Philosophical "Ames" of the Archives and Rare Books Library

By Lauren Fink

Owl BookplateThanks to a generous donation from Anthony Graybosch, The Archives and Rare Books Library now has in its holdings a collection of philosophy books from Van Meter Ames’ private library.  Van Meter Ames was a faculty member in the UC philosophy department, beginning in 1925, and served as its head from 1959 until 1966 when he retired.  Many of the books in this collection have Ames’ annotations, notes, and article clippings in them, as well as correspondence between Ames and fellow philosophers or friends. Continue reading

Records Update Highlights Ohio Public Records Cases

By:  Janice Schulz

A new Records Update is now available on the Records Management Program website. Records Update is released periodically to convey timely information between publications of Records Quarterly. This issue offers “Records in the News” stories found in the media and legislative action taken in March and April.

As reported in the Spring 2013 Records Quarterly article, “Public Records: Your Rights and Responsibilities,” Ohio’s public records laws are dynamic and are continually being tested in Ohio’s courtrooms. Ohio courts decided seven public records cases in March and April and there are currently six open cases in front of the Supreme Court of Ohio. In a case close to home, on April 24 the Supreme Court of Ohio ruled that lease terms and rents between Findlay Market private management company The Corporation for Findlay Market and its tenants are trade secrets and are not open to disclosure under the public records act. In 2010, Kevin P. Luken requested copies of lease agreements from The Corporation for Findlay Market and ultimately from the City of Cincinnati. While he received the agreements, terms and rents were redacted from the released documents and cited as trade secrets. Luken initated a mandamus action against the parties, which resulted in the recent decision.

The Findlay Market decision and more are available through this issue of Records Update.

Records Management, University of Cincinnati

Slip, Slide and A Parkway = Adventures in the Subway and Street Improvements Digitization Project

By:  Angela Vanderbilt

Cincinnatians who drive along Columbia Parkway from downtown to the eastern suburbs know the parkway for its breathtaking scenic views of the Ohio River below. But these commuters also know the danger of driving along this parkway after a quick, heavy downpour or a prolonged period of rain-drenched days.

Landslide along railroad tracks

Columbia Parkway Bridge

The hillside embankment along the parkway, cut at a steep angle when the road was constructed in 1938, is well known for becoming unstable after heavy rainfalls, causing mudslides that leave debris strew across the roadway as it passes over the low retaining wall at its base. One of three major urban projects undertaken by the city during the 1930s, nearly half the cost of the parkway was paid for by a grant from the Works Project Administration. In 1929, the city of Cincinnati passed an ordinance to upgrade and expand the existing road, which at that time was named Columbia Avenue and was a simple dirt and gravel road that meandered above the Ohio River eastward from downtown. Continue reading

UC Libraries Donation Becomes a Sizeable Challenge in Preservation

By Dawn Fuller

UC Libraries will host a special reception to celebrate the installation of one of the most extraordinary urban maps in the Western world in the Archives & Rare Books Library. The reception will take place from 3-5 p.m., Monday, April 22, in the Reading Room of the Archives & Rare Books Library, located on the 8th floor of Blegen Library.

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Going to Market = Adventures in the Subway and Street Improvements Digitization Project

By:  Angela Vanderbilt

One of the country’s oldest surviving public market houses to operate on a continual basis, Findlay Market is one of the nine original municipal markets that were open for business in downtown Cincinnati at the turn of the 20th century. The major source of goods for Cincinnati’s densely populated urban center, these markets began operating in the early 1800’s and continued to provide fresh produce and other goods to local residents through the mid-1960s, with Findlay Market being the sole survivor in the downtown area.

Shoppers returning from Findlay Market

Shoppers returning from Findlay Market, June 25, 1920

Findlay Market

Findlay Market, 2007

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Spring 2013 Records Quarterly Now Available

By:  Janice Schulz

The Spring 2013 edition of Records Quarterly, a newsletter of the University of Cincinnati Records Management Program, is now available on the records management website at http://www.libraries.uc.edu/documents/RQSpring2013.pdf. Articles in this issue include:

  • Records Quarterly Cover Spring 2013Public Records: Your Rights and Responsibilities – Learn what your responsibilities are as a UC employee when it comes to Ohio public records laws and your rights as a citizen to obtain government records.
  • Social Media and the Ohio Electronic Records Committee – See how the Ohio Electronic Records Committee is studying social media outlets such as Twitter and Facebook for their capability to create records and how that translates to UC’s social media activity.
  • When do I Dispose of Records? – Discover the answer to this oft-asked question with the help of some handy charts that make it easier for you to time your records disposition.

You will also find announcements for the spring shredding event sponsored by the Office of Information Security, “Records in the News,” current events in legislation that could affect recordkeeping, and recent gifts to the University Archives.

Records Quarterly is distributed electronically via the Records Management website.

Abandoned but not Forgotten = Adventures in the Subway and Street Improvements Digitization Project

By:  Angela Vanderbilt

The fascination and level of interest in Cincinnati’s attempt to build a subway is as alive today as it was when the first shovel-full of dirt was lifted from the canal bed in January, 1920. For some, it is a fascination with Cincinnati’s history, a desire to learn more about how their city has developed. For others, it is a fascination with what lies beneath Central Parkway, the desire to walk the tunnels through which no subway train has ever run.

Inspecting the Subway construction

Inspecting the construction, March 17, 1920

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Brighton Bridge = Adventures in the Subway and Street Improvements Digitization Project

By:  Angela Vanderbilt

Brighton Bridge, which spans Central Parkway connecting Colerain Avenue with McMicken Avenue, was built during the construction of Section Four of the subway. The last portion of subway to be constructed in the former Miami-Erie Canal bed, Section Four extended from Mohawk Street to Brighton’s Corner, and included an underground station at Brighton.

Canal Footbridge

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50 Minutes-1 Book Series Returns to ARB

By:  Kevin Grace

After a hiatus for the past few months, the lunchtime talks in the Archives & Rare Books Library return with a new presentation this month.   Held in 814 Blegen in the Schott Seminar Room, these casual talks are held from 12 noon to 12:50, so bring your lunch and bring a friend.   On March 28, the presentation will focus on the 19th century blind Dublin street poet, Zozimus.  And, the presentation will herald a new hallway exhibit in the Archives & Rare Books Library that features photographs of urban buskers from cities far and wide.

Zozimus Lecture

College of Nursing Records Now Available in ARB

By Janice Schulz

Nursing Classroom 1978

Instruction in the College of Nursing and Health, 1978

The Archives and Rare Books Library has completed processing an 81 box collection of College of Nursing Records from 1940-2004, and it is now available for research. The highlight of this collection is a large number of curriculum records dating from 1980-2003, documenting the development of the program and the changing face of nursing education during a 20+ year period. These curriculum records include syllabi, course outlines, handouts, presentations, and textbook lists. Development of the PhD program during the 1980s and 1990s is also documented. The Archives and Rare Books Library encourages all academic departments to transfer historic curriculum for inclusion in the University Archives Collection. Continue reading