Description: This photograph shows the front of the William Holmes McGuffey House, located in Oxford, Ohio. William Holmes McGuffey (1800-1873) was a Miami University faculty member in 1836 when he compiled the first edition of the McGuffey Eclectic Reader in this house. His Reader taught lessons in reading, spelling, and civic education by using memorable stories of honesty, hard work, thrift, personal respect, and moral and ethical standards alongside illustrative selections from literary works. The six-edition series increased in difficulty and was developed with the help of his brother Alexander Hamilton McGuffey. After the Civil War the Readers were the basic schoolbooks in thirty-seven states. By 1920 an estimated 122 million copies had been sold, reshaping American public school curriculum and becoming one of the nation's most influential publications. McGuffey built this brick home in 1833. In 1958, Miami University purchased it from the Wallace P. Roudebush family, and it was endowed by Emma Gould Blocker to serve as a museum of University history in honor of McGuffey's legacy. The museum opened to the public in 1960, and the house was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1966. This image of the McGuffey House was among the photographs produced by the Federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) between 1935 and 1943. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06390
Subjects: McGuffey, William Holmes, 1800-1873; Architecture--Ohio; Oxford (Ohio); McGuffey readers; United States. Work Progress Administration; National Historic Landmarks Program (U.S.)
Places: Oxford (Ohio); Butler County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows the John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge, which links Covington, Kentucky, with Cincinnati, Ohio. Formerly named the Covington-Cincinnati Bridge, the structure was the first Ohio River bridge linking the North and South after the Civil War. This view shows the bridge and downtown Cincinnati skyline. In 1846 the Kentucky General Assembly granted a charter to the founders of the Covington & Cincinnati Bridge Company, which hoped to build a bridge across the Ohio River that would connect the two cities. Cincinnati was a major metropolis by the 1850s, and Kentucky farmers and businessmen hoped to have an easier time transporting their goods to the city. For various reasons, many Ohioans were less enthusiastic. As a result of this opposition, the Ohio legislature did not grant the Covington & Cincinnati Bridge Company a charter to construct a bridge in 1849. Despite these hurdles, the Covington & Cincinnati Bridge Company persevered, and in 1856 it signed civil engineer John A. Roebling (1806-1869) to construct a suspension bridge. Construction began that year, but it stopped the next year due to the Panic of 1857. Construction resumed during the American Civil War when Ohio and federal government authorities realized the need for a bridge to supply the soldiers operating in the South. Due to the high inflation during the war, Roebling had to pay his workers in gold, and shortages forced him to import some construction materials from England. Workers completed a small footbridge across the Ohio River on September 24, 1865, nearly six months after the war ended. This initial bridge gave construction workers an easier means of stringing the cables. The Covington & Cincinnati Suspension Bridge was opened to pedestrian traffic on December 1, 1866, but its formal opening occurred a month later. To help offset the construction cost (approximately $1.8 million), the company established tollbooths at both ends of the bridge and charged three cents per person to walk across the span. At the time of its completion, it was the world’s longest suspension bridge (a span of 1,619 feet. When the Ohio River flooded in 1937, the Covington & Cincinnati Suspension Bridge was the only bridge that remained open along the Ohio River between Steubenville, Ohio, and Cairo, Illinois, a distance of more than eight hundred miles. The bridge was privately operated until Kentucky purchased it in 1953. In 1982 the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet officially renamed it the “John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge.” It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1975. The Covington & Cincinnati Suspension Bridge is regarded as a prototype for Roebling’s next project, which would become his most famous structure. The New York Bridge Company hired him to design and build a bridge over the East River that would connect Brooklyn and Manhattan. Roebling, however, would not live to see the completion of the world-famous Brooklyn Bridge. He contracted tetanus after being injured on the work site and died in 1869. His son Washington Roebling, a civil engineer, and daughter-in-law Emily Warren Roebling supervised the construction and completion of the bridge, which opened in 1883. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06656
Subjects: John A. Roebling Bridge (Cincinnati, Ohio, and Covington, Ky.); Suspension bridges; National Historic Landmarks Program (U.S.); Roebling, John Augustus, 1806-1869; Bridges; Ohio River
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows the John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge, which links Covington, Kentucky, with Cincinnati, Ohio. Formerly named the Covington-Cincinnati Bridge, the structure was the first Ohio River bridge linking the North and South after the Civil War. This view shows the bridge from the Kentucky side looking toward the downtown Cincinnati skyline. Clearly visible are the suspension cables and one of the bridge towers. In 1846 the Kentucky General Assembly granted a charter to the founders of the Covington & Cincinnati Bridge Company, which hoped to build a bridge across the Ohio River that would connect the two cities. Cincinnati was a major metropolis by the 1850s, and Kentucky farmers and businessmen hoped to have an easier time transporting their goods to the city. For various reasons, many Ohioans were less enthusiastic. As a result of this opposition, the Ohio legislature did not grant the Covington & Cincinnati Bridge Company a charter to construct a bridge in 1849. Despite these hurdles, the Covington & Cincinnati Bridge Company persevered, and in 1856 it signed civil engineer John A. Roebling (1806-1869) to construct a suspension bridge. Construction began that year, but it stopped the next year due to the Panic of 1857. Construction resumed during the American Civil War when Ohio and federal government authorities realized the need for a bridge to supply the soldiers operating in the South. Due to the high inflation during the war, Roebling had to pay his workers in gold, and shortages forced him to import some construction materials from England. Workers completed a small footbridge across the Ohio River on September 24, 1865, nearly six months after the war ended. This initial bridge gave construction workers an easier means of stringing the cables. The Covington & Cincinnati Suspension Bridge was opened to pedestrian traffic on December 1, 1866, but its formal opening occurred a month later. To help offset the construction cost (approximately $1.8 million), the company established tollbooths at both ends of the bridge and charged three cents per person to walk across the span. At the time of its completion, it was the world’s longest suspension bridge (a span of 1,619 feet). When the Ohio River flooded in 1937, the Covington & Cincinnati Suspension Bridge was the only bridge that remained open along the Ohio River between Steubenville, Ohio, and Cairo, Illinois, a distance of more than eight hundred miles. The bridge was privately operated until Kentucky purchased it in 1953. In 1982 the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet officially renamed it the “John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge.” It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1975. The Covington & Cincinnati Suspension Bridge is regarded as a prototype for Roebling’s next project, which would become his most famous structure. The New York Bridge Company hired him to design and build a bridge over the East River that would connect Brooklyn and Manhattan. Roebling, however, would not live to see the completion of the world-famous Brooklyn Bridge. He contracted tetanus after being injured on the work site and died in 1869. His son Washington Roebling, a civil engineer, and daughter-in-law Emily Warren Roebling supervised the construction and completion of the bridge, which opened in 1883. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06657
Subjects: John A. Roebling Bridge (Cincinnati, Ohio, and Covington, Ky.); Suspension bridges; National Historic Landmarks Program (U.S.); Roebling, John Augustus, 1806-1869; Bridges; Ohio River
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)
 

Description: Handwritten on reverse: "High School. Mt. Pleasant, O. Miller and Sons 436 Market St. Steubenville, Ohio." The village of Mount Pleasant is located about 20 miles southwest of Steubenville, Ohio. Most of the village has been designated a National Historic Landmark. More information is needed as to the status of this building. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B08F06_035_001
Subjects: High schools--Ohio; School buildings--Ohio; Jefferson County (Ohio)--History; National Historic Landmarks Program (U.S.); Architecture--Ohio--Pictorial works; Education; Ohio--History--Pictorial works; Federal Writers' Project
Places: Mount Pleasant (Ohio); Jefferson County (Ohio)
 

Description: This drawing depicts a view of Spring Grove Cemetery in Cincinnati, Ohio. Established in 1848, the Spring Grove Cemetery is the second largest in the United States, and it is designated as a National Historic Landmark. This drawing captures the essence of the cemetery's design: a beautifully landscaped and peaceful final resting place. The setting includes a pond, trees and plants, several obelisks, and statuary. In 1844, member of the Cincinnati Horticultural Society established a cemetery association with goal of creating a garden-like burial place. The association obtained its charter in 1845, and the first internment occurred in September of that year. Renowned landscape architect Adolph Strauch (1822-1883) designed the cemetery to harmonize with nature. Although his concept was considered radical at the time, it became a model for cemeteries in other cities. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL07030
Subjects: Spring Grove Cemetery & Arboretum (Cincinnati, Ohio); Cemeteries--Ohio; Cincinnati (Ohio); Funeral rites & ceremonies; Landscape design; Cincinnati Horticultural Society; National Historic Landmarks Program (U.S.)
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows the “Delta Queen,” a stern-wheel steamboat, traveling the Ohio River in Washington County, Ohio. The steamboat has four decks and a large smokestack emblazoned with the letter “G.” People are visible on all levels; some are standing on the deck while others are peering out of windows. “Delta Queen” was part of the Greene Line Fleet, founded in 1890 by veteran riverman Captain Gordon C. Greene (1862-1927), a native of Newport Landing, Ohio, and his wife, Captain Mary Becker Greene (1867-1949). Mary Becker Greene learned navigation and earned a pilot’s license (1896) and a master’s license (1897). She also was a hostess on the fleet’s steamboats. The couple had three sons, two of whom (Chris and Tom) became steamboat captains. Based in Cincinnati, the fleet traveled primarily on the Ohio River, transporting freight between the east and west. In the 1920s, as railroads took over most freight transport, Greene Line Steamers survived by building larger and more modern steamships, limiting their transport to shorter trade routes, and by pioneering the business of passenger pleasure cruises. The Greene family launched packets for tours on the Ohio River and its tributaries. After Gordon Greene died in 1927, Mary Becker Greene managed the business along with Chris and Tom. Chris died in 1944, and his mother died in 1949 aboard the “Delta Queen,” leaving Tom in charge of the family business. The “Delta Queen” had been in regular service on the West Coast from 1927, the date of its first voyage, until 1940, when the U.S. Navy requisitioned it for service as a receiving ship for naval reservists until the government’s lease expired. After Pearl Harbor, however, the Navy again used the steamboat on the West Coast, this time as a floating hospital in the San Francisco area. The "Delta Queen" was retired from military service in August 1946. In December of that year Captain Tom Greene bought the “Delta Queen” from the War Shipping Administration and had it prepared for a month-long sea journey that began in mid-May 1947. Pulled by a tugboat, the steamboat traveled down the Pacific coast, through the Panama Canal, and on to New Orleans. From there it went to Pittsburgh for an overhaul and then began passenger service in June 1948. When Captain Tom Greene died suddenly in 1950, his widow, Letha, took over the company, but financial hard times forced the company to go out of business after a few years. The “Delta Queen” changed hands several times, but in 1989 it was designated a National Historic Landmark. It also is on the National Register of Historic Places. The “Delta Queen” now docks on the Tennessee River in Chattanooga, where it has a new life as a floating hotel. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06660
Subjects: Delta Queen (Steamboat); Steamboats; Ohio River; Tourism; National Register of Historic Places; National Historic Landmarks Program (U.S.)
Places: Washington County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows the “Delta Queen,” a stern-wheel steamboat, traveling the Ohio River in Washington County, Ohio. The steamboat has four decks and a large smokestack. People are visible on all levels of the boat. “Delta Queen” was part of the Greene Line Fleet, founded in 1890 by veteran riverman Captain Gordon C. Greene (1862-1927), a native of Newport Landing, Ohio, and his wife, Captain Mary Becker Greene (1867-1949). Mary Becker Greene learned navigation and earned a pilot’s license (1896) and a master’s license (1897). She also was a hostess on the fleet’s steamboats. The couple had three sons, two of whom (Chris and Tom) became steamboat captains. Based in Cincinnati, the fleet traveled primarily on the Ohio River, transporting freight between the east and west. In the 1920s, as railroads took over most freight transport, Greene Line Steamers survived by building larger and more modern steamships, limiting their transport to shorter trade routes, and by pioneering the business of passenger pleasure cruises. The Greene family launched packets for tours on the Ohio River and its tributaries. After Gordon Greene died in 1927, Mary Becker Greene managed the business along with Chris and Tom. Chris died in 1944, and his mother died in 1949 aboard the “Delta Queen,” leaving Tom in charge of the family business. The “Delta Queen” had been in regular service on the West Coast from 1927, the date of its first voyage, until 1940, when the U.S. Navy requisitioned it for service as a receiving ship for naval reservists until the government’s lease expired. After Pearl Harbor, however, the Navy again used the steamboat on the West Coast, this time as a floating hospital in the San Francisco area. The "Delta Queen" was retired from military service in August 1946. In December of that year Captain Tom Greene bought the “Delta Queen” from the War Shipping Administration and had it prepared for a month-long sea journey that began in mid-May 1947. Pulled by a tugboat, the steamboat traveled down the Pacific coast, through the Panama Canal, and on to New Orleans. From there it went to Pittsburgh for an overhaul and then began passenger service in June 1948. When Captain Tom Greene died suddenly in 1950, his widow, Letha, took over the company, but financial hard times forced the company to go out of business after a few years. The “Delta Queen” changed hands several times, but in 1989 it was designated a National Historic Landmark. It also is on the National Register of Historic Place. The “Delta Queen” now docks on the Tennessee River in Chattanooga, where it has a new life as a floating hotel. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06661
Subjects: Delta Queen (Steamboat); Steamboats; Ohio River; Tourism; National Register of Historic Places; National Historic Landmarks Program (U.S.)
Places: Washington County (Ohio)