Frankenstein!

hand

Artwork by Barry Moser from the Pennyroyal Edition of Frankstein

What better time of year to celebrate one of the greatest horror stories in world literature than now?  Since its publication in 1818, the tale of the man-made monster in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus has captivated readers and caused no small stir of debate on the creation of life and the egotism of mankind.  In fact, Dr. Frankenstein’s monster has been re-created time and again in film and literature, sometimes as an awful and terrible creature and occasionally as a poor wretch who desperately tries to break free of man’s cruelty. The Archives and Rare Book Library hold some electrifying editions of Mary Shelley’s famous work. Continue reading

Bearcat Bands in the University Archives

Image from the 1958 Band Camp welcome flyer

Image from the 1958 Band Camp welcome flyer

The Archives and Rare Books Library recently processed a new collection of records documenting activities of the University of Cincinnati Bearcat Bands from 1954 to 1996. The records are part of the University Archives through the UC Band Alumni Association. Operating as a department within the Division of Student Life, UC Bearcat Bands provides students of all majors with opportunities for performing musically while obtaining fine arts credit. The UC Band Alumni Association provides alumni opportunities to stay connected with UC Bearcat Bands and other alumni after graduation. Alumni members can also participate in the Community/Alumni Band. Continue reading

SATURDAY DISRUPTION TO E-JOURNALS

PLEASE NOTE: Serials Solutions has scheduled a system upgrade for this coming Saturday, October 24.  This upgrade is scheduled to begin at 3:01 AM Cincinnati time and will take anywhere from 2 to 6 hours, but most probably just 2 to 3 hours total.  So all systems should be back up by 9:01 AM at the latest.  Systems affected will be the  Serials Solutions e-journal portal (A-Z list of journals), ArticleLinker, and OneSearch.

First German Baptist Church Records Finding Aid Now Available

The Constitution of the Synzygus Verein of the First German Baptist Church, which appears to have been adopted prior to 1915.

The Constitution of the Synzygus Verein of the First German Baptist Church, which appears to have been adopted prior to 1915.

The records of the First German Baptist Church or Deutsche Baptisten-Kirche of Cincinnati have been fully processed and a finding aid is now available on the OhioLINK Finding Aid Repository.  The collection holds various records for the church between 1880 and 1991 including church meeting minutes, financial records, and Sunday school attendance sheets.  The material in the collection prior to the 1930s is primarily in German.

The records of the First German Baptist Church illustrate a small, but significant religious movement among Cincinnati Germans in the late nineteenth century.  The First German Baptist Church was founded in Cincinnati in 1857, with the assistance of the Ninth Street Baptist Church, whose congregation saw the need for a Baptist missionary movement among German immigrants.  Continue reading

NATIONAL INFORMATION LITERACY AWARENESS MONTH, 2009

In his October 1 address President Barack Obama declared October 2009 as National Information Literacy Awareness Month. In his statement he said,

“In addition to the basic skills of reading, writing, and arithmetic, it is equally important that our students are given the tools required to take advantage of the information available to them. The ability to seek, find, and decipher information can be applied to countless life decisions, whether financial, medical, educational, or technical.” See the complete text of the proclamation.

The University of Cincinnati recognizes information literacy as “an essential skill that supports each of the baccalaureate competencies and must permeate every component of the General Education Core.” Continue reading

Camp Washington Chili in the Urban Studies Collection

camp_washington_chiliThis past summer, Lilia Walsh, who is the 2009-2010 intern in the Archives & Rare Books Library, took an Honors Seminar at the University of Cincinnati entitled Envisioning the City. The focus of the course was how artists, writers, cartographers, photographers and others have visually portrayed cities from the 15th century to the present, using the holdings of ARB’s rare books collection and its Urban Studies Collection.  One of the experiential assignments given to the students in the seminar involved the practice of “lurking.”

Continue reading

Join us for Books by the Banks

bbtbJoin nationally known authors Jennifer Weiner, Garth Stein, and Jeannette Walls along with local favorites Greg Rhodes, Ellen Schreiber, and Thayne Maynard to celebrate the joy and reading of books at Books by the Banks: Cincinnati USA Book Festival, Saturday, October 17, 10am-4pm, Duke Energy Convention Center.

The day-long festival will feature over 80 regional and national authors, book signings, author panels, and activities for the entire family to enjoy. All events are free and open to the public.

Continue reading

ARB Celebrates Ohio Archives Month

2009_poster_blog

Since 1993 the Society of Ohio Archivists has been promoting awareness of the state’s archives and archival material through a week-long, later to become a month-long, celebration of Ohio’s historic and cultural resources. Archives throughout Ohio are invited to contribute to the promotion of Archives Month by mounting theme-related exhibits, displaying posters, and publicizing the month’s events through local government and organizations. This year’s theme is “Documenting the Path to Freedom: Abolition and Anti-Slavery in Ohio.” Continue reading