From everyone at the Winkler Center, best wishes for the holiday season and the new year! In the spirit of the holiday season, here are some greetings from around the world that can be found in Dr. Sabin’s papers. Enjoy!
Christmas card from Julia and Walter Langsam, undated
Photograph of Dr. Aring, ca. 1969
Since I have started the next phase of the Sabin digitization project, I have encountered several letters between Dr. Sabin and Dr. Charles D. Aring, an internationally known neurologist who served as a professor and department chairman in the University of Cincinnati’s Department of Neurology from 1948-1974. It turns out that one of the Winkler Center student assistants, Miranda Scharf has been working to update the EAD-compatible finding aid for the Charles D. Aring papers, which reside in our archives. (Be on the lookout for an official announcement in the Winkler Center blog soon!) I thought I would highlight some materials in both of their manuscript collections to give you an idea of their relationship. Continue reading
By Kevin Grace
The University of Cincinnati community is well-schooled in the story of its lions, Mick and Mack, perhaps ad nauseam. Here in the Archives & Rare Books Library, the subject is a frequent one: we relate to the inquirer how they stand as sentinels in front of McMicken Hall, once facing each other but now facing away (Mick is on the left, Mack on the right), how occasionally lipstick marks will be found on them, and that they supposedly roar whenever a virgin walks by. The fact that they have never roared should not trouble the demure – non-roaring lions are a hoary tale on many campuses. And, that Mick and Mack took up their posts in 1904 when UC was a municipal university and city officials needed to find an appropriate home for them. And, that the lions are copies of larger versions in the Loggia dei Lanzi in Florence, Italy (not Kentucky). And, that even one of those “originals” was a copy of ancient Roman statue.
But what of the lions’ owner and the university’s benefactor, Jacob Hoffner? Who the heck was he and what was he doing with marble lions? We’ve always known a bit about him, that he was a Cincinnati real estate man and business speculator who enjoyed traveling in Europe. He maintained a nice little estate in Northside and decorated his gardens with a variety of statuary, some of which he had copied from what he saw abroad. Hence, the lions. Hoffner died in 1894 at the age of 96, leaving everything for the use of his wife, Maria. On her death in 1904, following a part of Jacob’s will, his statuary was donated to the city. And that was that. Continue reading
The Library website has officially been updated to reflect our new name, the UCBA Library, with a new web address found at www.libraries.uc.edu/ucba. We have also taken this opportunity to revise our website so that information is easier
to find.
You will also notice changes in other areas including:
Please take a moment to get acquainted with our revised site and update your bookmarks where needed! Email us at our new email address ucbalibrary@ucblueash.edu with any feedback or suggestions.
By Kevin Grace
Last Thursday we had a wonderful turnout for the monthly 50 Minutes-1 Book lunchtime talk. Greg Hand, UC’s Associate Vice President for Government Relations and University Communications, spoke on the 1943 Cincinnati Guide in the federal Writer’s Project program. It was an excellent presentation that put this seminal Cincinnati book in the context of the Great Depression, national politics, and local history.
Please join us next month, January 19th, to hear Jerry Newman talk about a key book in Western literature, Miguel Cervantes’ Don Quixote. February’s presentation will be on Oscar Wilde’s Salome. The 50 Minutes-1 Book lunch talks are held in the Schott Seminar Room, 814 Blegen Library, Archives & Rare Books Library from 12-12:50.
RefWorks rolled out its new 2.0 interface for users on May 16th, 2011. The classic RefWorks interface will continue to be available until January 3, 2012. If you have not yet taken the opportunity to look at RefWorks 2.0, log in to RefWorks and simply click on the “RefWorks 2.0” link on the top of the RefWorks window to switch over to the new interface.
The new RefWorks 2.0 is more visually appealing and a user-friendly than the classic version If you have not already become familiar with the new 2.0 interface, you have until the end of the year to do so.
Check out these resources to learn more about RefWorks 2.0:
Contact your RWC Library Liaison for one-on-one assistance with RefWorks 2.0.
Original Content provided by Randall L. Roberts MLS, MS Liaison for Criminal Justice, Psychology & Sociology Reference & Instructional Services Dept. University of Cincinnati randall.roberts@uc.edu (513) 556-1864
How pleased we bloggers at UC Libraries were to learn that our very own LiBLOG, the UC Libraries blog, made Cincinnati Magazine’s “Best of Cincinnati, 2011” list. Below is the entry:
Peek into the Archives – OK, we’re geeks. We love LiBlog, the UC libraries blog. When Kevin Grace shared a postcard from his personal collection showing the original University Building on the eve of its demolition, we were charmed beyond reason. Why? As Kevin writes: “Before demolition, a UC alum with fond memories of his alma mater requested of a friend that some bricks be sent to him. When he received them, Joseph Strauss placed them in a pylon of a bridge he was building. So, there is a little bit of UC’s heart in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge.” Go ‘cats, indeed.
By Kevin Grace
The first 50 Minutes – 1 Book lunchtime talk for this academic year will be held Thursday, December 8, in the Archives & Rare Books Library, in the Schott Seminar Room, 814 Blegen Library at 12:00 noon.
Greg Hand will discuss the book variously known as “The Cincinnati Guide” or “The WPA Guide to Cincinnati,” although its actual title is Cincinnati: A Guide to the Queen City and its Neighbors, published in 1943 and written by the workers of the Federal Writers Project. In the seven decades since publication, it has become an essential starting point for historians of Cincinnati. For this discussion, Hand will talk about the Great Depression and the WPA in Cincinnati and Ohio. He will review the development of the guide, its reception on publication, and a great deal about the post-WPA life of its editor.
Last year, the 50 Minutes – 1 Book series featured presentations on the world’s smallest book, a book bound in human skin, the work of local bookbinder and designer Gabrielle Fox, and Barry Moser’s magnificent Pennyroyal Caxton Bible. As we renew the lunchtime presentations, we look forward to more wonderful discussions about books. January’s talk will be on Cervantes’ Don Quixote, presented by Jerry Newman.
Please join us on December 8 for another casual noon get-together. Bring your lunch, order in, or just come to listen, look, learn, and converse. All students, faculty, and staff are very welcome.
October 26, 2001 - Unveiling the Rotary Polio Plus sculpture. Mrs. Sabin can be seen in this photo on the right. (From the collection of Bruce Cook.)
[Sabin Archivist’s Note: This week features the first blog post from Megan Ryan, the Sabin Project student assistant. Megan is pursuing a Master of Community Planning from the College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning here at the University of Cincinnati. She will be blogging on different Sabin-related topics as we work on the project. Please give Megan a warm welcome to the blogging world by reading her posts! -SB]
By Megan Ryan, Sabin Project Student Assistant
Last month, Stephanie and I went on a field trip to speak to past Rotary International Director, Bruce Cook. We sought insight into the involvement of Honorary Rotarian, Dr. Sabin, with Club 17. The Rotary Club of Cincinnati is given this title because it was the 17th Rotary Club formed in the United States in 1910 (the first was formed in Chicago in 1905). Mr. Cook told us many stories about Rotary, including when he met Dr. Sabin for the first time.
The Rotary Polio Plus sculpture (From the collection of Bruce Cook.)
When the Rotary Polio Plus Sculpture was discussed, it struck me how wonderful it is that there is a physical reminder of the immeasurable impact of Dr. Sabin’s polio vaccine and the work of Rotary International. The Polio Plus Program was launched by Rotary International in 1985, and is the largest private sector support of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative. As Mr. Cook said, “This statue symbolizes the 20-year commitment of countless Rotary members who are making their vision a reality and the world healthier for millions of children.”[1] Built in 2001, the seven foot tall, eight-hundred pound sculpture depicts a Rotarian vaccinating an infant while two children await their turns. The sculpture is located near the emergency department entrance and the clock tower at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. Continue reading
By Lauren Fink
What is hemochromatosis?
Do children get migraines?
Why is sleep loss linked with obesity?
What are the holiday blues? And do I have them?
Finding valid answers to these medical questions is easier, and closer to home, than you might think…
Over 15 years ago, a government grant allowed the University of Cincinnati to create the Ohio Valley Community Health Information Network (OVCHIN) which later evolved into NetWellness. NetWellness, then a collaboration between UC, The Ohio State University, and Case Western Reserve University, is a non-profit consumer health website devoted to high quality, unbiased, scientifically sound information. Professionals from all three universities create and evaluate all of information found on the website and offer an “Ask the Expert” feature, as well as descriptions of and links to myriad health and research topics.