous
Disbursements:
Administrative
Personnel
Building
Office
Capital Acquisitions
Development/Communications
Professional Services
Preservation
Publications
Other
Library/Collections
Personnel
Office
Capital Acquisitions
Preservation
Professional Services
Other
Programs
Personnel
Office
Capital Acquisitions
Research and Publications
Professional Services
Other
Total Disbursements
Special
Projects
Total
$210,809
72,787
19,775
306,902
18,389
5,559
I4,7O5
$210,809
72,787
19,775
48,279
6,715
5,124
12,049
13,848
565
$258,623
11,674
$389,951
$259,540
$649,491
$ 87,271
29,990
19,594
207
9,021
7,74i
$
3,075
$156,899
9,276
105
8,881
1,309
6,180
2,032
1,440
3,566
7,235
$ 40,024
$ 96,547
30,095
28,475
1,516
15,201
9,773
1,440
3,566
10,310
$196,923
$147,030
5,213
6,464
334
593
2,161
$161,795
$ 29,020
1,448
19,516
31,431
—
1,928
$ 83,343
$176,050
6,661
25,980
31,765
593
4,089
$245,138
$ 22,675
1,367
989
37,607
7,843
506
$ 62,476
16,003
4,690
2,012
12,302
5,104
$ 85,151
17,370
5,679
39,619
20,145
5,6io
$ 70,987
$102,587
$173,574
$389,681
$225,954
$615,635
435
2,656
(13,848)
-
—
565
Excess Income/(Deficit)
$
270
$ 33,586
$ 33,856
Cash Balance, July 1, 1981
14,036
Cash Balance, June 30, 1982
$ 14,306
(Gifts and bequests to the Endowment Fund are not included in this report. In addition, the
Women's Association reported income of $9,624 and expenses of $4,700.)
J. Rawson Collins,
Treasurer
251
Jan.
Feb.
Mar.
Apr.
May
Jun.
Jul.
Aug.
Sep.
RESEARCHERS PER MONTH
1981
——
1982
Students participating in Metro History
Fair greatly increased library usage in
January, February, and March as the graph
clearly shows.
Oct.
Nov.
Dec.
LIBRARIAN'S ANNUAL REPORT - 1982
THE LIBRARY
For more than a decade library activities and programs have been reported
for the previous July-June fiscal year. In order to convert to a calendar year
report, this resume of activities covers July 1981 through December 1982.
During this eighteen month period the library staff provided reference service, processed and created finding aids to collections, implemented conservation programs funded by the Sesquicentennial Challenge Grant Drive, and
sought solutions to critical space shortages for library users, collections, and
personnel.
Reference Service
The library staff provided reference service for 8,056 researchers from
forty-eight states, the District of Columbia, and seven foreign countries and
assisted 3,186 people who came to the Society for meetings, to view exhibitions or to purchase for-sale items. The staff answered 21,074 desk and
telephone questions and replied to 1,360 mail requests for information. In
addition to researching family history, library users studied such topics as
the female seminary movement in nineteenth-century America, the transition from Jeffersonian to Jacksonian democracy and the 1869 controversy
over use of the Bible in Cincinnati schools. Subjects of biographical studies
included George Washington Williams, minister, lawyer, and author who
became pastor of the Union Baptist Church in 1876; Civil War general
William T. Sherman; and Silas Omohundro, a Virginia slave trader who
lived in the city during the 1840's. Art historians, attempting to identify the
works of artists M.W. Hopkins and John Smibert, examined the eighteenthcentury portraits of Boston bookseller and publisher Daniel Henchman and
his wife, Elizabeth, and the nineteenth-century portrait of Margaret Place
Baker.
The Society's Metro History Fair attracted students from area high
schools, boosting 1982 library usage over the previous calendar year by 16%
in January, 56.5% in February, and 34% in March.
Sesquicentennial Challenge Grant Projects
In 1981 the Society launched a drive to raise $1 million so that the library
could implement more adequate programs to care for the institution's extensive collections. Eighty per cent of the funds raised will be placed in the
Society's permanent endowment fund to provide an on-going source of
income for this work. The remaining amount will be spent on equipment
253
purchases and one-time conservation or preservation projects. In 1982
Sesquicentennial Challenge Grant appropriations were used to purchase
equipment for on-going conservation projects and to obtain microfilm copies
of Cincinnati's major daily newspapers.
With the addition of a film inspector and densitometer, we now have the
inspection equipment necessary to produce good-quality microfilm copies of
printed and manuscript works in the collections. The acquisition of a splicer
and jacket loader have given us the capability of providing those copies on
sheet as well as on roll film. New book-mending equipment will be used to
repair many of our volumes in-house, while works needing extensive repair
or special attention will be sent to a conservator or commercial bindery.
Using recently purchased enlargers, camera lenses, lights, and print-drying
racks, we now are obtaining good-quality photographic negatives and prints
to better accommodate the growing demand from the public and staff for
copies of images from the collection.
Recording and playback equipment, storage containers, and blank tapes
were purchased to make use copies from originals in the 500-item audio tape
collection. Acquired over the past four years, the collection has high research
value. Before the tapes can be made available to researchers, however, they
must be indexed and the collection cataloged.
During the past three years, the Cincinnati Neighborhood Studies Project
personnel and volunteers recorded approximately thirty conversations with
successful Blacks including Theodore M. Berry, Ronald Temple, Carl Westmoreland, J. Kenneth Blackwell, Oscar Robertson, Marian and Donald
Spencer, Virginia Coffey, Webster Posey, Wilbur Page, John Marshall,
William Bowen, and Fred Shuttles worth. Their interviews with residents
of Norwood, Riverside, Sedamsville, and Mt. Auburn document the history
of those communities.
Interviews with dancers, choreographers, and set designers of national
and international fame are contained on 250 reels donated by the Cincinnati
Ballet Company, while the Fred Bennignus "I Remember Radio" collection
documents early radio locally and nationally.
The Cincinnati Women Working collection of fourteen interviews with
Cincinnati women office workers contains information about working conditions, employment opportunities, and workers' attitudes from 1910 to the
present day. Transcriptions of these tapes were supplied by the organization.
Selections from WAKW Radio tapes recorded at public events in Cincinnati over the past fifteen years are also included in the audio tape collection.
The E.W. Scripps and Gannett foundations donated microfilm copies of
the Cincinnati Post, 1881 to date, and the Cincinnati Enquirer, 1841-1920,
completing our holdings of these newspapers and significantly increasing
our microfilm collection. Additional microfilm readers and a reader-printer
were purchased to better equip our film-reading area.
254
Scott Gampfer uses the densitometer to inspect microfilm
copies of architectural records.
Cindy Cline microfilms the architectural records collection.
Manuscript Collection
In July 1981 the library received a $34,900 grant from the National
Historical Publications and Records Commission which provided partial
funding to process and microfilm the Society's extensive architectural records collection. Sesquicentennial Challenge Grant funds will be used to
complete the project. The collection documents Cincinnati's man-made
environment from the 1860's to the 1970's, and consists of correspondence,
financial records, specifications, and drawings from the Harry Hake, James
McLaughlin, Elzner and Anderson, Samuel Hannaford, and Edward Schulte
firms, the records of the Cincinnati Chapter of the American Institute of
Architects as well as designs for single projects by local and out-of-town
firms including J.W. Carlisle; Charles F. Cellarius; Garber, Tweddel and
Wheeler; Fellheimer and Wagner; Shreve and Lamb; and Saarinen &
Saarinen.
Processing and creating finding aids for all of these collections began in
August 1981 followed by filming the support material from the Hake Collection, the largest record group consisting of 142 cubic feet of office files and
approximately 40,000 drawing sheets. By the end of December 1982 we had
filmed almost 179,000 documents from the correspondence and photograph
files. In addition to inventories created for each record group, a biographical
directory of local architects and a glossary of architectural terms found in
the records are being compiled and will be incorporated into the final collection inventory.
The Historical Society, like other repositories that actively acquire manuscript collections, has a backlog of unprocessed material. To establish
processing priorities for these collections and, because we were aware that
some of our older, important collections had not been described as completely as now is our custom, in 1980 staff members began an appraisal of
our manuscript holdings. Some of the older collections had received minimal
attention, having been put in boxes without the papers being cleaned or
placed in folders. Only a few cards had been created to describe these
collections and, in many cases, a list of contents was needed. The staff
established re-processing criteria that included physical condition, quality
of finding aids, and research demand for the material. We then scheduled
all collections for processing and, during the past year and a half, staff
members and volunteers have worked on older as well as recently acquired
personal papers and records of businesses and organizations. A list of some
of the collections that were completed appears at the end of this report.
Artifact Collection
Until we received a small grant from the Ohio Museums Association in
July 1981, the Society's 2,000-item collection had not had proper care. The
institution has never had a permanent curator for the collection, so the
UC student, Debbie Sarabia,
studies images from the Daniel
Ransohoff Collection.
A recent donation of antique
bottles to the artifact collection is
accessioned by Claudia Watson.
objects only received attention when a staff member found time in an already
busy schedule or when an interested volunteer was assigned to record, box,
and label acquisitions and to straighten out older accession records. The
OMA grant made it possible to employ a temporary curator to administer the
collection. When the OMA grant ended, an appropriation from the Sesquicentennial Challenge Grant picked up the project which is scheduled for
completion in June 1983.
Since work began, we have installed utility shelving upon which to house
objects and purchased two steel wardrobes for storage of the more important
textiles. Never before had the collection been inventoried, the objects cleaned
and boxed, and registration procedures and a classification scheme developed and implemented. Accession and deaccession policies were written and
adopted and an Artifact Advisory Committee was formed to review staff
recommendations for withdrawal of items considered unsuitable because
of their deteriorated condition or irrelevance to the Society's artifact collection interests.
In addition to working with the collection, the staff also participated in
the planning and installation of exhibitions at the Society, at our Fourth
Street History Gallery, and at other locations for Society-sponsored special
events and programs.
Photograph Collection
The photograph collection continues to be a popular source of images for
the media, businesses, museums, publishers, our own publications and
exhibitions as well as for the general public. During the past fifteen months
the department received 281 requests for 2,770 copies of photographs. To
process these orders more quickly we hired a full-time photographer and
expanded the darkroom. Copy work, once carried out in the photograph
room where the space was inadequate and the work disrupted the staff's
efforts to process and service the collection, has been moved to a basement
alcove adapted for this function.
Two college students assisted the curator during the past year. A Miami
University intern compiled a useful directory of nineteenth-century Cincinnati photographers and, presently, a work-study student from the University of Cincinnati is numbering negatives, refiling prints and soon will
begin placing older prints in protective acid-free mats.
In the summer of 1981, the curator selected images, wrote captions, and
arranged for the publication of Cincinnati IQ2^-IQ^O, SL 1982 appointment
calendar featuring fifty-five scenes of the city, its buildings, and citizens
taken by noted twentieth-century commercial photographer Paul Briol.
257
Two large and important collections were added in 1982. Daniel
Ransohoff donated his collection of almost 26,000 images documenting
poverty in Cincinnati since the mid-1930's. He has exhibited his work in
numerous museums, including the Contemporary Arts Center, the George
Eastman House in Rochester, New York, and in Edward Steichen's exhibition, "The Family of Man," at the Museum of Modern Art in 1955. In
December Walt Burton placed on deposit nearly 100,000 negatives, contact
prints, and enlargements of the Playhouse in the Park and the University
of Cincinnati taken between 1964 and 1974.
Exhibitions
With the opening of the Society's Fourth Street History Gallery in the
Clopay Building in June, the primary exhibition area moved from the Hauck
Room to the downtown location. Still, several exhibits in the Hauck Room
cases complemented lectures or special events, and works from the Cornelius
J. Hauck History of the Book Collection continued to be displayed regularly.
The small exhibits included a display to commemorate Xavier University's
centennial in September 1981 and "Images by Paul Briol" was shown from
October through December to coincide with the publication of the calendar.
In January 1982 letters and memorabilia relating to congressman Nicholas
Longworth III were displayed for the Society's annual meeting, and in
September members of the American Horticultural Society viewed examples
of illustrated works from the Hauck botanical collection.
Items from the library collections were loaned to nine museums and
associations. The Photographic Archives of the University of Louisville
borrowed eight cyanotype photographs depicting electric streetcars and the
cable installation in Gilbert Avenue for an exhibition illustrating non-silver
photographic processes. A minute book and the accessions catalog of the
Women's Art Museum Association, a dedication program for the Art Museum
building, dated May 17, 1886, and centennial cups, saucers, and fans were
among the items loaned to the Cincinnati Art Museum for its "Art Palace of
the West" exhibition. We continued to loan early printed works to the
American Antiquarian Society for inclusion in the microfilm edition of
Charles Evans' American Bibliography, a list of books, periodicals, and
pamphlets printed in the United States from 1639 to 1820.
The Cooper-Hewitt Museum borrowed eight images from Warren Parks'
Mariemont Collection for its exhibition "Suburbs." Using photographs, maps,
and drawings of fifty-five planned communities, the exhibit traced the
development of suburbs in the United States during the nineteenth and
twentieth centuries. In November 1982 the Cooper-Hewitt borrowed two
linen blueprints of the main facade of Music Hall for "American Picture
Palaces," featuring original art work, photographs, programs, posters, and
258
a selection of furnishings from theaters throughout the country.
The Contemporary Arts Center used twenty-two late nineteenth century
and early twentieth century photographs depicting office and factory workers, laborers in meatpacking, baking, and casting plants and roustabouts in
"Images of Labor."
Nineteenth century school texts and the first and second Annual Reports
of the Board of Trustees of the Colored Common Schools (1855 and 1856)
were displayed by the Cincinnati Arts Consortium for an exhibition for the
Cincinnati Black History Program during November and December 1981.
The Taft Museum borrowed items for three exhibitions during the year.
"The 1930s Remembered: The High Style" included photographs of Union
Terminal by Paul Briol. Movie posters, movie star stand-ups, and film
promotional brochures from the Hennegan Collection were displayed in the
"The 1930s Remembered: Cincinnati Do you Remember?" Nineteenth century toys from our artifact collection and Harper's Weekly prints were part
of the 1982 Christmas exhibition, "Old Toys at the Taft."
In the spring we loaned William Louis Sonntag's "View of the Ohio River
at Maysville, Kentucky" to the Mason County Museum in Maysville, Kentucky, for its "Re-opening Exhibition," and ninety-seven paintings, prints,
and Paul Briol photographs of scenes, panoramic views, street scapes as well
as portraits of Cincinnatians graced the walls of Cincinnati's University
Club.
Space Shortages
For several years dwindling space in collection storage, processing, and
public reading areas has been a major concern of the library staff. Implementation of a conservation program, recent acquisitions of several large
manuscript and photograph collections, and an expanded publications program have further accentuated the problem.
The basement stack area, which originally housed only the book, pamphlet, map, artifact, and art collections, plus stationery and supplies, now
houses all of these materials along with surplus copies of most publications;
additions to the photograph and manuscript collections; the microfilming,
photographic-copying, and book-mending equipment; and work areas for
the conservation program and artifact-collection curators. Staff members
and volunteers are now processing collections on the mezzanine, which had
previously provided auxiliary reading areas for researchers. Newly acquired
and much needed microfilm readers have been placed in the former genealogy reading area on the first floor further reducing seating for researchers.
To alleviate the Society's space problem for the next few years, the staff
will employ such partial solutions as weeding collections, installing additional shelving wherever space exists, placing materials in off-site storage,
259
and seeking constantly to use existing space as efficiently as possible.
Gifts
The library relies on gifts from individuals and organizations of records
and family papers, photographs, prints, paintings, artifacts, books and
periodicals which, otherwise, we would not be able to acquire. We are grateful to the donors, whose names are appended to this report, for their contributions to the collections.
Laura L. Chace
The Frederick A. Hauck Librarian
DONORS TO THE LIBRARY'S COLLECTIONS
(July 1981—June 1982)
Abel, Mrs. James
Aherns, Mr. and
Mrs. Edwin B.
Alexander, John
Allen, Robert
Allyn, The Reverend Compton
Alumnal Association of
Woodward High School
American Association of
Museums
Asbury, Dr. Eslie
Ashcraf t, David L.
Babbs, Ms. Dorothy
Baker, Mrs. Virginia
Baldwin United Corporation
Bannon, N.C.
Barbour, Hugh
Beckman, Mrs. Elizabeth
Beckman, Vincent D.
Benjamin, Thomas
Bethesda Foundation of
Cincinnati
Bethesda Hospital &
Deaconess Association
Bond, Henry B.
Bowen, Mr. & Mrs. David
Bowers, Mrs. Shirley
Boyce, Ms. Mary Frances
Boyd, The Reverend
Robert D.
Brock,Stan
C. Dudley Brown &
Associates, Incorporated,
Architects
Brown, Mrs. Rachel
Burress, Mrs. Marjorie
Caledonian Society of
Cincinnati
Calvary Episcopal Church
Cansler, Mr. and Mrs. Steve
Central Bancorporation
Chace, Miss Laura
Charter Research Institute
Chatfield, Frederick H.
The Chicago Historical
Society
Cincinnati Art Museum
Cincinnati Bell Inc.
Cincinnati Museum of
Natural History
Cincinnati Planning
Commission
The Cincinnati Post
Cincinnati Union
Stockyards
Cissell, James
City of Cincinnati, Division
of Community Assistance
City of Cincinnati, Division
of Housing Assistance
Cleary, Edward J.
The Commercial Club of
Cincinnati
Cook, Bill James
Coombs, Mrs. Joan
Coyne, Edward B.
Daniels, Professor Roger
Davidson, Mrs. Myron
Deupree, Mrs. Richard
Dorothy Dexter, Estate of
Diamond International
Corporation
Diehl, John
Diehl, John and
The Carey Cottage
Doepke, Mrs. Robert
Dulaney, William B.
Durrell, Mrs. Lucille
26O
Durrell, Richard H.
Fertig, Earl A.
Fifth Third Bancorp
First National Corporation
Cincinnati
Fisher, Thomas N.
Fleischmann, Mr. and
Mrs. Charles
Fleischmann, Skip
Friedlander, William A.
Friendly Sons of Saint
Patrick of Cincinnati
Friends of The Detroit
Public Library,
Incorporated
Frisch, Sister Anne, O.S.B.
Galvin, Paul
Gampfer, Scott
Garden Club of Cincinnati
Garrett, Wendall
Geaslen, Mrs. Lucille
Geiser, R.E.
The General Society of
Mayflower Descendants
Gerhardt, Mrs. Edna
Gerhart, Mrs. Charles
Germantown Public Library
Giglierano, Geoffrey
Glenmary Home Missioners
Good, Miss Alice M. and
Ralph William, M.D.
Gordon, Clarice
Gordon, Stephen C.
Grand Lodge of Iowa,
A.F. &M.
Greene County District
Library
Grosch, Mr. and Mrs. Randy
Haag, Jack A.
Harth, Mrs. John E.
Hartwell Historical
Committee
Hatfield, Ms. Virginia
Haussermann, John W., Jr.
Hayes, Mrs. Mary
Heinz, Mr. and Mrs. Fred
Hennessey, John B.
Hollister, Robert B.
Hopf, Carroll
Hospital Care Corporation
Houser, Mrs. Gertrude
Houser, Howard R.
Hymans, Edgar M.
Indiana Historical Society
Innis, James R.
Irwin, Miriam Owen
Jacques, Charles J.
Jarvis, Mrs. Audrey
Jasper, Frank
Jenks, William F.
Johnston, Mr. and Mrs. Ray
Jones, John K.
Jones, John Paul
Jones, Joseph C, Jr.
Keefe, John
Keil, Douglas M.
Kenton County Historical
Society
Ketner, Joseph
Kilch, Charles W.
King, Arthur G.,M.D.
Klein, Benjamin
Klein, Charles H.
Knochel, Eleanor C.
Krager, Mrs. Walter
Kuresman, Jack
Lafferty, Ms. Dianne
Lang, Carl E.
Langsam, Dr. Walter
Langstroth, Ted, Estate of
Lohmueller, Gerald F.
Lumb, Mrs. Arthur
Lutton, Mrs. Edwin S.
Manley, Robert E.
Mason, Morris L.
May, Mrs. Wallace S.
McClosky, Father Patrick
McClure, Stanley
McDonald, David G.
McHenry, Ms. Chris
McNeil, David
Meadows, John
Menard, Paul W.K.,
Estate of
Merrill, Harwod F.
Metropolitan Printing
Company, Incorporated
Meyer, William D.
Miami Purchase Association
for Historic Preservation
Miller, Mrs. Robert C.
Miller, Robert Mackenzie
Mills, Miss Olive
Monteith, Ms. Bessie
Morelli, Mrs. Gloria
Morris, J. Wesley
Mount Adams Preservation
Association
Mudge, Mrs. Hiram
Myers, PaulD.
Nagel, Mrs. William S.
National Society of The
Colonial Dames of
America in the State of
Ohio
National Trust for Historic
Preservation
Neely, Mrs. Christopher F.
Nicholes, Walter
Nies, Louis
The Nomad Club
Nord, Roland E.
Ohio Association of
Historical Societies and
Museums
Parks, Ms. Marian
Paul, Judson, Jr.
Perko, Father F. Michael,
S.J.
Peterson, Gale E.
Price, Robert
The Procter & Gamble
Corporation
The Public Library of
Cincinnati & Hamilton
County
Purcell, Mrs. Eleanor
Larkby
Queen City Arts Club
Raleigh, W.W.
Ransohoff, Daniel J.
Rau, Robert C.
Richmond, Gerald
Rindsberg, Sidney
The Riverside Civic &
Welfare Club,
Incorporated
Robbert, Dr. Louise
Roberts, Mrs. Cutter
Rouse, Mrs. Nancy E.
Saint Francis—Saint George
Hospital, Incorporated
Saint Ursula's Convent
Salb, Mrs. L.A.
Sandipher, Mrs. Louise
Berry Penn
Scamyhorn, Dick
Schmidter, William C.
School Foundation of
Greater Cincinnati
Schuler, Mrs. John F.
Schultz, Charles R.
Sehlhorst, Mrs. Betty
Rittenhouse
26l
Sellman, W.M.
Shaver, Mrs. Evelyne
Mathias
Shepherd, Mr. and Mrs.
Ronald D.
Sikes, Mrs. Jane
Simpkinson, Ewart
Singer, John E., M.D.
Skavlem, Mrs. John
The Slemp Foundation
The Smithsonian Institution
Carl Solway Gallery
Somhorst, David
Southern Illinois University
School of Medicine
Southland Royalty Company
Stander, Thomas F.
Stolze, Mrs. John
Strickman, Lawrence
Strucke, Lloyd C.
Stuckey, Ronald L.
Sturm, Joanna
Swisshelm, Mrs. Dorothy
Tafel, Mrs. Ruth
The Taft Museum
Taft, Robert, Jr.
Taylor, Mrs. Bruce
Teague, J.W.
Throenle, Mrs. Veneita
Trapp, Kenneth
Tuttle, Walter H.
The Union Central Life
Insurance Co.
United Presbyterian Church
University of Cincinnati
The Virginia State Library
Wahle, Vernon E.
Wasmer, Mrs. Clarence T.
Weber, Leroy
Wehking, Ralph
Wells, Ruth J.
Western Kentucky
University Library
Westwood Civic Association
Whittaker, Mrs. Harry W.
White, John H., Jr.
White, Robert H., Jr.
Williams, Charles E.
Williamson, Mrs. Jean E.
Willson, Richard
Wittow, Irv.
The Woman's Art Club
Wood, Franklin
Worcester Historical
Museum
Wulsin, Lucien
Zachritz, James D.
Zaidins, Morris
Zarm, Ms. Charlotte Parge
Manuscript Collections Now Available for Research
American Red Cross, Cincinnati
Chapter
5.7 cu. ft.
Scrapbooks, 1927-1974, of newspaper
clippings concerning the activities of
the local Red Cross.
Ammen Family Papers
.5 cu. ft.
Correspondence, military papers, and
business records, 1703-1920S, pertaining to General Jacob Ammen (18071894), a Civil War general, his son
John Jacob Ammen.
Beckman, Elizabeth Desloge,
Proofs and notes pertaining to Elizabeth Beckman's book, An In depth
Study of the Cincinnati Silversmiths,
Jewelers, Watch and Clock Makers
Through 1850 . . . Cincinnati: c.1975.
1921-1981
.5 cu. ft.
Burress, Marjorie Burnside
.25 cu. ft.
Book of poetry and prose, 1853-1855,
of John S. Hobart, a resident with the
Shakers at Whitewater Village from
about 1846 until his death in 1866.
Centennial Exposition of the Ohio
Valley and Central States, 1888
14 cu. ft.
Papers, 1872-1893, including correspondence, minutes, ledgers, financial
records, and photographs pertaining
to all aspects of the Centennial Exposition. Included also is some material
concerning earlier Cincinnati expositions.
Cincinnati Ballet Company
14 cu. ft.
Records, 1927-1979, including files of
the artistic director, choreographer,
costume designer, and administrative
staff and publications that document
the Cincinnati Ballet Company.
Cincinnati Industrial Exposition, 1884
.25 cu. ft.
Papers, 1884, including correspondence, contracts, and financial
records, pertaining to exhibits, concessions, and sales at the 1884 exposition.
Clark Family Papers
2.25 cu. ft.
Diaries, correspondence and papers,
1815-1952, of several generations of
the Clark and Wilby families, including Joseph Horace Clark's diary describing his Civil War activities and
confinement and escape from a Confederate prison.
262
Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and
St. Louis Railroad
4.5 cu. ft.
Records, 1846-1955, consisting primarily of legal agreements between
the rail lines that eventually merged
to form the Cleveland, Cincinnati,
Chicago and St. Louis Railroad.
First Unitarian Church
10 cu. ft.
Records, 1829-1980, including minutes, correspondence, financial records, membership lists, and records of
marriages, baptisms, and burials.
Gano, William George Washington,
1797-1872
.25 cu. ft.
Papers, 1817-1881, relating to
William George Washington Gano
and his son Jacob W. Gano including
correspondence, day books, a journal,
wills, receipts, and Civil War papers.
The Greater Cincinnati Bicentennial
Commission
10 cu. ft.
Records, 1973-1976, including correspondence, publications, promotional
brochures and flyers, and newspaper
clippings.
Haussermann, John William, Sr.
2 cu. ft.
Papers, ca. 1898-1978, and photographs, newspaper clippings, printed
m a t e r i a l , documents, plaques,
and medals relating to John W.
Haussermann.
Papers, 1942-1948, documenting the
history of World War II including letters from servicemen, poetry and
newspaper clippings.
Historical and Philosophical Society of
Ohio, collector
1 cu. ft.
Jackson, Isaac H., 1770-1849
1 cu. ft.
Papers, 1796-1847, including correspondence, documents, maps, and indentures pertaining to business affairs
in Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York,
Cincinnati, and Hamilton County,
Ohio. The collection also contains
early road maps of Hamilton County
and documents relating to them.
Kemper Family Papers
2.25 cu. ft.
Papers, 1724-1929, including diaries
of the Reverend James Kemper,
family histories and genealogical records, correspondence of members of
the Kemper family, material pertaining to Lane Seminary, the First Presbyterian Church of Cincinnati, and
Kemper Lane.
Kenton, Simon, 1755-1836
.10 cu. ft.
Papers, 1807-1816, concerning business matters in Adams County, Ohio
and land transactions in Woodford
County, Kentucky.
263
King, Margaret Rives, 1819-1898,
compiler
1 cu. ft.
Three scrapbooks, 1865-1888, including newspaper clippings, music
programs, and original art by Mrs.
King, Maria Storer, and Henry Farny.
Newton, Lavinia Graham
.25 cu. ft.
Letters, 1862-1866, dealing with the
Civil War period.
J. Rawson and Sons Company
3 cu. ft.
Records, 1825-1917, including letter
press books, sales books, and financial
records of Hartshorn and Child and
J. Rawson and Sons, produce merchants and pork packers.
Save The Terminal, Inc.
2.34 cu. ft.
Papers, 1972-1976, including correspondence, newspaper clippings, and
petitions pertaining to the use of
Union Terminal and the removal of
the murals of Cincinnati workers to
the Greater Cincinnati International
Airport.
Taft, William Howard, 1857-1930
6 cu. ft.
Papers, 1857-1930, including correspondence, reports, speeches, and articles concerning Taft's political
career.
Taft Family Papers
6 cu. ft.
Papers, 1850-1958, including correspondence, indentures, ledgers, financial records, and business papers pertaining to David Sinton, Charles
Phelps Taft, Anna Sinton Taft, other
members of the Taft family, the Sinton Realty Company, and the Cincinnati Times-Star Company.
Women's Press Club
2.25 cu. ft.
Records, ,1888-1979, including a
complete set of year books, 1888-1979;
scrapbooks, 1910-1971; minutes,
I
954" I 963; and financial records,
1925-1970.
Zeigler, Penn
.5 cu. ft.
Papers, 1919-1978, pertaining to Penn
Zeigler's terms as mayor of Lincoln
Heights, 1969-1971, and his work
with the Boy Scouts. Also included are
correspondence, newspaper clippings,
and business records of his uncle's
firm, Zeigler—Schafer & Company.
264
EDUCATION COORDINATOR'S 1982 REPORT
During 1982 many of the programs initiated by the education department
in the past four years reached maturity. Through exhibits and publications
growing out of the Cincinnati Neighborhood Studies Project, numerous
people gained a better understanding of the neighborhood history of Cincinnati. This program and the Cincinnati Metro History Fair stimulated
hundreds of adults and students to pursue research in local history. In many
cases these new researchers used the collections of the Cincinnati Historical
Society for the first time. Through cooperative programming with WCPO
and WKRC Greater Cincinnatians viewed quality television presentations
about a wide variety of topics concerning Cincinnati history. Finally publication of Cincinnati: The Queen City provided an attractive history of the
city for a wide audience. Collectively, these programs have built an important reservoir of experience and insight which the education department
can use as it plans for the future.
Cincinnati Neighborhood Studies Project
During the past year the staff of the Cincinnati Neighborhood Studies
Project (CNSP) worked with volunteer researchers in eleven Greater Cincinnati neighborhoods. In 1982, the last year of funding by the National
Endowment for the Humanities, CNSP continued to demonstrate its effectiveness as an innovative adult-education program. The appeal of neighborhood history is a strong one for many Cincinnatians. In one neighborhood,
Sayler Park, over seventy-five people contributed to the research effort. By
working with people individually and in small groups, and by teaching basic
research skills in a relaxed setting the program demonstrated that people
can learn to research and to interpret elements of their community history
for themselves.
In addition to the value of the project to those directly involved in researching their neighborhood history, the products resulting from the work
of these community volunteers became valuable tools for a much wider
audience. The photo exhibits which grew out of the work of several neighborhoods were particularly effective. On May 315 "To Better the Conditions:
From Steele Sub to West College Hill," opened in conjunction with the neighborhood's Memorial Day parade and celebration. The exhibit was placed in
the community park at the end of the parade route where over 300 people
eagerly studied and reacted to it. On August 7, in conjunction with a specially organized "Heritage Days" celebration, a second exhibit, "The Downriver Difference: The Origins of Sayler Park's Independent Spirit, 1880 to
1912," opened. During the two day festival, hundreds of community people
viewed the exhibit. After their openings each exhibit, along with the Pleasant
265
Ridge exhibit which opened at the end of 1981, toured the Greater Cincinnati area in a wide variety of public settings. They appeared in Cincinnati
City Hall, the Hamilton County Courthouse, four shopping malls, church
halls, retirement homes, neighborhood recreation centers, branch libraries,
schools, the Cincinnati Arts Consortium, the atrium at Fountain Square
South, the Harriet Beecher Stowe House, Sharon Woods Village, Mt. St.
Joseph College, and at the Convention Center during the Cincinnati Town
Meeting. The traffic through these public spaces was tremendous, and literally tens of thousands of Cincinnatians viewed these displays.
In addition to the exhibits produced by the Cincinnati Neighborhood
Studies Project, several neighborhoods completed publications. As a result
of a major effort to teach community councils to collect and analyze their
organizational records, the Riverside Civic and Welfare Club published
Riverside Pride in March and the Madisonville Coordinating Committee published The Madisonville Coordinating Committee: A Study of Neighborhood
Action in September. The Riverside study documented the quarter-century
struggle of that neighborhood with various government bodies over the impact of the expansion of River Road on the internal life of the community.
This publication marked the first time the CNSP successfully guided a
community group of noncollege educated individuals through a major interpretive writing effort. The Madisonville study documented the organizational history of a typical neighborhood organization, founded in the 1960's,
as it struggled with the problems of a declining neighborhood business district, racial integration, and the return of the white middle class professionals to a city neighborhood.
Based on the success achieved in Riverside and Madisonville, the CNSP
sponsored a workshop for community council presidents on methods of
collecting and utilizing the records of neighborhood organizations. As a
result, the Riverside Civic and Welfare Club, the Madisonville Coordinating
Committee, the College Hill Forum, the Northside Community Council, and
Mt. Adams Community Council donated their records to the Cincinnati
Historical Society. These added to those of other community organizations
since the beginning of the CNSP make future professional research into the
neighborhood movement of Cincinnati possible. In addition to community
council records, the program added hundreds of photographs from Sayler
Park, West College Hill, Northside, and Walnut Hills as well as dozens of
oral history tapes on numerous aspects of neighborhood life.
The Cincinnati Neighborhood Studies Project also served as the basis for
an exhibit in the Fourth Street History gallery. On September 15 "Stability
and Change: Cincinnati and Her Neighborhoods, 1900-1965" opened for a
six month period which included the busy Christmas season. The exhibit
drew on the work of the three years of the CNSP, but was more than a
simple recapitulation of earlier exhibits and publications. Through photos,
266
On a very croivded Saturday,
librarian Laura Chace
assists two enthusiastic
Metro History Fair students
under less than ideal conditions. The student bending over is serving as a
"table" so his buddy can
write card catalog information which Miss Chace is
relaying to him.
maps, pamphlets, and a slide/tape program, the exhibit explored the neighborhoods, their changing structures and social roles, and their developing
relationship to Cincinnati's political and governmental life.
Cincinnati Metro History Fair
After a year of planning, the Cincinnati Historical Society sponsored the
first annual Metro History Fair in March and April 1982. During the course
of the 1981-82 school year over 7,000 students in Greater Cincinnati viewed
the introductory slide/tape show and heard presentations about the program.
Seven hundred students participated in regional fairs which were held at
McAuley High School for students on the western side of the city, and at
Withrow High School for students from the eastern side. The judges at these
regional contests advanced 154 students to the final fair at the University of
Cincinnati on April 3. At these three competitive events, n o adults representing area colleges, businesses, the professions, civic groups, city council,
and local historical societies judged the student entries. The top three finishers in each category papers, exhibits, and performances received cash prizes
and certificates. Because Metro History Fair serves as the district competition for History Day, thirty Cincinnati students advanced to statewide
competition in Cleveland and two students went on to Washington for the
national finals.
During the 1982-83 school year Metro History Fair is concentrating on
increasing the numbers of teachers and students actively involved in the
program, improving the number of quality projects submitted by conducting
training workshops for teachers and students, and increasing community
awareness of this important program. Through direct contact with thirty
schools and two specialized teacher workshops held in the fall, the 1983
competition promises to build effectively on the 1982 results.
Television Work
The Cincinnati Historical Society remains in the forefront of efforts to
utilize commercial television to communicate information about local history. During the first two months of 1982 a seventh installment of the
Cincinnati series focusing on the black experience in Cincinnati was researched, written, and produced in cooperation with WCPO. Like the earlier
segments, Charles Kuralt narrated and The First National Bank of Cincinnati sponsored "The Forgotten Chapter" which was broadcast on March 6.
During the week of December 6 the entire seven-part series was rebroadcast.
Weekly "History Expert" series for Eyewitness 12 News, which began in
late 1981, continued throughout 1982. During 1982, fifty segments between
two and three minutes in length were produced and broadcast, enabling
The opening of the
Fourth Street Gallery in
the Clopay Building gave
the Cincinnati Historical
Society permanent exhibition space which will
enable it to install exhibits
focusing on varied facets
of local history.
the Cincinnati Historical Society to reach into over 100,000 homes each
week. In addition to the educational and public relations value of these
segments for the Society, they provided an excellent vehicle through which
the organization was able to assist other cultural institutions in gaining
exposure for their work when it related to historical subjects. During 1982
the WKRC segments featured exhibits and public programs of the Cincinnati Art Museum, the Cincinnati Fire Museum, the University of Cincinnati,
WGUC, St. Rita's School for the Deaf, the Cincinnati Zoo, the Cincinnati
Arts Consortium, the Taft Museum, the Serringer-Crawford Museum, and
the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. In cases where the sponsoring organizations had obtained grants for their programs, the institutions were able to
claim $2,400 contributed in-kind as the result of being the subject of one of
these segments.
Cincinnati: The Queen City
A major concern in 1982 was completing Cincinnati: The Queen City,
which appeared on December 15. Based on the interpretive structure developed for the Cincinnati series on WCPO, this handsome publication was
written to provide the general public with a history of Cincinnati, as well as
showcasing hundreds of photographs, paintings, prints, maps, and documents from the rich collections of the Historical Society.
Conclusion
With the completion of the Cincinnati Neighborhood Studies Project grant
cycle, the third broadcast of the Cincinnati television series, and the publication of Cincinnati: The Queen City SL phase of educational programming
ended in 1982. Plans must now be made to meet new challenges and create
new opportunities. With the opening of the Fourth Street History Gallery in
1982, the Cincinnati Historical Society gained a stable exhibit space through
which to reach a wide audience. Maximizing the educational significance
and impact of the exhibits developed for the space presents a new set of
challenges. Building on the experience and success of the Metro History
Fair to provide the full range of services needed by area teachers seeking to
incorporate local history into their curriculum offers another area for development. In pursuing these and other new objectives, however, the success
and experience of the past four years in the areas of innovative adult education and programming for commercial television must be built upon, not
abandoned.
Daniel Hurley
Education Coordinator
269
Gale E. Peterson,
Director of the
Cincinnati Historical
Society, and Mark
Eberhard, designer of
Cincinnati: The Queen
City, chat with Liz
Smith, book buyer for
Shillito-Rike's, at the
book's opening party in
December. (Left to
right Smith, Peterson,
Eberhard)
DEVELOPMENT AND MEMBERSHIP ACTIVITIES
Membership in the Society is a significant way for individuals and corporations to demonstrate their regard for Cincinnati and its heritage. While most
area residents would agree that materials documenting Cincinnati's history
ought to be collected, preserved, and made available for this and future
generations, Society members go a step further. Their financial support,
through dues and contributions, provides nearly twenty-five per cent of the
income required to operate the outstanding research library and to initiate
education programs that make Cincinnati's history come alive for so many
children and adults.
In 1982 the Cincinnati Historical Society recorded continued growth as
the number of individual/family and business memberships reached 2,615.
Fifteen companies joined as regular business members ($100 and up); 268
individuals and families became members ranging from introductory ($15)
to patron ($125). In addition, standing members boosted their level of
support with 144 individuals and several corporations increasing their membership category.
The Society offers members a number of benefits. The handsome Bulletin
affords interesting and informative reading. Lectures, mini-courses, excursions, and entertainments planned by the staff and the Women's Association
are designed to be intellectually stimulating as well as enjoyable. During
1982 traditional activities combined wih some new ones produced a pleasing
response from both our long standing and new friends.
Meetings and Lectures
January 13—At the 1982 Annual Meeting of the Cincinnati Historical
Society members enjoyed cocktails and buffet at the Society prior to the
meeting. President John Diehl conducted the meeting at which members
reelected Frank G. Davis, John Diehl, Robert M. Galbraith III, Thomas E.
Huenefeld, Louis Nippert, Dr. Warner A. Peck, Jr., and William S. Rowe to
the Board of Trustees.
February 11—Dr. Jacob R. Marcus, founder and director of the American
Jewish Archives at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion spoke
on "Cincinnati Jewry and the Golden Age." Dr. Marcus is the distinguished
author of numerous books and articles on American Jewish life.
March 10—The Society saluted Woodward High School on the occasion
of its 150th anniversary. J. James Pearce, Jr., president of the alumni association, gave an illustrated lecture discussing William Woodward's role
in the establishment of the the school, the various buildings and campuses,
and notable graduates. Woodward memorabilia was incorporated into a
month long exhibit in the Hauck Room.
Congressman Willis D.
Gradison spoke at the
"city's birthday party" in
council chambers at city
hall. Trustee Vincent
Beckman, who served as
master of ceremonies,
and Frederick A. Hauck,
trustee emeritus, attended,
(left to right: Hauck,
Beckman, Gradison)
May 5—Michael Teague, author of Mrs. L: Conversations with Alice
Roosevelt Longworth, gave an illustrated lecture on the grande dame of
Washington, D.C. society, treating the large audience to the late Mrs.
Longworth's amusing observations about Cincinnati. Artifacts and political
mementos documenting Speaker of the House Nicholas Longworth's career
were displayed in the Hauck Room. The items were recent gifts to the Society
from their granddaughter, Joanna Sturm.
September 15—Dr. Eslie Asbury, renowned surgeon, horseman, author,
and raconteur,regaled members and guests with a humorous comparison of
the first settlers and folk culture of "Early Cincinnati and Ohio." Dr. Asbury's
granddaughters, Janet Pogue and Helen Rich, arranged a cocktail-dinner
party which attracted a capacity crowd prior to the talk.
December 28-The Cincinnati Birthday Party, the Society's annual birthday party commemorating the landing of the pioneers at Yeatman's Cove
in 1788, was held in City Council Chambers at City Hall. Congressman
Willis D. Gradison, whose birthday falls on December 28, gave the principal
address. Trustee Vincent H. Beckman, whose birthday is also on that date,
served as master of ceremonies. Mrs. John Diehl handled party arrangements and commissioned the decorated Cincinnati birthday cake. A model
of the statue of Cincinnatus, scheduled to be erected on the riverfront in
June 1983, was presented to Mayor Thomas Brush by David Black, chairman
of the committee that raised the funds to commission the statue.
The Women's Association continued to assist the Society staff by recruiting gracious association members to serve as hostesses at meetings and
lectures. The auxiliary supplied punch and cookies for all events except the
annual meeting and fall dinner meeting, where they assisted with catering
arrangements.
Mini Course
Upon the recommendation of the Program Committee, the Society reinstituted a mini course program to supplement the traditional evening lectures. Classes taught by visiting scholars from area universities met on
Saturday mornings in the informal setting of the Hauck Room. The format
allowed for lectures, readings, and discussions with the class sizes limited
to facilitate the latter. Dr. Roger A. Daniels, Professor of History at the
University of Cincinnati and member of the CHS Program Committee, arranged the 1981-1982 fall, winter, and spring terms. The courses proved
to be a huge success with the membership and attracted an interesting group
of participants which included college students, young professionals, housewives, retirees, and educators. The Society welcomed a number of history
conscious people who joined so that they could enroll in the courses.
Dr. Henry R. Winkler, President of the University of Cincinnati, taught
272
the February mini course. His class, "Contemporary Britain: National Power
and Social Welfare," attracted fifty-six students, twelve of them new members. In April Dr. Daniels lectured on "American Immigration: Race and
Ethnicity in America Life" to a class of thirty-six with seven new members.
Dr. Roger A. Fortin, Dean and Professor of History, Xavier University,
conducted a course titled "America at the Edge of History: 1620, 1776,
1876, and 1980" in October which enrolled thirty-seven students including
two new members.
Participants in the mini course program generally praised the "excellent
speakers and the stimulating lectures." The Saturday morning scheduling
appealed to many who held weekday jobs; some enjoyed lunching at the Art
Museum with their spouses or friends after class. In scheduling subsequent
courses, the Society's staff will attempt to meet members' expressed preferences for more topics dealing with Cincinnati history, especially local
architecture, art, and political development.
Fourth Street History Gallery
Although the Society had mounted a number of successful temporary
exhibits over the years, either in the Hauck Room or in a community facility,
it was without permanent exhibition space until June 1982 when the Fourth
Street History Gallery opened. The Manuel D. and Rhoda Mayerson Family
Foundation made space available at no cost to the Society in the grand
lobby of the Clopay Building (formerly the First National Bank Building)
and funded the construction of exhibit structures. Plans call for the Society
to install changing pictorial exhibits focusing on aspects of local history and
for occasional loan exhibits from the Smithsonian Institution's traveling
exhibit service which the Society will supplement with a Cincinnati history
component.
"Fourth Street Promenade: A Pictorial Stroll Through 150 Years," a photo
exhibit dealing with the architecture, institutions, and people of historic
Fourth Street, inaugurated the space. Sue Schuler Brunsman authored the
exhibit which was designed by Exhibitgroup Cincinnati. More than 200
guests attended the champagne reception on June 30. Trustee Louis Nippert
was master of ceremonies with Mayor David S. Mann, Gale E. Peterson, and
Manuel D. Mayerson sharing the dedication ceremonies. Music by Dave
Pfeiffer and the Rhythm Rangers added to the festive mood.
Mrs. Newton A. Powell, Jr. was in charge of the October 14 preview party
for "Change and Stability: Cincinnati and Its Neighborhoods 1900-1965."
The exhibit researched, written, and designed by Susan Redman-Rengstorf
featured two dozen representative city and county neighborhoods. The
Women's Association provided snacks and The Hudepohl Brewing Co. supplied draught beer for the "old-fashioned neighborhood" event.
273
Cincinnati: The Queen City, the Society's illustrated history, premiered
at the gallery December 15. Thomas E. Huenefeld, trustee and head of the
corporate division of the Sesquicentennial Challenge Grant Fund Drive, was
honorary chairman of the party. Copies of the handsome, hardbound volume
were presented to representatives of city and county government, the Cincinnati Business Committee, and the Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce. CHS library staff members installed a mini-exhibit of toys and
Christmas cards which remained in the gallery through the holidays.
New Queen City Tour
In 1981 and 1982 the Society researched, wrote, and edited a new version
of the Queen City Tour, a self-guided tour of Greater Cincinnati. Indian Hill
High School teacher, James Powers wrote a manuscript for the expanded
tour. His text was supplemented with additions by Robert Brodbeck, Steve
Gordon, and Sue Brunsman who also edited it. The tour was signed by the
City of Cincinnati and in Kentucky by the Northern Kentucky Convention
and Visitors Bureau. The greater Cincinnati Convention and Visitors Bureau
and the greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce published a colorful
brochure with maps and text in the spring shortly before the new route signs
went up in May. The Society sponsored a "Touring Party" on June 12, with
two buses traversing the core loop. Subsequent tours will feature different
segments of the tour.
Women's Association
The CHS Women's Association supports staff members in their endeavors,
supplying volunteers to assist with hospitality and refreshments, clerical
tasks, and the planning and execution of special events. In addition, the
Association has a popular program for its own members. Membership is
open to all CHS members with $5 annual dues payable to the Women's
Association.
Under the dynamic leadership of Mrs. Guy D. Randolph (Jane), the
auxiliary grew to approximately 250 members. In May 1982 Mrs. James L.
Elder (Frannie) succeeded Mrs. Randolph who had served a two year term
as president.
Women's Association members met at the Society in February to hear
librarian Laura Chace's illustrated talk, "Gems From the Collection." In
March Mrs. John M. Towle (Alice), program chairman, arranged a wonderful downtown walking tour with visits to City Hall, St. Peter-in-Chains
Cathedral, Plum Street Temple, and the Fire Museum where a catered lunch
was served. Mrs. George Fabe (Jody) conducted an April bus trip to Paris,
Cynthiana, Old Washington and May's Lick, Kentucky, with lunch at historic
274
The Women's Association
sponsored a number of
events for its members
including an interesting
walking tour of doivntoivn
and catered lunch at the new
Fire Museum.
Duncan's Tavern. The annual meeting of the Association in May at Sooty
Acres included a tour of the gardens.
In October, new program chair, Jody Fabe, arranged a luncheon meeting
at Fore & Aft Restaurant on the Ohio River. Later that month, she conducted a downriver tour on the Kentucky side of the Ohio which returned
via Indiana and stopped at several house museums along the route. Serving
on the 1982 executive committee with Mrs. Elder and Mrs. Fabe were Mrs.
Charles W. Krehbiel, Mrs. Henry G. Monning and Mrs. Robert F. Lindsay.
By the end of 1982, the Association had grown to approximately 340
members.
During 1982 the Society reduced the number of lecture programs offered.
Monthly events were programmed September through April, as in the past,
with dinner lecture meetings, mini courses, and Fourth Street History Gallery preview parties supplementing the traditional lecture-with-receptionto-follow. This experiment with a greater variety of social/educational
opportunities for members and guests proved successful, with good attendance at the annual meeting, Asbury dinner, and two gallery openings. The
Society attempted to keep expenses at a break-even level for members, with
charges ranging from $5 to $15 for parties and set at $20 for mini-courses.
Lectures, whether preceded by dinner or followed by reception, remained
open to the public without charge. Donations from the Women's Association,
party chairmen, and local beverage wholesalers helped the Society keep
fees low.
Sue Schuler Brunsman
Director of Community Development