Ohio History Journal

THE OHIO HISTORY CONFERENCE

In order to formally launch the new and enlarged

program of the Ohio State Archaeological and Historical

Society, particularly as it concerns local and county his-

torical societies, colleges and universities and juvenile

interests, a state-wide Conference was called for Friday,

February 7, to which all members of the Society and all

others interested were invited. Special invitations were

extended to all the local historical societies in the state

and to the colleges and universities of the state which

have shown an interest in the work. The Conference

was planned primarily as a symposium. Dr. Benjamin

F. Shambaugh, Superintendent of the State Historical

Society of Iowa, a man of broad and successful exper-

ience in state and local Historical Society work, was

secured as the principal speaker to open the discussion.

The attendance was very representative of the State as

a whole. Four state-wide organizations and commis-

sions interested in the history of the State were officially

represented, as were ten of the local historical societies

and nine of the colleges and universities of the state.

Many expressed themselves as favoring an annual

conference on Ohio history and historical interests, and

plans are being made for a similar conference next year.

In order to make available the proceedings of this

Conference to the members of the State Society who

could not be present, and to other interested persons, it

was deemed expedient to publish the afternoon's pro-

(411)

412      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

ceedings in full, and this we are presenting in this pub-

lication.

HARLOW LINDLEY,

Curator of History.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE OHIO HISTORY

CONFERENCE

CALLED BY THE OHIO STATE ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL

SOCIETY, HELD AT THE MUSEUM AND LIBRARY BUILDING,

COLUMBUS, OHIO, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 1930

AFTERNOON SESSION

The Conference was called to order by Mr. Arthur

C. Johnson, Sr., president of the Ohio State Archaeolog-

ical and Historical Society, who greeted the representa-

tives present as follows: "I am glad to welcome you

here today to this meeting which, because it may be of

a more or less technical nature and because I am merely

the president of this organization, I am not supposed

to know very much about. However, I am glad to wel-

come you here. I am glad you have come to hear Dr.

Shambaugh. I think it is going to be very worth while.

I now want to turn the meeting over to our Director,

Mr. Shetrone, who may have something to say to you

and who will then introduce the speaker of the after-

noon."

MR. SHETRONE: Ladies and Gentlemen, I think there

is no doubt but what this is an auspicious occasion and

I venture to assume that as time passes we shall look

back upon this day and think of it as the first Ohio

Historical Conference. The aims and purpose of this

meeting will be apparent as the meeting progresses, and

since time is the principal factor, as I see it, I shall

not consume more of it but shall proceed immediately to

(413)

414      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

introduce the speaker of the occasion, Dr. Benjamin

Franklin Shambaugh, and I will merely give you a few

of his titles, sufficient to enable you to judge of his ability

for this occasion: Superintendent of the State His-

torical Society of Iowa, Editor of the Iowa Journal of

History and Politics, Head of the Department of Po-

litical Science State University of Iowa, Editor of the

publications of the State Historical Society of Iowa,

and President of the American Political Science Asso-

ciation.

Dr. Shambaugh. (Applause.)

ADDRESS OF DR. BENJAMIN F. SHAMBAUGH*

Ladies and Gentlemen: You know from the remarks

of the introducing chairman and from my conversations

with Dr. Lindley and others I am not sure as to whether

this is a birthday or a revival or a resurrection or a re-

incarnation, but I understand it is something of that

sort and I suppose the real nature of the occasion in the

mind of each one of you will be determined by your

creed so that each one may call it whatever he desires.

But I understand that you are now engaged in an effort

to--shall I say revive or resurrect or re-incarnate or

give birth to a movement to do something more for state

and local history in Ohio than has been done in the past.

Now, a great deal, of course, has already been done.

I shall make my remarks not in the direction of an

address nor a speech but along the lines of what we will

call business, for I think that is what you are here for.

* Dr. Shambaugh's address and all the remarks and discussions were

entirely extempore, and this report is based upon the stenographic notes of

the official reporter.

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  415

I will take up the problems of a state historical society,

or let me broaden it, the problems of historical societies.

There are several types of historical societies, de-

pending upon the emphasis which is placed by the or-

ganization upon its activities. There are historical so-

cieties that may be referred to as museums because the

emphasis is placed upon the museum feature, a museum

of historical, archaeological and natural history mate-

rials. There is another type of historical society which is

largely library with the emphasis placed upon library and

you will find that the institution maintains and builds

up a very large library almost to the exclusion or the

neglect of the museum. Then there is a third type of

historical society, namely, the organization that devotes

itself to research and publication. Such an organiza-

tion devotes its funds and its energies to research work

for the compiling and writing of history and to the pub-

lication thereof.

Now, all of these activities, that is, the three activi-

ties, are proper for a historical society. It is rarely,

however, the case that any one organization emphasizes

all three of these lines to the same extent. The problems

of the state historical society might be briefly summed

up by saying the problem of collecting and maintaining

a museum, the problem of collecting and maintaining a

library of history, the problem of research and of pub-

lishing the results of research.

But I want to discuss the activities or the problems

of historical societies a little more in detail and perhaps

a little more intimately. Now, there are many problems

for at least a state historical society, although the one

underlying all others and the one determining really the

416      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

trend of the society, its activities and its functions, is

the problem of clearly defining its purpose and of def-

initely outlining its functions.

I take it that the purpose of a state historical society,

at least, is to reveal to the people of the present genera-

tion the history of the commonwealth. I am speaking

of state historical societies and activities within the

borders of the state. The greater purpose of a state his-

torical society is to reveal to the people of the present

generation the history of the commonwealth and to pass

that history on to future generations.

Now, the functions of a historical society, the ac-

tivities of a historical society in carrying out this pur-

pose may be indicated under some four or five heads.

And what I say relates not only to the state historical

society but to local historical societies as well. I want

you to know that I have in mind not only a state his-

torical society such as the Ohio State Archaeological and

Historical Society, but the local historical societies.

I say the first function of a society of this kind is to

search for, to discover the materials of state and local

history. So the first moment, so to speak, in the activi-

ties of a historical society is that of discovery.

Second, it is the function of a state historical society

and of a local historical society to collect and preserve

the materials of state and local history, so the second

moment in the activities of the State historical society

is that of collection and preservation.

The third function is that of research or, if I may

use language that is not so academic, the compilation,

the writing of state and local history.  So the third

moment in the activities of a state historical society is

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  417

that of research, of compilation, of writing state and

local history.

The fourth function is that of publication, of broad-

casting, so to speak, the results of research in the form

of publications, so the fourth moment is that of publi-

cation.

Then there is a fifth function or activity which has

to do with connecting, I may say, the work of a state

historical society with all other agencies that may be

used in connection with the performance of the four

functions that I have just mentioned.

Now, let's take up these functions a little more in

detail. First let us consider the matter of searching for,

of finding, of discovering the materials of state and local

history. This work can be done best perhaps by expert

collectors; in the field of archaeology, for example, which

is a part of the field, by expert researchers. But ob-

serve that while this is a field in which the expert may

operate to great advantage, it is a field in which the

layman, the person who is not an expert, the person

who does not call himself a scientific archaeologist or a

scientific historian, can do work as well, and very good

work, so that in one sense anybody who is interested

in state and local history can himself be a real, a genu-

ine, a very important discoverer of materials.

Anyone in any community, however humble, may as-

sist in the work of discovering papers, pamphlets, docu-

ments, archaeological materials and everything else that

goes to make up the mass of what we call the materials

of state and local history, and especially is it possible for

the local historical society, the historical society that

confines its activities to a particular community, to a

Vol. XXXIX--27.

418      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

county or a township or a city, especially is it possible

for such an organization to play a very important part

in the discovery of historical materials. And so, while

the state historical society may take the lead in this mat-

ter of discovering the materials of state and local his-

tory, local historical societies and individuals as well

may not only assist, they will become indeed the great

agencies through which the state historical society will

operate.

Now, someone may say, "Well, isn't it the business

of a state historical society to do all this work of discov-

ery?" They can't do it. It is absolutely impossible.

They do not know the local communities. They do not

know the individuals. They can't possibly inform them-

selves with regard to the sources of information, of data

to be collected. So that, as a matter of fact, the state

historical society must work with and to a very large

extent through local historical societies and individuals

who are interested in this work.

Second, with regard to collecting--here again, while

the state historical society may take the lead in col-

lecting archaeological material as you have done, for

example, here in Ohio most admirably, there is no rea-

son why every local historical society shouldn't make a

collection of this kind and there is no reason why the

local historical society as well as the state society should

not maintain a museum, a collection of such materials.

There is no reason why the local historical society should

not collect newspapers, books, pamphlets, documents,

letters and so forth and have a local collection. In fact,

it would be absolutely impossible for any one institution,

any one state institution to collect all the materials of

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  419

state and local history and bring them together in any

one place. So if you are going to really get all of the

sources, or as far as possible the sources of state and

local history together and preserve them, you must have

the combined activities of a state historical society, your

local historical societies and your individual collectors.

Let no one despise the work of the individual col-

lector. He may simply regard himself as a collector.

He will probably say he is not a historian, but some of

the most valuable work that has been done in the collec-

tion and preservation of materials of state and local so-

cieties has been done by individuals who have built up

individual private collections. I would not say to any-

one, "Do not build up a private collection but put every-

thing at once into the rooms of the state archaeological

society." Of course, I know full well what the ultimate

end is, the ultimate resting place of every local collection.

It is some larger collection like that of a state historical

society. But let the individual for the time being make

his collection, for ultimately it will find its way into a

larger library, into a larger museum, into a larger col-

lection.

Now, as to the third function, that of research, or,

to use more popular language, the function of writing

state and local history. Here again I think the state

historical society should take a lead. It should indicate

what should be done in the matter of research, what

should be compiled, what should be written, and it

should be very active in this field. But again I would

say that the local historical society may cooperate in

this work and may do a great deal. I know there are

highbrows who say, "What can some of these old duf-

420      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

fers do in the matter of writing history? They are not

really historians." Now, let me tell you that some of

the most valuable compilations that are made of state

and local history are made by members of local his-

torical societies or by individuals for the members of

local historical societies. They leave us their reminis-

cences, their recollections, they write articles for the

newspapers and so on and so forth.

Let not the worth of the local historical society in

compiling and writing local histories be overlooked and

let us not for a moment think that the writing of history

is to be done exclusively by the expert historians. You

know the expert historians to a very considerable extent

in the matters of state and local history rely upon the

work of individuals who do not call themselves his-

torians and upon the publications of local historical so-

cieties where they engage in such work. So I may con-

clude this particular point by saying, let no one despise

the work of the local historical society and of the indi-

vidual local historian, in the compilation of state and

local history.

Then finally let us consider the problem of publica-

tion. Of what value is it? Of what good is it for a

state historical society to build up a great library, to

collect archaeological materials and so on, and of what

value are all these researches that may be carried on on

the side if they are not published? The purpose of a

historical society is to disseminate history. That is the

ultimate goal, not simply to collect it in some one place

and to preserve it but to disseminate it as well to the

present generation and through publications, of course,

also to future generations.

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  421

Now the matter of publication is a work which

the local historical societies and individuals may take

part in. Some local historical societies issue small pam-

phlet publications. Others do a great deal of publish-

ing in the newspapers. If the articles that are written get

into the newspapers they will find their way to libraries

and collections and be used by the more ambitious his-

torians. The point I want to make is that to successfully

perform the functions of a state historical society, that

of discovering, of collecting, of preserving, of writing,

of publishing state and local history, there must be co-

operation between the state historical society and local

historical societies and individuals.

There are other contacts that should be made. There

are patriotic organizations, so-called, or hereditary or-

ganizations such as Sons of the American Revolution,

Daughters of the American Revolution, Colonial Dames,

all of which are interested in history. They do a great

deal. And their work should be encouraged, except

where they make a "black list," and they should be in-

vited to engage in the discovery, to engage in collection,

to engage in preservation and to engage in the publica-

tion of history.

There are other activities in which a state historical

society may very well engage. For example, the state

historical society may well make a survey of the his-

torical resources of the state, locate all of the arch-

aeological materials, locate the Indian mounds, locate his-

torical spots, locate private collections, locate libraries

in which there are materials, and make a survey of the

resources of the state and publish it.

The state historical society may take the lead in the

422      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

marking of historical sites. Here again the cooperation

of the local historical society, the cooperation of pa-

triotic organizations and the cooperation of individuals

is not only to be encouraged, it is really absolutely

necessary.

Again, the state historical society will naturally con-

nect up with the educational institutions, with universi-

ties and colleges in the state and with the public schools.

I will not go into the details of the program of coopera-

tion with the public schools. That would take too long.

But a very great deal may be done in the dissemination

of the facts of state and local history by cooperating

with the public schools.

Now, let me say a word about the cooperation with

colleges and universities. These are regarded as leaders

in education in the state. I am not referring, of course,

to any one state but to every state. There is every

reason in the world why these colleges and universities

should cooperate with the state historical society. There

is every reason in the world why the departments of his-

tory in these colleges and universities should cooperate

with the historical society. There is every reason in the

world why the graduate school of the state university,

for example, should cooperate with the state historical

society.

In this matter of the furtherance of state and local

history, in the matter of discovering materials, of col-

lecting them and preserving them, of writing history

and its publication, there is no place for jealousy among

institutions. If we may use the familiar language of

an admirable quotation from an Admiral, "There is

glory enough for all." There is glory enough for all.

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  423

And so there is no reason why one organization or in-

stitution should be jealous of the activities of another

but there is every reason, on the other hand, for coopera-

tion.

I may illustrate what I have said by some more or

less personal observations. I was not invited to come

here to tell you what to do and I am sure I was not in-

vited to come here to tell you what the State Historical

Society of Iowa is doing, but if I wish to illustrate, if I

should undertake to illustrate the various points that I

would, if the illustrations were to have any value and be

something more than pure theoretical illustrations, they

must be very naturally from one's own personal ex-

perience.

In the State of Iowa we have in the State Library a

very large historical library. It is put in that depart-

ment of the State Library which is known as the His-

torical Department of Iowa. This is at Des Moines.

The Historical Department in connection with the State

Library of Des Moines maintains a museum of archaeo-

logical materials, of historical records, of paintings of

distinguished men and women in the history of Iowa

and some natural history objects. At Iowa City the

State Historical Society is engaged largely in research

and publication. Now, you see here the functions are

somewhat divided. How they came to be divided in

Iowa could be easily explained historically, but it is

not necessary to go into. But these various organiza-

tions cooperate.  At Des Moines they maintain a

museum and a most complete collection of newspapers

and other material. At Iowa City the State Histori-

424      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

cal Society maintains a research library and carries

on research and publication.

In Iowa the local historical societies, they are not

very numerous, some twenty we will say, are auxiliary

members of the State Historical Society. We cooperate

with them; they cooperate with us. When a local his-

torical society has a meeting it usually sends to the State

Historical Society for a speaker. When the local his-

torical society wants advice with regard to the matter of

collecting or preserving or publishing it writes to the

State Historical Society. And from time to time a meet-

ing is held, a conference like this, where representatives

from local historical societies meet with the representa-

tives of the State Historical Society.

In the matter of collection, local historical societies

collect books, pamphlets and manuscripts and museum

material and usually these are housed in the public

library of the community and there is cooperation with

the public library. In a few instances the local historical

society issues a publication, a quarterly, or a publication

that is issued at irregular intervals. More often the

reminiscences and the recollections of the pioneers and

old settlers are published in the local newspapers and so

you see this work of cooperation in the field of state and

local history goes on.

I would like to emphasize particularly the matter of

publication. It is, of course, necessary to discover the

materials. It is necessary to collect them. It is neces-

sary to preserve them. But what is the use of building

up a great library or a great museum, a great collection,

unless it is made accessible to all the people of the com-

monwealth? Now, the only way that these collections

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  425

of history can be made accessible is through publication.

But, someone will say, "Well, if you have a museum

and a library, aren't the doors open to anyone who

wishes to come in?" Yes, but how many people can

come? Relatively few after all, relatively few. And

furthermore, how can any ordinary individual who is not

a research historian or is not a scientific archaeologist,

really find out anything when he enters the museum and

the library? They don't know anything about it. Oh,

they may see a few objects around; they may see a few

books on the shelf, but that doesn't mean very much.

Now, I submit the only way to get this material to

the masses of the people is through publication, such

publication for example as has been carried on here at

this institution. But I would suggest that an organiza-

tion like this could have a series of publications. The

State Historical Society of Iowa has a quarterly maga-

zine which is devoted for the most part to the briefer

monographs on Iowa history. I say monographs for

most of the contributions to the quarterly publication

are of a scientific character. The Iowa Journal History

of Politics, now in the 27th or 28th volume, I have for-

gotten which, is a great reservoir of scientific mono-

graphs in the field of Iowa history.

But we shouldn't stop there. There is no reason why

state and local history shouldn't be made as readable as

the Saturday Evening Post. And so the State Histori-

cal Society of Iowa has for five or six years been issuing

a monthly publication called Palimpsest, that contains

no footnote references, no documentation of the arti-

cles or anything of this sort, but it is filled with short

articles of Iowa history written in a popular style,

426      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

popular in the good sense of the work, readable, so

that anybody who can read would be interested in going

through the articles in this magazine.

Some say, "Well, you know this scientific work, it

can't be made popular, you have either got to be scien-

tific or, of course, if you want to be popular you cheapen

your work." Away with all such nonsense. There is

no reason why the history of a state or of the local com-

munity or of the nation or of the world shouldn't be put

in such form, written in such style that anybody and

everybody who can read at all will know what they are

writing about and will be interested in the publication,

and of course those of you who are expert historians and

who follow the trend of historical work know that just

at the present time even among the academic there is a

wave, if I may put it that way, or a movement back to

McCauley, if you please. So a monthly magazine de-

voted to Iowa history issued once a month is read.

You know, very few members of the State Historical

Society ever cut the leaves of our Quarterly. So re-

cently we have trimmed all edges so that no one can tell

whether it is being used or not. But I know from my

conversation with the members of the State Historical

Society, about 1400, very few of them ever cut the leaves

of the quarterly magazine and I wouldn't either if I

were in their position. Here is monographed, scientific

compilation of interest only to the, shall I say technical,

scientific historian; absolutely necessary, a great reser-

voir of more or less accurate history for the historians

of all time. But the Palimpsest, which is the title of

the monthly magazine, is read by everybody, every mem-

ber of the Historical Society. I have not yet found a

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  427

member of the Historical Society who doesn't read that

little monthly publication every month.

Now, we are really accomplishing something. We

are really carrying the history of the commonwealth and

of the local communities to the people of the state.

Those are only two of the publications. There is a

Biographical Series, a series of volumes devoted to the

biographies of the leading men and women in the history

of Iowa.

There is another series, the Iowa Economic His-

tory Series. A number of volumes are already pub-

lished, history of road legislation, taxation, all that sort

of thing, railroads and so on.

And then there is a Social History Series dealing

with the history of social problems of the commonwealth.

Then there is another series entitled "Applied His-

tory." It is devoted to the application of the factual

history to the solution of present day problems, political,

social and economic, chiefly political. And in that series

you will find such a volume as County Government and

Administration of Iowa. Just now we have in press

two volumes, Municipal Government and Administra-

tion of Iowa.--Applied history of present day problems.

Historians can't object to this. They can't say we

are getting outside our field because as a matter of fact,

if you will look into the class rooms of the historians in

your university here you will see that they are dealing

largely with contemporary history, governmental prob-

lems, political matters and that sort of thing. They are

simply in step with us or we in step with them, I don't

know which; it makes no difference, we are going along

together.

428      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

Another series is Chronicles of the World War.

Then still another series which will be called the

Miscellaneous Series, devoted to political history, vol-

umes of political history such as the History of Sena-

torial Elections in Iowa and then volumes along the line

of history of the religious groups such as the Quakers

in Iowa, and the Amana Community, which is a re-

ligious community, and we are just about to put to press

a volume on the Mormons in Iowa, and then there are

other volumes in this Miscellaneous Series along the

line of nationalities such as the history of the Hollanders

in Iowa, the history of the English in Iowa, etc.

In other words, the whole field of state and local his-

tory is mapped out and contributions in the way of pub-

lications are made to the various series as rapidly as

funds and other resources will admit.

I say the old time idea of simply having a collection

somewhere in a fine building is not sufficient today. Not

enough people can come and see or come and read. Now,

suppose someone comes. Suppose you have got right

here a library of a couple of hundred thousand volumes

on state and local history. Some man comes in from

Cincinnati. He wants to know something about the his-

tory of his county. How is he going to find that? He

can't find it. He is just simply lost.

It is for the organization to sift the most important

materials in these collections, put them into formal pub-

lication and then disseminate them throughout the state.

First of all a publication should go into every college

library in the state. Every public library in the state,

and I include among these the college and university

libraries, should be made an official society. In that way

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  429

you are building up a local community library of his-

tory in every town that has a public library and you

make it accessible to practically all of the people of the

state in that way. Anyone who has access to the public

library will have access to the publications of the his-

torical society.

Now, you see, to put all this in a nut shell, it is the

problem or the function of a state historical society in

cooperation with the local historical society, in coopera-

tion with libraries, in cooperation with the colleges and

universities, in cooperation with the patriotic organiza-

tions, to discover and collect the materials of history, to

sift the grain, the real valuable grain or facts from all

this material, put it in the form of publication, dissemi-

nate it throughout the state. Of course, one of the agen-

cies of dissemination will be the membership of the his-

torical society. Any individual who is interested enough

in history to want these publications should be able to

get them  through publications.  So much in a very

hasty and general way for the functions of historical

societies.

Now, there are other functions besides the activities

of an organization. There is the problem of the or-

ganization itself. There is no one standard form of

organization for a state historical society. And I sub-

mit that it depends not so much upon the form of or-

ganization as it does upon the men who govern and

administer the same.

Of course, in every historical society, like the one

you have here, you have a board of officers, or shall I

say a staff of officers, and a governing board of trustees

or whatever it may be called. Now, it is very important

430      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

that the officers and the trustees, if I may use the ex-

pression, it is very important that they understand and

know their place and their functions. It is the business

of the officers and the board to govern. It is the busi-

ness of the staff of the organization, the director,

the librarian, the curators, the heads of departments and

divisions, it is their business to administer. We should

all keep that in mind. I am not giving this as a criti-

cism or anything of that sort and I am simply speaking

from my own personal experience covering some thirty

years in connection with state historical society work.

The governing board should govern, not administer.

I recall some years ago a president of the State His-

torical Society of Iowa asked a distinguished citizen if

he would not allow himself to be elected to the governing

board. He said, "Well, what is there to do? What am

I to do as a member of the board?" He said, "You are

to come to the meetings and approve of the recommen-

dations of the superintendent." Well, that is right. And

when the governing board cannot approve of the recom-

mendations of a superintendent, or to put it this way,

when the governing board cannot follow the program

of the administrative staff, then they should change the

administrative staff. It is the business of the board and

officers to govern. It is the business of the director, of

the superintendent and the staff to administer and lay

before the board for their approval policies, budget, etc.

There are other problems of historical societies.

Perhaps because I have been interested in this myself, I

want to speak particularly of the cooperation between

the state historical society and the state university as

the most magnificent. I can't think of anything that

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  431

contains more promise for effective work than just that

sort of thing. But I know it isn't done.

I will just tell you a little something out of my own

experience. This illustrates the point. I know what the

whole situation is, irrespective. But in Iowa the State

Historical Society was organized in 1857 and the law

read, "Under the auspices of the state university."

Well, it wasn't very long, I mean after a few years, until

the university and historical society had a quarrel, with

the result that the historical society withdrew from the

buildings and the campus of the university and remained

off the campus for a number of years. There was no

cooperation between the department of history and the

State Historical Society covering a long period of years.

I remember when I was a student at the university and

I spoke to some of the men in the Department of His-

tory: "Oh, there is a sort of junk heap down here some-

where"; highbrow attitude, you know, as though it was

of no value whatever. And I spoke to the curators, that

is, members of the governing board of the historical so-

ciety: "Oh, well, there are a lot of highbrows over

there on the campus." Later on they came together,

not by law, but by agreement. That is cooperation.

The Historical Society occupies one of the university

buildings, that is, a part of one of the university build-

ings on the campus and members of the faculty cooper-

ate with the Historical Society; the Historical Society

cooperates with the faculty.

Only recently, for example, the graduate college ap-

propriated out of its funds for research work seven

thousand dollars to assist the Historical Society in the

compilation of this work to which I referred, County

432      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

Government and Administration in Iowa; seven thou-

sand dollars out of the funds of the graduate college of

the university to help out the research. Well, why not?

What is the graduate college for but for the purpose of

furthering research in the commonwealth of Iowa?

Why not do it along the lines of local history as well as

along the lines of national history?

Hook up two great organizations like the Ohio

Archaeological and Historical Society and the Ohio State

University and you have got a tremendous power for

history. And here is a great field for graduate students,

the field of state and local history. Why isn't it just as

important to write the monograph on a town in Ohio

as it is on a town in New England? Why isn't it just

as important to write up the history of elections, say

senatorial elections in Ohio as it is to write up the history

of some early election in a New England town? It is

just as important.

And this suggests another series of publications

which the Historical Society has just started, which we

call Iowa Monograph Series, a series in which mono-

graphs are published and I anticipate that most of the

monographs published in that series will be written as

doctors' dissertations in the graduate school of the State

University of Iowa. All the monographs will not come

from there. They will come from other colleges as well.

Cooperate with these men, these professors of his-

tory. Have them all come in and help in the work of

research and other activities. It is absolutely practical.

You don't have to have an organization. All you have

to have is just fellowship and sort of a gentleman's

agreement that you will work together.

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  433

This leads me to the conclusion. My conclusion is

rather an expression of feeling. You know, whenever

I come to a meeting of this kind where I see men and

women from the local communities interested in local

history and the officers of a state historical society meet-

ing together, I am stirred by feeling such as is stirred

at the sight of the headwaters of some mighty river, for

here, right here in the local communities are the real

sources of history.  The real sources of history are

right here in the local communities, not at Washing-

ton. Where is the nation?   Where is this nation of

ours? I don't know. But I tell you where I can put

my finger on something that is, a local community and

the individual. The nation is made up of these. It is

the sum total of all local communities in this country,

of all states, of all towns, of all townships, of all local

places like ours. These are the real sources of history.

Now, I hadn't intended to talk so long because I

wanted to leave plenty of time for the rest of the pro-

gram, whatever it may be, and for questions and dis-

cussions.

CHAIRMAN SHETRONE: Yes, we have a tentative

plan. We don't like for you to stop there. We would

like for you to keep on a while. (Applause.)

Dr. Shambaugh's presentation of the problems, func-

tions and possibilities of the historical society is so ad-

mirable that I intend leaving the voicing of the reaction,

which I know all of us feel, to one of our representatives

who is better fitted than I am to comment on it.

There is one thought that comes to my mind in the

nature of a change, a most gratifying one as I see it. A

few years ago I should have felt very much out of place

Vol. XXXIX--28.

434      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

participating in the program of a historical meeting. I

don't feel that way so much today. And I think that is

due to the fact that we are coming to have a changed con-

ception of what history means, and I know of no better

crystallization of this thought than what was said re-

cently at the annual meeting of the American Historical

Association at Durham a few weeks ago by Dr. James

Harvey Robinson, who said something like this, "What

we used to think of as pre-history, that is archaeology,

we now recognize as honest-to-God history," and from

that I have the thought that possibly in the study of his-

tory heretofore, and I know that that was true of the

manner in which history came to me, we really had been

reading only a portion of the book beginning perhaps

somewhere over in the middle and reading the latter

chapters without really knowing what was contained in

the earlier chapters of the book. And that was no one's

fault for the simple reason that we did not possess the

information that lay in those mute relics, those uninten-

tional records of the earlier chapters of human history,

chapters which the pre-historian, the archaeologist, is

now busy in translating for us. And I can even con-

ceive of such a thing as not saying "The Ohio Arch-

aeological and Historical Society," because history has

got to be so comprehensive of all of these things, arch-

aeology particularly, that when we say the Ohio His-

torical Society we are speaking for archaeology as well.

We are simply going back and picking up those early

chapters of history.

And this brings us now to a definite application of

what we have heard in our own program, and I might

simply refer very briefly to a single paragraph from a

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  435

story printed in the Columbus Dispatch recently, a news

story of the new program of this society in which we

read, "The Ohio Archaeological and Historical Society

has a background of almost a half century of achieve-

ment, resulting in outstanding confidence and good will

on the part of the public. The impetus accruing to this

society from the proposed program should carry it a long

way to a realization of its aspirations."

And that program, briefly, is this: The program is

designed to place the society on a plane of efficiency equal

to that attained by the outstanding museums of the coun-

try and has these ideals: cooperation with and service to

the public schools of the state through superintendents

and teachers and through cooperation with 4-H clubs

and other organizations interested along that line; the

building up of a large membership and the securing of

endowments and benefactions; and perhaps more im-

portant than any other, close cooperation with the county

and local historical societies of Ohio, assisting and en-

couraging those already in existence and perhaps estab-

lishing them where they do not exist.

We have a number of representatives present today

who have had broad experience and have given lots of

thought to this matter of historical societies. Time is an

important consideration, and whatever is said must of

necessity be brief.

We should like to have first a brief discussion of the

program as this Society sees it and then following that a

discussion from any or all of you who may wish to par-

ticipate; and first of all particularly for the purpose of

expressing an appreciation of the fine talk that we have

436      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

heard, I should like to call on Mr. C. B. Galbreath, our

secretary, editor and librarian.

SECRETARY  GALBREATH: Mr. Chairman, distin-

guished guests and friends: I have listened with absorb-

ing interest to the relation of what has been done by one

of the outstanding historical societies of this country

from its able and distinguished superintendent. Our

Curator of History is to be congratulated upon invei-

gling Dr. Shambaugh to come all the way from Iowa to

give us this very interesting and inspiring address. I am

sure that we shall all leave this meeting with a higher

appreciation of the large opportunity that is before us.

I was told before coming to this meeting that five

minutes would be granted to me to speak on the campaign

that is before us. I expected our able Director to give

his audience something of this plan of campaign but he

has modestly somewhat sidestepped that. However, we

are inaugurating the campaign, and in order not to over-

step the limits of my time, I have prepared to say to you

what will take me six and one-fourth minutes, so I am

taking one and one-fourth minutes more than the Di-

rector granted me.

While our constitution makes the Director of the So-

ciety the prime leader in all campaigns for membership

and financial support, I need not say on this occasion that

the Secretary is cordially in favor of extending to the

friends of the Society the opportunity to lend assistance

in its growth and progress.

That, I take it, is the object of the campaign that is

formally inaugurated today. It is not to avert a crisis

that we are organizing. There is nothing of the "save oh

save" in the movement. Without boasting it can be said

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  437

that commendable progress has been made in the last ten

years. There is evidence of this on every hand. We are

a growing and going institution. We are building. And

we may not forget that we are building on the founda-

tions laid by those who have gone before: A. A. Graham,

Emilius O. Randall and Dr. William C. Mills, who pa-

tiently through long years of lean financial support set

the standards and prepared the way for the larger

achievement of today.

One of the objects of this campaign is to increase the

membership of the Society. This is of first importance.

Ways and means should be found to attain this end.

This campaign is not a begging or even an insistent

solicitation. It is a frank presentation of an opportunity.

Assuredly there is no presumption in the thought that

those who have the means and the disposition to give to a

worthy enterprise, may be interested in bringing to

early and larger fruition the aims and purposes of this

Society.

There are in Ohio nine hundred and seven million-

aires. To them and others able to give are extended the

opportunities of this campaign. It is not expected that

each of them will rush forward to give to this Society 15

per cent of his fortune. It is not expected that the great

majority will come forward to subscribe anything. There

are other institutions to be supported and endowed; col-

leges, universities, hospitals, churches, public libraries,

and institutions of scientific and industrial research. But

certainly in this large number of millionaires there are

some to whom the work here undertaken should have its

appeal.

Most men and women have at some time in their lives

438      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

worthy ambitions. Some wish to attain political fame,

to become congressman, governor, president. And this

is well. But not all can rise to this eminence, and those

who do are destined at best to bask but a little while in

popular favor.  Political fame is a transient flame.

Though more alluring it is less enduring than that which

comes from identification with a worthy cause and a

worthy institution with an assured future.

I trust I am not selfish in suggesting a specific aid

that may commend itself to those able to give. This

building still lacks a wing for its completion. Is there

among Ohio's men and women of wealth one person who

will come forward with $150,000 for that wing and thus

link his or her name for all the years to come with this

institution and this splendid building?

The Publications of this Society will soon reach forty

volumes. Each year adds a volume. An endowment of

$150,000 would yield sufficient income to continue these

publications through the years to come and entitle the

donor's name to appear on the title page of every Quar-

terly and of every bound volume. It seems that there

should be some one in Ohio who would wish to respond to

the opportunity.

Some of our mounds have been explored and re-

stored. Many of them remain untouched. Some of our

places of historic and scenic interest have been marked

and memorialized; but a number of the more important

still await attention. Goodly collections of specimens in

natural history and mineralogy have been made, and a

creditable newspaper library has been built up. In time,

mounds and scenic and early historic spots will be

marked, and natural history and mineral specimens and

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  439

early newspapers will all or almost all be collected. There

is a limit to all of these.

But who shall place a limit to the history of our Re-

public and the proud place that our state is still to hold in

the onward march through the generations yet to be?

The opportunity to aid in preserving, publishing and dis-

tributing that record is now before the fortunate and

patriotic sons of Ohio. (Applause.)

CHAIRMAN SHETRONE: In order to take care of the

growing importance of recording Ohio's history, this

Society recently has brought into its organization a man

who is eminently capable of that sort of work, a man

who has a varied experience in a neighboring state, a

man who has gone through what we might term a trial

of historical societies and of recording history, and I

should like to call on our Curator of the Department of

History, Dr. Lindley, for some remarks.

DR. LINDLEY: Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentle-

men: I first wish to read to you two of the responses to

our invitation to this conference which I received this

morning. You probably know that the President Gen-

eral of the National D. A. R. is an Ohio woman. I re-

ceived this telegram this morning:

"Invitation forwarded from Milford just received.

Regret exceedingly cannot be present as I am particu-

larly interested. Sorry. Signed, Mrs. Edith Hobart."

And from the Executive office of the State of Ohio:

"I regret it will not be possible for me to be at the dinner

you have arranged on February 7. I am much interested

in the project you discussed in your recent letter to me

and you have my entire good wish in this regard. How-

ever I must deny myself the pleasure of being with you

440      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

because of a long standing engagement to be in Spring-

field on that evening. With much appreciation of the

courtesy I beg to remain, sincerely yours, Myers Y.

Cooper."

There are many problems and subjects which might

profitably claim our attention, but the world was not

made in a single day and we cannot solve all of Ohio's

history problems in a single hour.

I would like to know more myself about the new Ash-

land County Historical Society's interesting program

which I have just recently learned something about. I

would like to know more about how the Washington

County Society has been carrying on a similar campaign

in increasing their membership in the last year. It would

be interesting for all of us, I am sure, to know more of

the plans of the Ohio Revolutionary Memorial Commis-

sion provided for by the last General Assembly, and also

the plans of the Ohio George Rogers Clark Memorial

Commission. I think we would like to know more of the

plans and work of the Western Reserve Historical So-

ciety, of the Firelands Society, of the Historical and

Philosophical Society of Ohio at Cincinnati, and various

other organizations. In a sense, all of these are our

problems, but it seems more practical to focus our atten-

tion for the short time at our command this afternoon,

only about an hour longer, on a very few of these which

immediately concern all of us, and I hope we will have

opportunities at similar occasions in the future to discuss

other problems of mutual interest.

The Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society

seems to have recently adopted as its slogan, "to con-

serve Ohio's historic, archaeologic and scenic heritage."

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  441

This is a worth while program and one which logically

belongs to such an organization. It seems to me our ideal

should be to make this institution the "court of last re-

sort" on all matters pertaining to the State of Ohio, and

the immediate region of which it is a part. This is our

opportunity, and our responsibility.

Experience in neighboring states has shown that such

conferences as this are quite worth while. They offer the

opportunity for the various historical agencies and or-

ganizations, representing various interests, to come to-

gether and approach a common interest from different

angles. I know of one such State Conference which is

sponsored by three state-wide historical agencies where

all interests are discussed and weighed.

It seems to me that we have three major issues to con-

sider here today:

I. The new enlarged program of the Ohio State

Archaeological and Historical Society which has already

been adopted by the Trustees of the Society and by the

Society at large. This has just been outlined to you and

includes specifically and directly--

(a) an increased membership

(b) an adequate endowment

(c) the organization of and cooperation with

local and regional historical societies

and--

(d) an enlarged educational program includ-

ing particularly a juvenile program.

This program is open for discussion by this Con-

ference.

II. What shall be the relationship of the State and

442      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

Local Historical Societies? Perhaps the experience of

other states along this line might be of some help to us. I

know of three or four states whose general problem is

similar to our own, which have already tried to solve this

problem by means of affiliated memberships, dual mem-

berships, etc., but the consensus of opinion seems to be

that the most satisfactory arrangement is for the state

organization to give all the help and guidance asked for

by local groups, since after all the state society is an

agency of every county of the state, thus leaving to each

local society its own individual problems and organiza-

tion. However, since they, I mean the state society and

the local organization, represent two phases of the same

problem, it is just as essential that the local organization

cooperate with the state organizaton as that the state

organization should cooperate with a local organization.

They are simply parts of one common whole. In order

to establish a tangible connection the state society should

have a directory of the officers and members of the local

organizations and the Society should contribute its pub-

lications to the local societies as an individual so that

members of the local organization who are not members

of the State Society can have immediate access to the

publications. On the other hand, the members of the

local society should not only feel free but should feel un-

der obligations to attend such conferences as these pro-

vided by the State Society, which we hope may become

annual affairs.

III. It is the province of a State Historical Society

to foster in every reasonable way, historical research and

to make possible the publication of worth while material

which, because of its limited appeal, would not be under-

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  443

taken by the ordinary commercial publishing company.

This offers a wonderful opportunity for cooperation with

the universities and colleges of the state and this also

suggests the importance of a library of last resort for

this purpose, which logically should be a part of the work

of the state society. Such a plan of historical research

and publication could be worked out by which there

would be a close cooperation between the state society

and the educational institutions of the state. And it

might be worth while to have a committee or a commis-

sion or a board of editors to pass upon such material of

a monographic nature. We have a group of representa-

tive university and college men here today whom I am

sure we will be glad to hear from on this subject.

Now, these are the three points I have particularly in

mind for us to crystallize our attention on--the program,

the relation of state and local societies, and the possibili-

ties of cooperation in more serious scientific work be-

tween the society and the colleges and universities of the

state. In conclusion, however, I cannot refrain from

suggesting the desirability of utilizing the materials in

the Library of Congress and other historical libraries

which have material bearing upon the history of this

state. I have in mind particularly the manuscript ma-

terial relating to Ohio which is in the library of the

Wisconsin State Historical Society. Whenever the state

of Ohio will finance the actual cost of photostatic ma-

terial in the Library of Congress, the Wisconsin State

Historical Library and other similar institutions, ar-

rangements can be speedily made to secure copies of all

such material which we want which for the purposes of

historical research will bring this material within our

444      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

own state and make it easily accessible to all those inter-

ested in historical investigation, and such a program will

have to be made possible before we can say to the world

at large, "Come to the Ohio State Archaeological and

Historical Society as the court of last resort for ma-

terial relating to the history of Ohio." (Applause.)

CHAIRMAN SHETRONE: We now have before us

for discussion the proposition as outlined, and I might

say that although the assemblage is small the Chair has

not had the pleasure of meeting all of you and doubtless

not one of you is acquainted with everyone in the assem-

blage. Perhaps in a year or two from now we shall cor-

rect that, we shall all be able to say "I know everyone."

And in the discussion to follow, might I make the sug-

gestion that each person assuming to do so announce or

introduce himself as he takes the floor.

We are now open for discussion.

PRESIDENT JOHNSON: Mr. Chairman, in order to

break the ice I want to say something and ask Dr. Sham-

baugh a question or two if I may. It is surprising in

following his conversational lecture, which I enjoyed

very thoroughly, to find how identical are the ideas of

those engaged in this work in Ohio and in Iowa. After

all, we have a peculiar relationship and a peculiar sym-

pathy. It seems we also have the same habit of thought

in this work which is a phase of the civic duty that we all

owe to our state and to our communities.

I subscribe to what Dr. Shambaugh said about the

function of the governing bodies, the small part which he

left to us in his program. I believe that there is no influ-

ence which is so deadly to organization work as a govern-

ing influence which is at once critical and restrictive. I

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  445

believe that it requires a spirit of enthusiasm, a spirit of

forward-looking on the part of the governing body to

make an administrative body work successfully. I also

believe that whenever the occasion offers, the administra-

tive officers should be held in the foreground, putting on

the show, instead of calling upon a more or less reluctant

lay president of a lay board of trustees to introduce a

speaker or preside over a meeting.

I know that our organization in this institution, Dr.

Shambaugh, is absolutely free-handed. The sky is the

limit. The opportunity is state-wide. To illustrate that

point, I will cite the fact that if I succeed in pressing one

suggestion into action out of ten or fifteen I think I am

going some. However, in each and every case in which

the governing board has sought to make suggestions

which have not been acted upon we have found that the

opinion and the judgment of the administrative board

was sound and correct. We pay them that tribute. As

each phase of this work has been carried on to a success-

ful conclusion I think that the idea of our governing

board has been to leave that entirely to the administrative

organization and to look forward for new jobs for them

to do.

I have attempted to give considerable thought to this

matter of the relationship between other organizations

and the state society. I have urged that if there were any

jealousies or controversies or competitions between this

organization and any other organization of any similar

character in the state, that they should be forgotten and

wiped out, that pleasant relationships be established,

that county historical societies be fostered and encour-

aged, and I am not so sure but what it is one of the func-

446     Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

tions of the state society not only to encourage and foster

but to plan and direct the organization of county societies

and I am not so sure but what the state society could

afford to engage in that activity to the extent of setting

up a model which might be followed for those counties

which have no societies when they come to organize, and

that is a joint membership in which membership in the

county society automatically becomes a membership in

the state society even to the point of dividing the proceeds

and carrying on cooperating activities. That I think

might be accomplished, especially if we were peculiarly

successful in the original initiation.

Now, I am wondering whether there is such a plan in

force in Iowa and I am also wondering what portion of

the counties of Dr. Shambaugh's state, have such local

organizations. There are comparatively few such or-

ganizations in Ohio which are active and worth while.

There are some splendid organizations of that kind.

There are some counties which are peculiarly bare of

material and background and of personnel, the class and

kind of people who should and might be interested in this

sort of thing. There are others which have a back-

ground which presents enough of the dramatic, of the

showmanship to furnish a nucleus of interest for such an

organization. What is the situation in Iowa, Dr. Sham-

baugh? I am going to remain on my feet until I have

your answer because I am not quite finished. I think

the president ought to be permitted to violate that five-

minute rule. I don't know whether I have yet or not,

but I want to say one or two things more.

DR. SHAMBAUGH: Well, you have asked I believe

several questions. There are about twenty county socie-

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  447

ties now. There are 99 counties. But we say that from

our experience there wouldn't be any very great difficulty

in getting an organization in every county. It is all a

question of when we are ready to organize in other coun-

ties. There is really not very much difficulty in getting a

local organization, although at the present time there

are only twenty because we haven't pushed the matter,

simply allowed those counties that take the initiative to

come in.

PRESIDENT JOHNSON: What are their relation-

ships?

DR. SHAMBAUGH: Well, now, their relationship to

the state historical society is this, every historical society

is invited to become an auxiliary member of the state

historical society of Iowa.  We invite them to such

auxiliary membership. Of course, none have ever re-

fused. That entitles them to receive all the publications

of the society and a freedom to call upon the historical

society for any advice that they may want with regard

to their work.

Now, anticipating the requests that come, we have

issued a series of bulletins. One, for example, is entitled

"The Organization of Local Historical Societies" and a

model constitution is contained therein. Practically all

the historical societies are organized under that model.

It is a very brief constitution, which helps them. Men

and women come together, they don't know just what to

do, there is a model, they adopt it.

We also have a bulletin on "The Local Historian."

What can the local historian do? Well, there are six or

eight pages briefly telling them what they can do.

Another one on the work of local historical societies.

448      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

What can they gather in? What can they collect and

where shall they put their collections and so on?

Another, on the cooperation between the local his-

torical societies and the public libraries, because they

have got to have some place for their collections. Most

of these organizations I know have secured a room. By

law it is provided in Iowa that the local public library

may set aside a room in that library, and of course it is

supported by taxation, that is the library is, and this

room to that extent is locally taxed, it must have the au-

thority of the state. They set aside a room or rooms for

the accommodation of the local historical societies.

As to the sharing of membership dues, nothing

of that sort has been done. The local historical society

usually has dues of 50 cents or a dollar for local mem-

bers to meet such expenses as they may have, but there

has been no division or any arrangement by which a per-

son becomes a member of the state historical society and

automatically a member of the local historical society and

the fees divided or the membership in the local society

automatically makes them members in the state society,

but I see no reason why such a plan should not be

adopted.

PRESIDENT JOHNSON: What I was getting at is

whether there was a model set up or there has been set up

in Iowa a model plan in that particular.

DR. SHAMBAUGH: NO.

PRESIDENT JOHNSON: Of course, it is all part and

parcel of the same thing. We are all driving at the same

end.

DR. SHAMBAUGH: There isn't in Iowa and I don't

know that there is in any state.

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  449

PRESIDENT JOHNSON: We are trying to measure the

worth and justification of existence by the measure of

services we can render to our state, and men like the

members, for instance, of our Board of Trustees, who

are business men, busy men, are anxious and willing to

devote their time and attention and some little of their

funds to that service, and that is the objective.

CHAIRMAN SHETRONE: Just before we get away

from this topic, I want to say to Mr. Johnson that in-

sofar as I know, the only place where this dual member-

ship idea has been tried out, there may have been others,

but I think it is Indiana, and I don't just recall what the

result of that was, but perhaps Dr. Lindley could tell us.

DR. LINDLEY: Yes, it has been tried in Indiana and

in Wisconsin I know. And it has not been a success.

There is too much bookkeeping involved, and after all

there is a certain amount of local autonomy involved in

the local organization. But at the same time, in histori-

cal conferences, representatives of these societies have

come as individuals, the identity of the local society has

been recognized and, as I suggested in my remarks, the

tangible connection was made in the fact they were made

to feel they were a member of the society by receiving

the publications.

PRESIDENT JOHNSON: I had no thought of it being a

profitable arrangement. I merely thought of a plan that

would bring them more closely together.

CHAIRMAN SHETRONE: Dr. Wittke.

DR. WITTKE: Mr. Chairman, since Dr. Sham-

baugh in his very admirable address stressed so

much the relationship between the State Historical So-

Vol. XXXIX--29.

450      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

ciety and the State University and other colleges and in-

stitutions of that sort, I feel called upon as a representa-

tive of the local Department of History of the Ohio State

University to discuss that very briefly but I hope very

much to the point. There is nothing that the Department

of History at the Ohio State University would welcome

more than a plan of real cooperation and cordial good

feeling with this Society. Some of you gentlemen pres-

ent know that from both sides overtures in that direction

have been made during the last ten years perhaps. Com-

plete frankness compels us all to admit that those over-

tures have sometimes been misunderstood. There has

been probably as much misunderstanding on the part of

the University as there has been on the part of the

Society.

But be that as it may, administrations have changed,

situations have changed entirely and it seems to me that

we are ready to begin on this program anew. There is

not a thing that the Department of History or any mem-

ber of it, either at the Ohio State University or at any

other institution in this state wants except the success

of the historical and archaeological work and there is not

a single one of us who has an ax to grind or ever did

have. And if our efforts in the past have been somewhat

misunderstood, I would have you remember that they

were at least well intended and came from an effort to

increase the usefulness of this Society.

Now, there have been plenty of signs recently of an

increasing cooperation. For the first time I think in the

history of this institution the graduate council called to

one of its committee meetings three or four of the ad-

ministrative staff of this Society to work out if we could

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  451

a more orderly arrangement between these two institu-

tions. As Mr. Shetrone and others will bear out, we have

had men working for advanced degrees in geology and

geography and sociology who have found the archaeo-

logical material in this museum of inestimable value and

the resources that they have opened to them. As all of

us who are in History know, you have here a remarkable

collection of newspaper files, one of the most valuable in

this part of the country. I personally have had a number

of students who worked out doctors' dissertations in the

field of Ohio history or in Northwest history and have

found a large part of their material right here and they

have found the most cordial cooperation on the part of

the officials of this Society and speak in the highest terms

of praise of the facilities that are here available.

Now, I wonder whether this Society in the past, ad-

mitting the very remarkable achievement in the field of

archaeology, in the publication of a Quarterly and so on,

has not after all been somewhat remiss in its duties in this

one line which Dr. Shambaugh emphasizes so well,

namely, getting out a series or a number of series of

publications which will contain perhaps a lot of this mon-

ographic material which is the bedrock upon which sound

historical study will have to be built and which will be

given in that way a circulation among the people of the

state and, what is more, amongst the scholars of the na-

tion. There is a lot of that material which is being

turned out not only at Ohio State University but at

Western Reserve, at Cincinnati, at Miami, at Denison,

at Wittenberg, all of these institutions which have sent

their representatives here today. They are turned out

as masters' or doctors' dissertations. I am quite ready to

452      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

admit that many of those dissertations should be rewrit-

ten somewhat before they are given to the public but

that is a matter of re-editing under somebody's compe-

tent supervision. The groundwork has been done and it

has been done scientifically. It is available for publica-

tion with no cost to the Society or anyone else.

What this state could very well have is a cooperative

history of the State of Ohio perhaps in nine or ten

volumes and it is no disparagement on those who have

written on Ohio history before to say that there is plenty

of room for such a story. That ought to be under the

general editorship of some very prominent historian who

is familiar with this Ohio and Northwest field and then

we ought to pick out the most competent historical

scholars, not at Ohio State University necessarily but at

any of these other institutions who are specialists in their

particular field, and assign to them under this general

editorship the problem of writing that particular volume.

Look at the Centennial history of the State of Illinois. It

was hailed by reviewers all over as the model which all

other state histories ought to follow. There is no reason

at all why this State of Ohio shouldn't do something of

that sort, and the historical scholarship of this state as

represented in the universities and colleges is available to

this institution for such a project.

Now, I have risen to my feet primarily to point out

that there is nothing but a spirit of whole-hearted coop-

eration to be found in all of these history departments in

the state, and if the few remarks I have made will help

to dispel some of the misunderstandings on this matter,

perhaps we may in the future work out some program

entirely under the control of this Society, simply consti-

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  453

tuting their cooperation, which will put Ohio on the map

where it ought to be.

I had the good fortune of being in Iowa City one

year. I saw this magnificent establishment which Dr.

Shambaugh maintains, functioning. I wish I could take

you all there and show you first of all that great library,

that great staff of research assistants, competent trained

men who are on the university staff for the most part. I

wish I could show you those men. It is no wonder that

the Iowa Historical Society has turned out a series of

volumes of publications unsurpassed anywhere in the

United States. (Applause.)

DR. BOND: Mr. Shetrone, I want to second what Mr.

Wittke has said, so far as the University of Cincinnati

is concerned. I also want to call attention to some prac-

tical work that has been going on already in cooperation

with the historical society and which Mr. Galbreath men-

tioned to me today. We have in Cincinnati a prize of-

fered each year by the Colonial Wars of Ohio for the

best piece of work by a student in Western History.

They usually work in Ohio history and Mr. Galbreath

very kindly, whenever the essay is worth publishing at

least, is always kind enough to publish it in the Archaeo-

logical Quarterly.

It seems that recently one of our men had a mono-

graph on the history of Early Ohio Education to 1803.

That was published in the Quarterly. Someone else has

taken up the story from 1803 on and Mr. Galbreath tells

me now we have a fairly complete outline of the history

of education in Ohio from the beginning.

Now, that illustrates what we should do. I think

what we need is to get together not one man to work a

454      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

thesis in one line and somebody in something else but we

need more cooperation. That could be done through

some sort of committee such as Mr. Wittke suggested,

and I think a series of stories in Ohio history could very

well be worked out with the cooperation of the different

institutions. We have certain material in Cincinnati

which is available to students. There is some other ma-

terial of a different type available here at Columbus.

Other material is available at Western Reserve.

In addition to that, I think we need very badly here

in Ohio, and Mr. Shambaugh hinted at it and Mr. Lind-

ley I think also called more pointed attention to it, we

need more publication in Ohio. Anyone who has done

real work in Ohio history knows the crying need. You

travel from place to place and then you move because

some more material crops up somewhere else. That

which we need most of all is a summary of the Ohio

material that is found in the different libraries. It would

be very nice, of course, if we could have photostats of all

the material here, but to my mind that would be a matter

of a good many years, so that the most practical work

that we need now and which would be the foundation, of

course, of any series of archives, is to have really a sys-

tematic statement of exactly what material there is in

Ohio history scattered through the different libraries,

especially of a manuscript nature, and until we have that

it is simply impossible to have any systematic plan for

the archives which is so much needed. And further-

more, it is very difficult for the professor to do any real

systematic work in Ohio history for his student. I know

when I came to the field I just had to learn. I think I

know pretty well about this but it has taken several years

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  455

to learn. And I certainly feel that if this conference can

get cooperation of a practical nature, we want to have it

if we can only be shown the way and I think where there

is a will the way can always be found to cooperate be-

tween the universities and the historical societies and I

can assure that everything possible will be done by the

University of Cincinnati in that connection. (Applause.)

CHAIRMAN SHETRONE: Professor Siebert.

DR. SIEBERT: I am glad to hear this discussion on

the part that can be played by the trained historians in

our colleges and universities. I know that some of my

colleagues will bear me out and members of the staff of

the Archaeological and Historical Society will also con-

cur in what I will say when I remark that I have from

time to time suggested the feasibility of sending some-

body to certain collections where we know there are val-

uable materials in Ohio history to inspect and calendar

that material. When you look at what--I am not going

to quote Iowa--Iowa has had its due mete of recognition

here today and is entitled to that full recognition--take,

for example, some of our southern states. Take Georgia

for example. Look at the archives that have been pub-

lished by Georgia, going clear back. I have in my library

a collection that I have been at work on for some years

and I simply cannot get along, if I want to know certain

things in early Georgia history I can't get along without

consulting those archives where you have the original

documents published under proper editorial supervision

and where you have everything indexed.

Why shouldn't we have that here in Ohio? We can

have it if we will take the trouble to send somebody who

knows what the work of calendaring is out to the Wis-

456      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

consin Historical Society where they have a mass of our

early materials and I know on two or three occasions I

have heard gibes as though scholars in other states in

the Northwest territory were jealous of the Wisconsin

Historical Society for having gathered that material. I

don't feel that that is at all the attitude. For my own

part I feel under a thousand obligations to the Historical

Society of Wisconsin for having gathered that material

when we in this neighborhood up and down the Ohio

River Valley didn't realize that that material was to be

had merely by calling on the families of the old Revolu-

tionary soldiers and getting it. In like manner, here is

my friend, Mr. Cathcart, from Western Reserve His-

torical Society. Fortunately for the people of Ohio they

have on the Board of Trustees of that Society men

who have the means and who are generous in giving

their means to collect materials and they are getting a

mass of valuable material up there and I am glad they

are getting it. Somebody ought to get it while the get-

ting is good and fortunately they are getting it.

Go to Albany, New York, and you will find other

Ohio material there. We can have transcripts of that

material. We can have a calendar of it before we get

the transcript. You can go up to the library of De-

troit and today they have a quantity of material that

is very important to us here in Ohio that ought to be

calendared and these materials ought to go into our

archives. We get the transcript of them or we get the

photostats of them, we build up our archives and we pub-

lish these archives. And then in addition, not only by

cooperation with the teachers of history in our colleges

and universities, we can even find that the University of

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  457

Chicago or the University of Iowa or some other institu-

tion, publish a monograph or at least they produce

an important monograph relating to Ohio history and

this society has published, for example, at least one mon-

ograph that I know of that was produced at the Univer-

sity of Chicago by an Ohio student who was a student

there and who got hold of valuable materials. So that

we can get cooperation certainly throughout the State

of Ohio but even in many instances outside the State of

Ohio for scholarly material that is produced. (Ap-

plause.)

CHAIRMAN SHETRONE: The response from the Uni-

versity representatives that has been voiced in the very

constructive remarks of Professors Wittke, Bond, and

Siebert certainly is most gratifying.

We have heard nothing yet from the historical socie-

ties. I wonder if Mr. Cathcart might have something

for us.

MR. CATHCART: Mr. Chairman, I came here as a

spectator today, not expecting to be called upon to say

something unless something came up that I would have

to speak about, but I have enjoyed it very much indeed. I

think there is no person here that enjoyed more seeing

the progress that is coming to the Historical Society of

Ohio in the last few years than I have. I am afraid at

times in the past in my eagerness to see the Society go

forward I have scolded them a little bit about doing this,

that and the other thing. It was the same kindly scold-

ing that a father would give to his son I think, though I

shouldn't speak of it in that form exactly.

But I want to see the Society go ahead, and as Mr.

Galbreath took me through some of the lower rooms, he

458     Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

said, "Do you see those boxes there? Those are the

documents that you complained about being underfoot in

the State Capitol." He said, "We have got them now.

Many of them are mildewed and some of them are de-

stroyed but we are going to save them. We will keep

them here temporarily until we can get the time and

means to put them in the proper shape." I told Mr. Gal-

breath I don't know anything that pleased me more. It

is well worth the trip down here just to see these things

brought into the building and preserved.

Our Society in Cleveland has a peculiar situation

there. As you know, we have a large part of the pop-

ulation of the state there with a large membership.

We are doing for them similarly what you have been

doing here for the State University and for the

other colleges of the state. Our problems have got to go

on. We haven't been able to do everything that Mr. Gal-

breath has presented in his remarks today. When I first

started we had hardly any material, didn't have any

money, but we did do some publishing and the little

things that they published still stand out as a real source

of documents in American history.

Later on the state was publishing. They seemed to

be publishing more than we could afford, so I think

probably largely through my personal efforts our So-

ciety commenced to gather material.

We are not in competition with the State Society but

simply getting things that either they didn't see or were

not after. Our plans are to go on publishing. I think we

will have arrangements with the University there in

which we shall do more or less publishing. But with all

that work that we may undertake there in Cleveland it

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  459

shouldn't interfere with the work here at the State at all

in Columbus. You have got a vast work here to be done.

I think at the dedication of this wing I referred to

the work they are doing in Iowa. And I have always ad-

mired it because I have watched it from the very first

when Doctor Shambaugh first went there to take charge

of the work. And I feel that we should do that in the

State of Ohio, we should get our material together. Pro-

fessors come to us from all over the United States, come

here for the summer to work on their doctors' thesis, for

material that we may be fortunate enough to have here,

and they speak of not being able to find these things in

Ohio. And I urged and I have yearned for the day to

come when the State would get this material together,

when it would get photostats if it may be of this material

that is lying in other libraries so that the material could

be had. Possibly many of those photostats we would get

duplicates of to use with our plant there at Cleveland.

I don't feel that I should take more time on this, but

we are with you and will cooperate in every way possible.

(Applause.)

MR. GREVE: Mr. Chairman, I feel perhaps I ought to

speak for my own Society. My name is Greve. I am

from Cincinnati. Mr. Cathcart has said that he felt a

paternal attitude towards this organization. As I told

you a few years ago, our organization has a maternal re-

lationship to this organization for we were the mother

from whom this organization was born. And next Feb-

ruary, a year from now, we have the hope and expecta-

tion, at least we have the hope and possibly some expecta-

tion of laying the cornerstone of a building in commem-

oration of our hundredth anniversary.

460      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

Our Society has tried to cooperate with the other or-

ganizations and particularly with the University. We

have found that that was probably the most valuable

work that we could do. We have done some of the things

that Mr. Shambaugh speaks of. It is rather a privilege to

be here and see Mr. Shambaugh and Mr. Lindley and

others, and think of those names a quarter of a century

or more ago and you will find they started in our Ohio

Valley Association and other Associations of the same

interest.

We have collected a pretty fair library and we think

it is a pretty good one. We have collected original ma-

terials. Mr. Cathcart was somewhat of an obstacle. But

I agree entirely with Dr. Siebert that the work that they

have been doing is a work that is of greatest value today

to all of us and if they had not done it perhaps it would

not be done. We are, however, making our own collec-

tions as far as we can and we are publishing not mono-

graphs or dissertations or discussions but trying to pub-

lish the materials themselves and in that we have had the

full help of Professor Bond and before him Professor

Isaac J. Cox, who really were the editors. I believe I

am on the editorial committee but I don't know what they

are going to publish. Professor Cox was editor for a

while and he left us and Professor Bond took it up and

his work has been very valuable.

Our greatest trouble it seems to me, is to try to im-

press upon the general public the value of records and

papers that they may have in their own Society's pos-

session. A little historical society was organized not to

publish anything but to try to go to the various parts of

the country and tell the people that had diaries, family

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  461

records and everything else, how important it was to keep

those and tell them to put them in some organization

such as this Society, our Society or the Library of Con-

gress for conservation. There is a great deal of material

that Mr. Cathcart has not gotten yet that might be pre-

served and kept and the people are willing to give it if

they can have brought home to them the fact that it is

of value. We take it that you are getting it. We once

in a while try to get some of it but all I wish to say is

that our Society wishes to do all it can to cooperate. We

feel that we have a little bit the advantage of age but we

haven't that freshness of youth that perhaps you have

and the vigor and the resources that you have back of

you when you have the whole State back of you, but we

will do all we can to help, we will try to contribute in

every way, we will offer you the services of Dr. Bond

gratuitously. He gives them to us gratuitously and I

am sure he would make that present to you. And I be-

lieve that this day, as you say, will be the dawning of a

new era and ought to help a great deal in the solution of

our problems. (Applause.)

DR. BENTON: Mr. Chairman, before making the mo-

tion for which I especially arose, some of the late re-

marks have made me think perhaps some remarks about

the relation between the historical societies and the uni-

versity from the point of view of Western Reserve Uni-

versity might be in order. If you should wake up some

morning and read your morning paper and find the an-

nouncement on the front page that Western Reserve

University had just received a library gift of two million

dollars and an endowment with perhaps a half million

dollars you would be congratulating us I am sure. And

462      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

yet the present market value of the Western Reserve

Historical Society is well over that amount and that is

what those gentlemen who have been working there for

now sixty years have done for one university. If I didn't

want to ride home tonight with the present director of

our Historical Society I should make some remarks about

the way that movement has been growing like a rolling

snowball but Mr. Greve has made the necessary com-

ments in that matter and all I should say is that these

gentlemen have been gathering a great collection there

over these late generations and have set it down as near

to the institution where I work as this is to this great

State university, and it is our laboratory.

Some way universities have never wakened up to the

fact that the history department has needed a laboratory.

They have been voting millions of dollars to the scientific

departments for laboratories. It is nothing to hear of

those being provided. They have left it to private gifts

and private workers to achieve for the universities what

we need.

The relationship there, we are not bothering ourselves

in the slightest about it. The institution, as everybody

knows, is a private institution. The university is an-

other private institution with a board of trustees. But

we are so adjacent that no laboratory on the campus

could be more serviceable for our purpose than the lab-

oratory which we have just at the edge of our campus

for American history.

I arose especially to see if there was not something

someone wanted to do to provide the father and mother

that should provide the offspring that Dr. Shambaugh

suggested we might have here born today, if it was to be

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  463

a birth, for the purpose of trying to coordinate the pub-

lishing and research work that might go on in Ohio. We

have all been dreaming for a long time. In view of the

great work that has been going on in almost every state

of the northwest we have been much chagrined that the

first, the most populous, and perhaps the richest of these

states is the most backward in this regard. The reason

for that might be analyzed by some historians in the

future. For the present it is true and the only question

is to find some form of cooperation among those who

are interested in the matter, some one to make a first

step.

Mr. Chairman, I do not know whether what I am

about to offer is the most effective first step. If after I

make my motion it is not considered the most effective

plan, I suggest that you amend it. I have in mind the

possibility that a committee or commission or board, call

it what you may, might be formed here today that

should, by careful study of the problem of historical re-

search and historical writing in Ohio, determine the best

process of coordinating our efforts and stimulating fur-

ther our various endeavors. Such agency should pro-

vide for the selection of subjects, the location of ma-

terials and the editing of the same for publication. I

think those are things that we can do together.  I

think our various laboratories are equally available for

research students in your university. I think that the

plant that would be open, whether it is the plant Mr.

Cathcart has in Western Reserve or the plant they have

in Cincinnati or the plant they have here in Columbus,

can all find soon activity in publishing results of such a

movement.

464      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

I am very much impressed by one step which Dr.

Shambaugh suggested and that is the importance of the

creating in our universities of research assistants to as-

sist in stimulating research in our various graduate

schools and that is a function of the university. Some-

how our universities have not yet really gotten to work

in the research in local phases. That is a process of evo-

lution I may say. History is only gradually coming to

wake up to the fact that economic and social history, in

which the materials are all open, is the greatest and most

fruitful, most promising field for future endeavor.

May I propose the appointment by the President of

the Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society of

a committee representative of the historical societies and

educational institutions in the state which shall study the

problems that have been discussed today, giving atten-

tion to the matter of cooperation between the state his-

torical society and the local historical societies, colleges,

universities and other educational institutions and sug-

gesting methods for carrying out their recommenda-

tions. I make this as a motion.

MR. GREVE: I want to second the motion, Mr. Chair-

man.

CHAIRMAN SHETRONE: I have a habit when I find

myself getting out of my sphere or something that I

don't know so well about in falling back on my standby,

Mr. Galbreath.

SECRETARY GALBREATH: I favor it. Now, may I

make a few remarks while I am on my feet upon a ques-

tion that is not immediately before the house at present?

I am led to make these remarks by some of the things

Proceedings of the Ohio History Conference  465

that my friend Cathcart said. It recalled a rather amus-

ing incident to me. Some five or six years ago our dis-

tinguished president, an able man, Governor Campbell,

said "It isn't worth while, Galbreath, to bother any more

about the newspaper collections; you might as well just

drop that from your mind. Up in the Western Reserve

Historical Society they have more money than they can

spend and they are gathering up the newspapers all over

the country and we can't organize any opposition to

them." Well, since this has grown into a regular his-

torical experience meeting in which each of us has to

tell a little story about how he killed the bear, I will sim-

ply say that I did a little thinking along this line. All

through the time we were talking and considering the

newspaper matter I knew that there were newspapers

in the state that could be gotten if there was legal au-

thority to get them and I busied myself to find a way

to get these. Some of our university professors had

been stimulating me to that but when the time came to

get the act passed I didn't see any college professor

around. I presume if I had called upon them they would

have supported me but I had a peculiar notion of my

own that I could probably handle this best without assist-

ance from anybody, that it wasn't best to make too much

of a noise about it. So we got an act that permitted the

commissioners of every county in the state to send papers

and the papers have been coming. They have been com-

ing from other sources also and our newspaper collection

has grown to about eighteen thousand volumes. Brother

Cathcart's collection has been growing right along too

and today we are cooperating in the most amicable

spirit and I am going to send him practically a ton

Vol. XXXIX--30.

466      Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications

of duplicate newspapers that we have collected and

that he doesn't have and he is going to send us some rare

county newspapers that he has in duplicate that we do not

have. There is the most amicable spirit of cooperation

between us and we are each going to boom his collection

of newspapers higher and higher. So I am certain that

the spirit of Governor Campbell, if he were in this meet-

ing, would smile and say, "Well done, good and faithful

servants," to both of us. This newspaper matter I knew

could not be done in the afternoon of the same day.

Now as to the matter of archives. Brother Cathcart

has urged me to activity along that line for a number of

years and at last we got an authority to move those from

the State House here when the officials, including the

Governor, were willing, and they have been coming. We

hope that they will come in greater abundance.

Now, I am very, very glad to hear of this spirit of

cooperation. It is almost as good as the successful cam-

paign for membership and money. And I want to ask