Description: The McKinley Memorial in Niles, a memorial to President McKinley. The engraving on the structure reads: "WILLIAM MCKINLEY/ NATIONAL MEMORIAL FREE TO THE PEOPLE." Ohioan William McKinley, Jr., was President of the United States of America from 1897 to 1901. His presidency is known for the Spanish American War in 1898. The National McKinley Birthplace Memorial Association was incorporated by a special Act of Congress on March 4, 1911. The purpose of the Association was to erect a suitable structure marking the birthplace of President William McKinley, the 25th President of the United States. The result was the National McKinley Birthplace Memorial. The 232 foot by 136 foot by 38 foot monument is constructed of Georgian marble with two lateral wings-- one wing houses the public library called the McKinley Memorial Library, and the other wing houses the McKinley Museum and an auditorium. The Museum contains artifacts of the life and presidency of McKinley. In the center of the Memorial is a Court of Honor supported by 28 imposing columns. It features a heroic statue of McKinley sculptured by John Massey-Rhind. Surrounding the statue are busts and tablets dedicated to the members of McKinley's cabinet and other prominent men who were closely associated with him. These bronze busts, mounted on marble pedestals, weigh between 800 and 1100 pounds each. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06537
Subjects: McKinley, William, 1843- 1901; Monuments & memorials; William McKinley Presidential Library and Museum
Places: Niles (Ohio); Trumbull County (Ohio)
 

Description: This is a portrait of a young woman sitting in front of an American flag bearing the images of President William McKinley and Vice President Theodore Roosevelt. A marking on the negative reads: "Mrs. Delilia Turner." This photograph was taken by traveling photographer Albert J. Ewing, ca. 1896-1912. Like most of Ewing's work, it was likely taken in southeastern Ohio or central West Virginia. Born in 1870 in Washington County, Ohio, near Marietta, Ewing most likely began his photography career in the 1890s. The 1910 US Census and a 1912-1913 directory list him as a photographer. A negative signed “Ewing Brothers” and a picture with his younger brother, Frank, indicate that Frank may have joined the business. After 1916, directories list Albert as a salesman. He died in 1934. The Ewing Collection consists of 5,055 glass plate negatives, each individually housed and numbered. Additionally, the collection includes approximately 450 modern contact prints made from the glass plate negatives. Subjects include infants and young children, elderly people, families, school and religious groups, animals and rural scenes. In 1982, the Ohio Historical Society received the collection, still housed in the original dry plate negative boxes purchased by Albert J. Ewing. A selection of the original glass plate negatives were exhibited for the first time in 2013 at the Ohio Historical Center. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06272
Subjects: Ewing, Albert J. (1870-1934); Portrait photography--United States—History; Presidents--United States; Cultural Ohio--Art and Artists; McKinley, William, 1843- 1901
Places: Ohio; West Virginia
 

Description: This is a portrait of a well-dressed young woman sitting in front of an American flag which bears the images of President William McKinley and Vice President Theodore Roosevelt. Handwriting on the negative appears to identify the woman as Miss Rachel Riddle. This photograph was taken by traveling photographer Albert J. Ewing, ca. 1896-1912. Like most of Ewing's work, it was likely taken in southeastern Ohio or central West Virginia. Born in 1870 in Washington County, Ohio, near Marietta, Ewing most likely began his photography career in the 1890s. The 1910 US Census and a 1912-1913 directory list him as a photographer. A negative signed “Ewing Brothers” and a picture with his younger brother, Frank, indicate that Frank may have joined the business. After 1916, directories list Albert as a salesman. He died in 1934. The Ewing Collection consists of 5,055 glass plate negatives, each individually housed and numbered. Additionally, the collection includes approximately 450 modern contact prints made from the glass plate negatives. Subjects include infants and young children, elderly people, families, school and religious groups, animals and rural scenes. In 1982, the Ohio Historical Society received the collection, still housed in the original dry plate negative boxes purchased by Albert J. Ewing. A selection of the original glass plate negatives were exhibited for the first time in 2013 at the Ohio Historical Center. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06259
Subjects: Ewing, Albert J. (1870-1934); Portrait photography--United States—History; Cultural Ohio--Art and Artists; Women Suffrage; Political campaigns; Political posters; Flags--United States; McKinley, William, 1843- 1901
Places: Ohio; West Virginia
 

Description: Dated ca. 1874, this is a photograph of Alice Danner Jones, a Canton, Ohio, resident. Her name and other biographical information are recorded on the reverse of the portrait, where she is described as a lecturer, educator, writer, and church worker. A relative and friend of first lady Ida Saxton McKinley, Jones wrote a book called "A McKinley Romance" about the courtship and marriage of President McKinley and Mrs. McKinley. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SC1115
Subjects: Portrait photography; Women; Authors; Presidents; McKinley, William, 1843- 1901
Places: Newark (Ohio); Licking County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows armed soldiers standing guard outside the Fayette County Court House, Washington Court House, Ohio, in mid-October 1894. A crowd of onlookers is facing the soldiers; inside the court house, dozens of people are standing the windows observing the activity outside. Rioting erupted at the Fayette County Courthouse following the trial of William Dolby, a biracial man accused of raping a white woman in Washington Court House, Ohio. Dolby pleaded guilty and was sentenced to twenty years at the Ohio Penitentiary. The crowd, however, demanded that Dolby be lynched for the crime. Governor William McKinley, who later became president of the United States, sent out the National Guard to protect Dolby. On the morning of October 17, 1894, the National Guard troops, led by Colonel Alonzo B. Coit, ordered the crowd to disperse. The crowd continued to shout and began ramming the courthouse doors. Coit and his troops fired at the crowd through the doors of the courthouse, killing six men and wounding a dozen others. Bullet holes are still visible in the wooden doors of the courthouse. Colonel Coit was indicted for manslaughter but was acquitted at trial. After the trial, Governor McKinley stated, "The law was upheld as it should have been...but in this case at fearful cost.... Lynching cannot be tolerated in Ohio." View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06618
Subjects: Riots; Lynching; McKinley, William, 1843- 1901; Fayette County (Ohio); Courthouses
Places: Washington Court House (Ohio); Fayette County (Ohio)