HISTORICAL SOCIETY
BUILDINGS.
COMPILED BY THE EDITOR.
On the following pages are presented
brief statements of
what Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota,
all younger states than
Ohio, have done for their historical
societies. Half-tone cuts of
the New Hampshire and Ohio buildings are
also shown.
Other states and a number of cities have
erected buildings
not less notable.
The Historical Society of Buffalo has a
building of which
any state might be proud. The work of
this society ranks high
and its publications are recognized as
authoritative.
San Francisco, within the current year
has received through
the generosity and public spirit of M.
H. de Young a memorial
museum and buildings valued at over
$5.000,000. The magnifi-
cent group of buildings in which the
museum is housed is located
in the famous Golden Gate Park. Through
years to come it will
speak of the triumph of American
civilization and the crowning
glory that marks the westward course of
empire on this conti-
nent. It is fitting that while Liberty
Enlightening the World
stands at the port of our eastern
metropolis, the muse of history
should look upon the ocean from her
palace at the gateway of
the Pacific Slope.
No state west of the Allegheny Mountains
has contributed
more to the service of American progress
than has our own
Ohio. We are justly proud of the record.
Our orators elo-
quently admit this on the platform and
the hustings. Assuredly
Ohio will do her full share in providing
for the preservation of
the relics, sources and monuments of her
remarkable history.
ILLINOIS
The State of Illinois is erecting a
Centennial Memorial
Building which will cost when completed
and equipped over
$1,500,000. $950,000 has already been appropriated. This will
provide quarters for the Illinois
Historical Society and its State
Museum, including a Lincoln Room, the
Illinois State Library,
(546)
548
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society
Publications.
an auditorium and a few minor
offices. The cut herewith
presented shows that the State of
Illinois has entered the class
of New York in liberal manifestation of
interest in her history.
"Growth and development beyond the
prophet's most san-
guine expectations have thus far marked
the progress of Ameri-
can life; who is brave enough to predict
that the mighty current
shows even the slightest signs of
diminution? The problem
therefore is, while planning wisely and
sanely for today to let
each step be a preparation for the
marvelous unseen activities
of tomorrow.
"The Centennial Building will thus
be seen to have a dual
importance- important not only as a
monumental memorial
marking in enduring stone the completion
of the first hundred
years of a great State's existence, but
important also as a symbol
of greater achievements by that State
and its people in the years
that lie before. A double vision has
inspired and directed those
who have had the work in charge -a
vision of the past and a
vision of the future.
"Not only with regard to the
setting and surroundings of
the Centennial Building, but in planning
the building itself, has
the idea of future development been kept
firmly in mind, so that
the oft-repeated error of building a
structure which becomes
outgrown and crowded after a decade or
two might be avoided."
-Edgar Martin, Supervising Architect.
WISCONSIN
Wisconsin, although admitted into the
Union forty-five years
later than Ohio, has excelled all other
states carved out of the
Northwest Territory, in collecting,
arranging and safeguarding
the sources of local, state and national
history. Ohio students
and authors, after they have exhausted
the scattered resources
in their own state, must go to the
Wisconsin Historical Society
to consult books, maps and manuscripts
that cannot be found
elsewhere in the Mississippi Valley. So
interested in the history
of their state have the people of
Wisconsin become that they do
not wait for gifts and bequests. The
state appropriated for the
erection of a building for her
historical society, $650,000. Sub-
Historical Society Buildings. 549 |
550
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society
Publications.
sequent appropriations have been made
for equipment and the
value of this noble structure, to which
the citizens of the entire
state contributed and in which they take
an especial pride, is not
less than $1,000,000.
There is now in this building which is
located near the state
university perhaps the most valuable
collection on American
history to be found in any institution
west of the Allegheny
Mountains. Students of local history from other states of the
Middle West must go to Wisconsin for
their sources of informa-
tion. This state through a number of
years has built up a living
monument in its library of books,
documents and manuscripts.
In this respect Wisconsin has set a
notable and noble example
for her sister states.
MINNESOTA
Minnesota, a comparatively young state,
is following the
example of her adjoining neighbor,
Wisconsin. The stately
building pictured above on May 11,
1918, was dedicated with
appropriate ceremonies. For it the state
appropriated $500,000.
"The Minnesota Historical Society
was organized in 1849,
under territorial charter, and for many
years has looked forward
to having a building of its own. A fund was gradually ac-
cumulated for the purchase of such a
building, in the event of
the society having to build for itself.
This, however, was not
a large sum, and it would have been many
years before the
society itself could have built a proper
home. When the present
Capitol was built, rooms were provided
for the society in the
basement and these served our purpose
for some years. In
1913 the legislature, recognizing
the need, made a very generous
provision, an appropriation of five
hundred thousand dollars,
for the building, the society agreeing
to pay seventy-five thou-
sand dollars for the purchase of a site
and for furnishing the
building. The site first selected by the board of control, and
approved by the society, was purchased
from this fund at a
cost of thirty-five thousand dollars.
The title was acquired by
the state, and the state still owns the
property. Before plans
for the building had been perfected, it
was recognized by the
board of control and the society that a
mistake had been made
Historical Society Buildings. 551 |
552 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
in the selection of the first site, and
the legislature was asked to,
and did, amend the bill, so as to
provide for the erection of a
building upon a site to be selected by
the society." - Charles P.
Noyes, at dedication of Minnesota
Historical Building.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
This beautiful and substantial structure
was erected at a
cost of over $600,000. New Hampshire has many creditable
library, educational and institutional
buildings; New Hampshire
has and will have only one historical
society building. No other
structure will rise to rival it or share
in its distinctive purpose.
By his generous gift Edward Tuck has
erected an enduring
monument to himself as well as to his
native state.
In recent years public spirited,
patriotic persons with ample
fortunes have done much to encourage the
preservation of local
and state history. Such citizens have erected substantial
build-
ings for their historical
societies. In some instances they have
been aided by the municipality or the
state; in others they have
provided without assistance for such
buildings. A notable
example is seen in the splendid building
that has been erected
for the New Hampshire Historical Society
through the gener-
osity and public spirit of Edward Tuck.
Opportunities to do much in this line
are still open to
wealthy, public spirited men of Ohio.
Colonel Webb C. Hayes,
as will be seen by reference to the
concluding page of this
circular, has presented to the Ohio
State Archaeological and His-
torical Society the homestead of his
father, Rutherford B. Hayes,
former President of the United States,
and created trust funds
for the maintenance of this splendid
property including the
Memorial Library Building at Spiegel
Grove. The opportunity
remains for patriotic citizens of the
state to contribute to the
collections of the Society, to provide
funds for publications or
an additional building and thus to link
their names permanently
with the incomparable history of the
Buckeye State.
OHIO
Above is a small cut of the museum and
library building
of the Ohio State Archaeological and
Historical Society. This
554 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications. is really the High Street front of a structure which when com- pleted will extend 250 feet back on the grounds of the Ohio State University. The present building awaits funds for addi- tions in accordance with the original plan. $100,000 was appro- priated for this building, and it has been so carefully expended that perhaps no state building in Columbus exhibits a more satisfactory return for the investment. It is well lighted and thoroughly fireproof. It stands at the main entrance to the Ohio State University grounds and continually invites students from every section of the state to its museum, illustrating the archaeology and history of Ohio, and to its growing library which |
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in time will take rank with the historical libraries that have been built up in other progressive states. Within the past year the Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society has been greatly encouraged by the manifesta- tion of an awakened public interest in its important work. Within that period gifts in cash, real estate and relics valued at not less than $70,000 have come to the Society through the agency of public spirited citizens of the state. This includes $47,000 earned by motion picture films of Camp Sherman and transferred by Governor James M. Cox to the Society to be used in constructing wholly or in part an addition to the present building which shall be dedicated to the soldiers of the World |
Historical Society Buildings. 555 War. This sum is now available if adequately supplemented by appropriations from the Legislature and gifts from other sources. The present building is already overcrowded. Ohio's share of the relics of the World War will soon be transferred from Washington to the custody of our state. Most of them will come to the Society. Provision must be made for their care and preservation. In the October QUARTERLY is an address delivered by for- mer Governor James E. Campbell, President of the Society. It sets forth what Colonel Webb C. Hayes has done by the trans- fer to the state in the custody of the Society property worth over half a million dollars.. If the state will do its part other public spirited citizens will be encouraged to follow the gener- ous and patriotic example of Colonel Hayes. |
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