Are you the family historian? Do you like to look at old photographs? Like solving puzzles and bringing a little order to unorganized things? Then a career in archives may be just what you are looking for!
The Archives and Rare Books Library would like to cordially invite all UC students to attend our Archives Career Panel in celebration of American Archives Month this October.
This moderated, hour-long talk will feature conversation between archivists from UC Libraries, as well as local Cincinnati archivists, as they discuss their career paths, reflect on the current and future state of the profession, and answer audience questions in a Q&A.
The event will be held on Monday, October 6th from 1:30-2:30pm in Room 471 of Langsam Library.
Medical illustrations and drawings are a reflection of the state of medical practice at a specific moment in time providing a visual record of science, technology, and anatomical knowledge.
The artwork of Daniel S. Young highlights the artistic and medical contributions of an American Civil War era medical illustrator in a military context. Daniel S. Young: American Civil War Medical Illustrations on JSTOR. His artistry paints a portrayal of how medical illustration informed medical professionals during the 19th century. Young’s Civil War medical illustrations were crucial in educating doctors on surgical procedures and about previously unseen wounds. While medical illustrations such as Dr. Daniel Young’s served to educate doctors they were also important in aiding veterans in their pension claims and showing how the war impacted the soldiers’ health.
Cuts along the upper arm and elbow. Stone’s River, Tennessee.Continue reading →
Read these articles, as well as past issues, on the website. To receive Source via e-mail, contact melissa.norris@uc.edu to be added to the mailing list.
For 100 years, the Arlitt Center has been a cornerstone of early childhood education, founded as one of the nation’s first laboratory preschools and continuously championing the rights and potential of young children. The center was founded by Ada Hart Arlitt, PhD, University of Cincinnati faculty member and a prominent figure in early childhood psychology and the child study movement.
An exhibit on display on the fourth floor of the Walter C. Langsam Library celebrates the past, present and future of the Arlitt Center. Included in the exhibit are images from the Archives and Rare Books Library and a bibliography of published works by Ada Hart Arlitt.
The Archives and Rare Books Library holds the Ada Hart Arlitt Papers, containing correspondence related to her professional activities as a faculty member in the Department of Child Care and Training at UC, as well as her involvement with the National Congress of Parents and Teachers. A finding aid about the collection is available.
The exhibit was a collaboration between with Arlitt Center and UC Libraries. Reece Guthier, communication design co-op student, designed the exhibit.
UC Libraries is excited to welcome Crissy Ross as the new Collection Strategies Librarian. Crissy is returning to UC, where she originally earned her BA in Psychology. She holds a MSLS from the University of Kentucky and is working towards a Master’s in Business and Leadership Innovation at Northern Kentucky University. Since March 2022, she has been the Director of the Library at Cincinnati State Technical and Community College. Prior to that, she has held various library roles in scholarly communication, collections, and public services.
Her work will focus on implementing the process for the libraries’ physical collections review, rolling out Greenglass, assisting in the formation of new collection development policies and preparing information to support space planning efforts.
Last November, the University of Cincinnati Libraries announced the award of an Archives Grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission to the Libraries’ Archives and Rare Books Library (ARB). This grant supports the archival processing of records related to the lawsuit Bronson v. Board of Education of the City School District of the City of Cincinnati maintained by the local branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and donated to the University of Cincinnati in the 1980s.
Archival records from organizations may contain an array of documents and an incredible amount of those documents, such as correspondence, meeting minutes and case files. When this occurs, archivists may arrange the material into series and subseries in order to assist researchers in accessing the collection. The NAACP Bronson v. Board records is an example of this practice. Due to the extensive material within the collection, it is vital to note the different types of documents and what they mean in the context of the case. This includes files created and kept by the school districts and documents that originated in the court. For both document types, ARB has consulted with the Office of General Counsel to determine if any records need to be restricted or redacted.
Read Source, the online newsletter, to learn about the news, events, people and happenings in UC Libraries.
In this issue of Source, Liz Kiscaden, dean and university librarian, writes about how UC Libraries is taking advantage of funding opportunities to Invest in Strategic Priorities. The Archives and Rare Books Library announces receipt of a national grant to process historic Cincinnati schools desegregation case records.The Carl Solway Gallery Archive in the Robert A. Deshon and Karl J. Schlachter Library for Design, Architecture, Art and Planning (DAAP) Library is featured. Ted Baldwin, head of the Sciences Libraries, writes about how the razing of the iconic Crosley Tower will necessitate the move of the current Chemistry-Biology Library space to Braunstein Hall where it will merge with the Geology-Mathematics-Physics Library to become the Science Library opening fall semester.
Read these articles, as well as past issues, on the website. To receive Source via e-mail, contact melissa.norris@uc.edu to be added to the mailing list.
Last November, the University of Cincinnati Libraries announced the award of an Archives Grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission to the Libraries’ Archives and Rare Books Library (ARB). This grant supports the archival processing of records related to the lawsuit Bronson v. Board of Education of the City School District of the City of Cincinnati maintained by the local branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and donated to the University of Cincinnati in the 1980s.
All achievements and accomplishments of the witnesses listed are current as of 1979, the year that the witnesses began giving depositions.
Our final spotlight of Black History Month is a well-known figure in Cincinnati’s history of civil rights and activism, Marian Spencer. Born in Gallipolis, Ohio in 1920, Marian Alexander was a graduate of Gallia Academy and went on to study English literature at the University of Cincinnati. During her time at the university, she was involved in campus life and was an active member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. While here, she also met her husband, Donald Spencer. After college, the couple settled down and had two sons, Donald and Edward.
Spencer’s sons were actually what sparked her passion for civil rights and equality. When the boys were young, they wanted to go to an event at Coney Island Amusement Park but were disappointed when they showed up and were escorted out because it was a segregated event. Spencer, along with 28 other witnesses filed a lawsuit and won the case to desegregate the park.
Following this event, Spencer dedicated herself to fighting for civil rights and equality in the Cincinnati area. She spent time as the NAACP Cincinnati Chapter president, served on Cincinnati’s City Council and was a representative of Ohio’s Democratic Party at a national level. Even more than this, Spencer was passionate about equality in education and played a pivotal role in the 1974 Bronson case, which was a catalyst in desegregating Cincinnati Public Schools. Other organizations Spencer worked with include Housing Opportunities Made Equal, Planned Parenthood, Cincinnati Human Services Task Force and the U.S. Civil Rights Commission Ohio Advisory Board.
You might recognize Marian Spencer’s name by the street that’s named after her downtown, the dormitory that’s named after her or perhaps by her well-known scholarship here at UC. To learn more about Marian Spencer’s life and work, visit the digital exhibit:
Our second Black History Month spotlight goes to a pioneer of medicine in the Cincinnati area, Lucy Oxley – the first African American to graduate from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.
Lucy Oxley was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania in 1912. During her childhood, her family moved to Cincinnati, as her father was named rector of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church. As a young girl, Oxley looked up to three of her uncles who became doctors and knew early on that she wanted to be one too. She graduated early from Woodward High School and joined the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine’s six-year undergraduate and medical program.
During her time at UC, Oxley excelled, working hard to earn her spot in the group of top fifteen students who would have the chance to intern at General Hospital (UC Medical Center). However, she was refused an internship spot. When she questioned Dr. Alfred Friedlander about why she wasn’t given an internship, he said to her, “Lucy, you are a negro, and we don’t want you.” Oxley replied, “Well Dr. Friedlander, I wouldn’t change that for anything.” Rising above the prejudice, she went on to complete her internship at Freedmen’s Hospital in Washington, DC, and returned to Cincinnati to join her classmates for graduation on June 5, 1936.
After graduation, Oxley became a medical director for student wellness at Bennett College in North Carolina, and then Wilberforce College here in Ohio. Following that, she had a daughter, Francine, and returned to Cincinnati where she started her general practice. In 1945 she began working in cancer research alongside fellow UC grad, George Sperti. A few years later she returned to full-time practice in family medicine where she cared for thousands of patients and families.
Later in life, Oxley was diagnosed with lung cancer but continued to treat patients up until her passing in 1991. She is remembered today for her dedication to those she cared for and for paving the way for young African Americans who aim to make a difference in the medical field just as she did.
