Through the generosity of Jerry L. Higgins, the Henry R. Winkler Center received an interesting artifact depicting Cincinnati’s rich history of institutions of medical education. This framed diploma from the Botanico-Medical College of Ohio was awarded to Jerry L. Higgins’ ancestor, Dr. Henry Randolph Higgins, and serves as the only artifact in the Winkler collection from the institution.
Category Archives: UC Libraries
Exploring UC in Photographs
By: Iman Said, Archives & Rare Books Library Intern, 2014-2015
Hello, and welcome to my first blog! My name is Iman and I’m a student in the College of Business, studying Operations Management. This year, I am working as a research intern in the Archives & Rare Books Library, a cozy nook on the 8th floor of Blegen Library. The ARB Library is a home to the University’s rare books collection, UC archives, hundreds of archival collections, and texts from all over the world. Just an hour of working in this corner of campus is enough to get a glimpse into the history and traditions that have influenced the way our laws are made, the way we interact with others, even the way our society functions.
Tape, Paper, Scissors
By: Pam Bach
Hmmm, what to do with book jackets removed from items in the Cohen Enrichment Collection when the books are sent to the stacks to make room for new titles? Pondering this question while looking out at the 4th floor of Langsam Library and seeing the less-than-attractive concrete columns, inspiration hit — let’s create collages of the book jackets to wrap the columns! To make it even more fun, let’s inquire about a donation of Duck Tape from ShurTech, where Madeline Aerni, a Library peer mentor, was interning this summer.
This proved to be the perfect activity for launching this years’ Langsam Connect event series, Fun, Food and Library Finds. Using tape, paper, and scissors, students created 4’ x 11’ collages from book jackets and Duck Tape, all while enjoying an afternoon snack in the Library. Watch the video capturing the fun, food, friends, and library finds!
Stop by Langsam and check the out the wrapped columns on the 4th floor. You will likely find a book title and call # that you will want to check out and take home with you.
ARB’s "50 Minutes" Talk for September
By: Kevin Grace
The Archives & Rare Books monthly talk returns on Wednesday, September 24, at 12:00 noon with a special presentation on UC’s first female graduate. Like nearly every other institution of its kind, documenting the “firsts” and the significant moments of our history lends context to our heritage, and, reveals some very interesting stories. And for this 50 Minutes talk, we welcome back Greg Hand to campus and to Blegen Library. Greg made some very interesting 50 Minutes talks in the past few years on Cincinnati’s Federal Writer’s project guide to the city; artist, poet, and mystic William Blake; and pioneering cartoonist Winsor McCay. Now he comes with another… Continue reading
Exhibit Honors Theodore M. Berry – Pioneer. Activist. Leader.
In observance of the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Civil Rights Act, UC Libraries have created a display on the 4th floor of Blegen Library celebrating the papers of Theodore M. Berry, noted Civil Rights pioneer, community activist, and elected official from Cincinnati. Ted Berry’s papers represent one of the notable collections in the Archives & Rare Books Library’s Urban Studies Collection.
Langsam Connect: Fun, Food & Library Finds
UC Libraries Participates in IT@UC Showcase
Today, UC Libraries participated in the first-ever IT@UC Showcase, a free event open to the UC community and beyond. IT@UC Showcase is being held in TUC’s Great Hall from 10am – 2pm. More details, a full schedule, and the list of booths at http://www.uc.edu/ucit/about/itatuc.html.
Cincinnati’s Bathtub Hoax and a Missing Giant Tub
By: Kevin Grace
In 1917, the noted journalist and philologist H.L. Mencken published an article in the New York Evening Mail concerning the history of the bathtub in the United States. According to the Baltimore writer, known as much for his satire and acerbic wit as he was for his political reporting, Cincinnati was home to this tub. Mencken asserted that America’s first bathtub was introduced on December 20, 1842 by Adam Thompson who lived, in all places, Cincinnati, Ohio. Made of mahogany and lined with lead, the vessel was introduced by Thompson to his guests at a Christmas party, described how it worked, and invited the partygoers to take a dip. Four of them took him up on his offer, and the next day the invention was widely reported in the press. Continue reading
The Twitchell Hydrometer : Notes from the Oesper Collections, No. 28, September/October 2014

A brass hydrometer jar with handle and thermometer and two metal hydrometers probably designed to monitor the fermentation of beer.
The 28th issue of Museum Notes highlights yet another scientific instrument produced by the 19th-century Cincinnati inventor Henry Twitchell (1816-1875).
Click here for all other issues of Notes from The Oesper Collections and to explore the Jensen-Thomas Apparatus Collection.
GeoScienceWorld e-books now available
UC users now have access to the 2006-2014 collection of e-books (over 1,000 titles!) from GeoScienceWorld! This collection consists of high-quality books published by the leading societies in the earth sciences, and covering a broad range of topics and research.
http://ebooks.geoscienceworld.org
(Note: UC VPN/proxy login required to view off-campus)
For e-books dating before 2006, please refer to our subscriptions to the AAPG Digital Library and the Geological Society of London Special Publications (also part of GeoScienceWorld).




