Woodward High School - Treasures Yearbook (Cincinnati, OH)

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Elements of Population in Cincinnati of l83l HE people who first settled in Cincinnati were from other states. There were representatives here from every state in the Union. Foreigners, too, came to Cincinnati and settled, so that not only every state in the Union, but almost every part of the globe was represented here. In 1831, more than half of the population in Cincinnati were foreign born. Of these, by far the greatest number were Germans. They flocked to Cincinnati by hundreds. In 1831, they formed twenty-eight per cent of the population. The Irish formed the next largest group. Their number was estimated to be 13,831. They lived, for the most part, along the river. The English constituted about sixteen per cent of the population, and the French and Italians, one per cent each. Besides these, there were Dutch, Polish, West Indians, Nova Scotians, Danes, Belgians, Mexicans, Russians, Norwegians, Scotch, Welsh, Spaniards, Greeks, Africans, Turks, Portuguese, Swiss, and Australians. There were also many people whose nationality was not known. Their place of birth was listed as ttunknown or uat sea. Each nationality settled in a little group, keeping its own traditions, ideals, cus- toms, and in some instances, its language. Cincinnati was a very cosmopolitan city, a characteristic which she retains to-day. ELLEN HENSLEY ,31 , . Social Life and Customs of Cincinnati in I83I IONEER Cincinnatians realized that they must toil for the prosperity of their rapidly growing city. In spite of the hustle and bustle for wealth and progress generated by their labor, there was even then real society. It was not, however, an elaborate society with great conventionality; although not as polished as European and Southern aristocracy, it was wholesome, prosperous, and intelligent. In this period there were many clubs, one of the most distinguished of which was the Buckeye Club. This club held social and literary meetings in the parlor of Dr. Drakes home on Vine Street. The members discussed certain specified topics and commented on events of the day. Another popular literary society was the Semi-Colon Club. This curious name has no connection with the punctuation mark. It had been worked out on the theory that he who provides a new pleasure is entitled to half the praise accorded to the discoverer of a new continent. Therefore this club, a center of intellectual and social enjoyment, deserved half the praise of Colon tColumbusi, the discoverer of America. Literary and musical contributions were made by this society. Harriet Beecher Stowe later collected her papers under the title of Mayflower and dedi- cated them to the club. Visitors to the city were frequent guests. The club existed and fiourished until the panic of eighteen hundred and thirty-seven, during which period many of the members suffered losses. Besides these high-brow critical societies, there were also clubs to promote interest in sportsmanship. One of the best-known was the Cincinnati Shooting Club, established in eighteen hundred and thirty-one, which gave frequent dinners supplied with game killed by the members. At the dinners, they probably announced the scores attained by the hunters who had been proved the best marksmen. At the social and club gatherings Mrs. Trollope's Bazaar was the subject of many a conversation. This bazaar was housed in a unique building of brick with Gothic tContinued on page 1251 Fifteen

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Medicine in Cincinnati in I83l INCINNATI, from 1829 to 1833, was an afflicted city. Flood, fire, famine, and the dreaded cholera swept the city from end to end. Flood, fire, and famine all called for a knowledge of medicine, but cholera was the major enemy of the doctors of 1831. There were eight hundred and thirteen deaths resulting from cholera. Besides the above mentioned disasters, the doctors had to fight diseases which were caused by impure water coming through wooden pipes. In a directory of Cincinnati, the directory of 1881, there appeared the names of forty-seven physicians who were members of the Medical Society. As membership in this society was required if one wished to practice medicine, the list should have been a representative one, yet we hear of only about a dozen of the doctors on the list who practiced in 1831. In a directory of 1836, twenty-one of the names in the directory of 1831 reappear. Cincinnatits first hospital was authorized on January 22, 1821, by an act of Legislature. It was established through the efforts of Dr. Drake, as was the first medical school of Cincinnati. The hospital was called the Commercial Hospital and Lunatic Asylum for the State of Ohio, and it was erected in 1823. The site was a four-acre lot bounded on the east by the Miami Canal and within one mile of the Ohio River. The hospital site cost the township $4,000. The main building was of brick, and it had a fifty-three foot front. It was forty-two feet deep and four stories high,inc1uding the basement. There was an operating theater With seats for one hundred spectators. The building cost $10,000 in depreciated bank paper, estimated to be worth about $3,500 at that time. In January, 1820, the Medical College of Ohio was established. The faculty con- sisted of Dr. Drake, Dr. Jesse Smith, and Dr. Benjamin Bohrei'. Dr. Drake was president of the faculty and professor of the theory and practice of medicine. The government of the institution made professors trustees. This policy was a great mistake, because a majority of the faculty could turn out the others and elect whom they pleased. At this time there was a great amount of jealousy among the doctors and professors, which caused many quarrels. In the sessions of the Legislature, 1822-1823, the charter of the college was amended, and a new board of trustees was appointed with General Harrison at its head. The power of appointment and of dismissal of members of the faculty was placed in this board. Finally the dissension among the doctors became so great that a medical war divided the town into two parties, and in 1884 a petition was sent to the Legislature for reorganization of the institution. The petition was signed by a number of leading physicians. As an outgrowth of this movement for reform, a medical de- partment was established at the Cincinnati College. Many medical journals were published in Cincinnati between 1819 and 1832. An early journal was The Western Quarterly Reportev-y edited by Dr. John B. God- man. Other medical publications were The Ohio Medical Repository, The Western M edical and Physical Journal, and The Western M edical Gazette. To-day Cincinnati has some of the finest hospitals in the country, and its excel- lent medical school provides for the City many doctors who have made Cincinnati a notable health center among cities of the United States. CALVIN WARNER, t31. Fouriemz

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The Schools of Cincinnai'i in l83l N the third decade of the nineteenth century, Cincinnati was considered the center of learning for the West and Southwest. It was then the largest city west of the Alleghenies and justified its title, the Queen City of the Westf' Students came from the South, from Indiana, and from farther west. By 1881, the Lane Theological Seminary, the Cincinnati College, and the Ohio Medical College had been established. The Lane Theological Seminary was erected upon a plot of ground on Walnut Hills, which had been donated by Elnathan Kemper. It consisted of three departments, the preparatory, the collegiate, and the theological. The dormitory was in the third story, commonly called the garret. There was one large room with a fireplace, used by all students, and a dining room which the students had to heat at their own expense. The rules were very strict. Smoking was prohibited, and marriage resulted in dismissal. A cemetery was laid out in the neighborhood for the following reasons: ttInasmuch as those Who are studying for the ministry need time and opportunity for meditation and self- examination, a cemetery in proximity to the institution will afford a favorable place of retirement for the purpose. The Cincinnati College instructed students in mathematics, natural philosophy, chemistry, astronomy, mineralogy, and languages, as well as in law. Because of financial difficulties, the academic features were suspended. The law school con- tinued, and is now the law department of the University of Cincinnati. The Ohio Medical College was the center of learning for those who wished to follow the medical profession. This institution is still active as a part of the University of Cincinnati. . Before the year 1828, only private schools were available to children. Dr. John Lockets Cincinnati Female Academy, the Misses Bailey Female Boarding School, and a Female Seminary established by Caroline Lee Hentz were a few of the private schools of this period, in addition to DemingJS Academy, E. Stone Com- mercial Academy, and a technical school established by Milo G. Williams. In 1828, a law was passed providing for public schools in Ohio. Nathaniel Guil- ford, Micajah J . Williams, and Samuel Lewis were leaders in establishing public schools. The city constructed two buildings of brick and stone, of two rooms each. A little later four other buildings were erected, all crude structures. The schools were controlled by a Board of Trustees and Visitors, who, in conjunction with the City Council, levied and collected taxes for school purposes. They had the power to appoint six residents of the city, whose duties were to examine and inspect such per- sons as desired to teach. At the opening of these schools, the total enrollment was about eighty pupils. In 1833, George Graham, a prominent citizen, had built on his own iot on the west side of Race Street, between Fourth and Fifth Streets, 3 model schoolhouse. This was purchased by the City Council. Nine other schools, patterned after this, were then built. They were of brick, two stories high, with four rooms on each floor. In some of the buildings, fire engines as well as students were housed, and when a tire occurred the cianging of the bells put an end to learning and reciting. Some Of the pupils had a chance to pull the ropes of the hre bells, and others ran with the engine. These schools were about as large as a private residence of today. The flrst printed report of the schools appeared in 1834. In this report, we learn that the city was divided into ten school districts, having two schools in each I0071tiwmcd on page 11le Sixteen