Dedication of Ohio's World War
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Finally, a State Museum of History here
in Ohio must take
advantage of its exceptional
opportunity to cooperate with the
regional historical museums in the
commonwealth. After all,
your purposes are a common one, namely,
to preserve and to teach
the history of Ohio--your task is general; theirs is
particular.
The ideal State Museum which I have
tried to picture should be
applied to all the local museums. A
system of exchange might
be worked out so that articles of
general significance would come
here, while those of a local nature and
value should be housed
with them. A check list of materials in
the possession of all the
museums would facilitate such an
interchange. The State Mu-
seum might send loan exhibits about the
counties for educational
purposes. An interchange of lectures
might be arranged, and
historical pilgrimages planned to the
shrines in different parts of
the State. You might lend your expert
staff to aid regional bodies
in the reorganization and
reclassification of their museums, and
in turn, perhaps profit by their
suggestions. In short, if all the
scholarship and all the interest in
history in this great common-
wealth could be mobilized into active
cooperation, Ohio would
soon win a primacy in the protection
and utilization of its past
civilization as it has in so many other
worthy fields.
The address of Doctor Flick was heard
with the
closest attention. The speaker had his
audience with
him from the first word uttered. His
address is a con-
tribution of great value to the Society
and all interested
in state and local history. Doctor
Flick's position at the
head of the division of archives and
history of the en-
tire state of New York and the eminence
that he has
won in this special field enabled him
to speak as one
having authority. His address sets
forth the ideals to-
ward which the newer historical
societies of the Middle
West may well direct their efforts. It
was just what
those to whom it was delivered need at
this time.
ADDRESS OF WALLACE H. CATHCART
At the conclusion of Doctor Flick's
address, Pro-
fessor Siebert inquired, "Is Mr.
Wallace H. Cathcart in
the room?" Mr. Cathcart, the
well-known and success-
464 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications ful Vice-President and director of the Western Reserve Historical Society, came forward and spoke as follows: Ladies and Gentlemen: I was waiting to see if Dr. Siebert recognized me, but he has the same misfortune I have, and is a little near-sighted. It is a real pleasure as an Ohioan to be here this morning; |
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as an Ohioan, who for some forty years has been interested in the cultivation of the history of the State of Ohio. I think I can rejoice with the same genuine rejoicing that Mr. Galbreath, Dr. Mills and Mr. Johnson, President of the Society, are rejoicing in this wonderful and beautiful addition to the Ohio State Archaeo- logical and Historical Society building. I must state that when Prof. Siebert telephoned me about |
Dedication of Ohio's World War
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this meeting he asked me to present the
details of what we were
doing over in Cleveland, sketch the
history of our Society and
sum up conclusions. I think he knew how
well Dr. Flick would
present everything else.
I do not think the members of this
Society, or the members
of all the auxiliary societies and
kindred organizations in the
State of Ohio will lack for something to
do, if they carry out a
small part of what Dr. Flick has so ably
suggested this morning.
In 1811, when Cleveland had a small
population of some
fifty-five, and eighteen families, there
were sixteen men who
formed a Library Association. Among
these men were some that
were afterwards outstanding characters
of the State of Ohio.
Among them, Dr. David Long, Samuel
Williamson, and Mr.
Alfred Kelley, of whom the
last-mentioned became so closely
identified with the public works of the
state.
This library association commenced to
gather books. Among
the first books obtained was a file of
the Connecticut Evangelical
Magazine, which is now in our Library.
They kept on until
1848, when the Cleveland Library
Association was formed, and
they in turn received the collection of
books previously accu-
mulated.
In 1867, an amendment was made to the
charter of the Cleve-
land Library Association, permitting the
formation of a branch
as the Historical Division. The
historical works that had been
accumulated since 1811, were turned
over' to the Historical
Branch, known as The Western Reserve and
Northern Ohio His-
torical Society. In 1892, the society
was incorporated under the
name of The Western Reserve Historical
Society, to gather ma-
terial pertaining to Ohio and the West,
and to quote from the
Charter "The purpose for which said
corporation is formed is not
profit, but is to discover, collect and
preserve whatever relates to
the history, biography, genealogy and
antiquities of Ohio and the
West, and of the people dwelling
therein, including the physical
history and condition of that State; to
maintain a museum and
library, and to extend knowledge upon
the subjects mentioned by
literary meetings, by publication and by
other proper means."
It was my pleasure to become connected
with the society in
1890. In the early days much attention
was given to archaeology.
Judge C. C. Baldwin, and his brother, David, of Elyria,
also Col.
C. C. Whittlesey, who had made some of
the early archaeological
surveys of the State, were all very much
interested in that phase
of the work. In a careful study of the
situation, I found that the
Ohio State Archaeological and Historical
Society was taking care
of part of the work more ably than we could expect to
do. How-
ever, I felt that for the benefit of
those in the immediate neigh-
Vol. XXXV--30.
466 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications
borhood, we should have a collection
bearing on the archaeology of
the State that would be fairly
representative, and that perhaps our
best efforts should be given to
gathering the printed and manu-
script material, bearing on the State's
history. So during the last
40 years we have perhaps devoted more
effort to that side than
we have to the other. The Library of the
Society, by means of
legacies, donations, and by purchases
supplemental thereto, has
accumulated a specialized library of
rather great importance, if
size alone is considered. We have about
200,000 books and pam-
phlets on American history. This will
compare favorably, I think,
with the older and better endowed
historical societies of the East.
But numbers, in themselves, give very
little idea of the true
strength of any library.
Our collection of source books of
history relating to the
Northwest Territory and especially to
Ohio is practically com-
plete. In statistical publications of
the State and Municipality we
have nearly complete files in the order
of publication. Of the
earlier ones of the State of Ohio,
published before they were
bound as executive documents, we have
really a very fine collec-
tion.
The department of travel, in the
Library, is a very important
one. This consists of the published
notes of those early adven-
turers who made the perilous trip from Pittsburgh to
Cincinnati
or Louisville, by land or water. The
accounts of the wonderful
things they saw of man and nature, and
the experiences they met
with were eagerly sought in the East and
in England and
France. Men were longing for habitation
in this marvelous valley
of the River Ohio, a river of such
striking beauty that it was
named, "The Beautiful River,"
in all the languages of the rival
races of men that claimed the region as
their own. These books
followed each other rapidly from 1750 to
1825. Their value as
sources of history is very high. They
are now very scarce and it
would not be possible to find all of
them, or indeed, a few of them,
in many libraries. The Society has practically a
complete set of
the original editions of these English
and French works.
I was just thinking that if a man
started in today to try to
accumulate these books, it would be an
impossible task. The
other day I was at Anderson's sale in
New York, and I saw a little
pamphlet of about twenty-odd pages, and
with part of the pages
torn out, yet it was rapidly bid up to
$200. The information that
was contained in it was not worth five
dollars, yet any one collect-
ing Ohio material would like to have
that book. This only shows
the eagerness with which Ohio material
is sought for and the
price that some are willing to pay for
it.
The Genealogical Department is one of
the outstanding fea-
Dedication of Ohio's World War
Memorial 467
tures of our work. It is used
extensively by the Daughters of the
American Revolution, and those who would
be Daughters of the
American Revolution; not only by those
in Cleveland, but by
many from all over the United States.
Correspondents sometimes
send in queries that would take a week
to answer, and oftentimes
these come in without even a stamped
envelope for the reply.
We have nearly three thousand distinct
separate genealogies
of families.
Local and town histories, covering all
the Eastern and older
states, with a goodly number for the
newer states, altho not nearly
so complete as of the Eastern states, have been
carefully sought
for and placed on the shelves of the
Library.
Rosters of the several Wars, Pension
Rolls and Year Books
of Patriotic Societies also serve as
aids to the searchers of family
history.
A library of Ohio imprints holds an
important place in our
collection. With the advent of the first
printing press in a com-
munity, came the newspaper, also the
opportunity of printing
books or pamphlets of a local nature
that otherwise, in most cases,
would never have been printed.
What an opportunity is given, by means
of these old books,
to study the thought and tendencies of
the day; also the literature
that the people were then reading!
Of these special collections of the
Society, probably the larg-
est and most outstanding is the William
P. Palmer Collection on
the Civil War. I think I can say it is
not excelled by any library
outside of Washington. This collection
covers not only the State
of Ohio, but the entire country. There
are over 40,000 books on
this particular period. On the War of
1812 we have a large num-
ber of volumes. We have manuscript
papers of two of the four
Western Brigadier Generals. The papers
of the other two we
have never been able to locate.
Some years ago Dr. McLean published a
most excellent history
of the Shakers of Ohio in the QUARTERLY
of the Ohio State
Archaeological and Historical Society
and later a bibliography of
the Shaker publications. As we had only
three or four of the 600
or more listed, I felt that with North
Union village of the Shakers
almost at our back door, our Society
should have a collection a
little more worthy of this wonderful
Communistic organization.
Dr. McLean had formed the largest
collection then known,
consisting of about five hundred books
or pamphlets writen by, or
about the Shakers, and perhaps two
hundred Ms. items. These
he sold en bloc to the Library of
Congress. A smaller collection,
I believe, he gave to your organization.
For a time I felt that the opportunity
to collect this material
468 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications
had passed and turned my attention to
other things, when an un-
expected gift gave me a start. On
visiting some fifteen different
villages of Shakers, scattered from
Maine to Kentucky, by the
expenditure of a good deal of time and
some little money, I suc-
ceeded in gathering some fifteen hundred
printed books and pam-
phlets and about three thousand
manuscripts. These were later
turned over to the Society for permanent
preservation. We have
always felt that although good books may
have been written, cov-
ering the history of a subject, the
sources from which they have
been gathered should be preserved for
others, who may approach
the same subject from another
standpoint. To illustrate, in col-
lecting we had discovered safely housed
in the Ministry's private
rooms at Mt. Lebanon, the records of
that great spiritualistic
movement, which passed through all the
Shaker communities, and
of which most careful records have been
compiled. Dr. McLean
stated, and the rank and file of the
Shakers believed, that these
records had been destroyed to avoid any
use of them in the future,
by those who would not have a full
knowledge of this special
movement.
Again in reference to the Zoar Community,
Dr. Randall, for-
merly Secretary of your Society and the
Editor of your Journal,
published a most comprehensive history
of this Communistic So-
ciety. One might well hesitate to write
another, but at the same
time, when the opportunity presented
itself, we felt it well to
preserve the original sources of this
movement and in so doing,
we were able to obtain many letters
written to and by Mr. Bime-
ler, the founder, in the early part of
the 19th Century, from the
time when this group left the Old Country
and with the help of
the Quakers in the East, came and
settled on Ohio lands. These
letters, diaries and account books will
be valuable to those who
may wish to go farther into the history
of these movements, per-
haps from a different point of view.
In citing these two examples we are
doing it to urge your
Society to preserve, wherever possible,
the original source material
that may pass through your hands.
Of material and books bearing on the
Presidents of Ohio,
which ranks second only to Virginia in
the number who claim
her as their native state, we have
collected all we could obtain.
Another side of history that has not
been as carefully culti-
vated as it should be although
historians are now urging its im-
portance, is that of church history, and
to meet this demand we
have been gathering histories, reports of various
church organiza-
tions, church records, etc., wherever it
has been possible to obtain
them.
This is also true of the educational
work of Ohio, its acad-
Dedication of Ohio's World War
Memorial 469
emies, common schools, and colleges,
records of which we have
accumulated. President Hughes of Miami
University, on a re-
cent visit to the Library, said that in
Miami University history
and material, the collection surpassed
that which they had. Ohio
is the state of colleges, and when one
attempts to gather the ma-
terial of a half hundred colleges it is
no little undertaking. Yet
we feel the beginnings and development
of the educational work
in Ohio is and will be of great
importance.
We had not gone far in our collecting
before we found that
if we were going to get material for a
complete history of Ohio,
we had to go to the other states for the
beginnings of the history
of the Old Northwest and Ohio. Although
out of the limits of
this State, we have brought in a very
good collection on the vari-
ous states, such as Maine,
Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jer-
sey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Maryland,
etc. One cannot write
Ohio history without having recourse to
the history and works of
the Eastern States.
The richest treasures of the Society are
its manuscripts.
Most important of these are the records
of the Connecticut Land
Company and its instructions to agents
and surveyors. Next are
the field books and daily records and
sketches made by the sur-
veyors at work on the Reserve. Then the
finished manuscript
terial information of the early days and
early settlements of the
Reserve. There are also many letters and
documents relating to
the Indian troubles on the border and
the War of 1812. Some
of these have been published by the
Society; others have been
mounted and listed and the lists
published, but there are large
deposits of papers, etc., which are
still to be examined and pub-
lished when time and means will allow.
Among these I might call attention to
the vast correspondence
and papers of General Simon Perkins,
Turhand Kirtland, Elisha
Whittlesey, the latter prominent under
all the Presidents from
Madison to Lincoln; thousands of
manuscripts on the Civil War,
Colonel C. C. Whittlesey papers, papers
of Governors Hunting-
ton, Tod, Brown, Trimble; papers of the
Ohio Land Company;
manuscripts pertaining to the settlement
and history of various
towns all over Ohio, the diaries and
papers of early Clevelanders.
Of special interest to those in this
Central-Southeastern part of
the State are those of John Kerr. These
papers cover the entire
beginnings of Columbus and the opening
of the Northwest Lands
in Ohio which are north of the Indian
treaty line and west of the
Reserve; they also have a great deal to
do with the early settle-
ments around Chillicothe. The C. W.
Butterfield manuscripts
turned over by the daughter of Mr. Butterfield are
important;
470 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications
some of these have been published,
others revised for new editions
and some have never been published.
One of our strongest collections is that
of Newspapers. We
have some 8,000 volumes, among these the
files of Cleveland pa-
pers from 1818. The Western Reserve
papers started in 1812,
and we have practically complete files
of the various counties in
the Reserve.
Of the Confederate newspapers issued
during the Civil War,
there are some 24,000 separate issues.
The earliest American papers, such as
the Boston News-
Letter, which started in 1794, and the New York Gazette, the
first
of the New York papers, the first of the
Rhode Island papers, also
the first of Pennsylvania, as well as of
Virginia, have been pro-
vided by means of expensive photostat
copies. It would be im-
possible for any library to get anything
like a full file of these
early papers, and it can be done only
through the kindness of those
owning them in permitting photostat
copies to be made.
All of our newspapers have been
carefully collated, imper-
fections noted, and made ready for
research: There are many in-
teresting historical items contained in
these early publications.
Our collection of historical maps and
atlases is notably fine.
The nucleus of this collection was the
large collection formed by
our late President C. C. Baldwin. I
thought for a long time we
would lose these as the Library of
Congress was very anxious to
obtain them, but the family of Judge
Baldwin later presented
them to the Society. These maps cover
the entire range of his-
tory from the 16th century to the
present day.
They consist of:
The classic maps in original examples of
the work of the
great cartographers of Amsterdam, London and Paris.
They are
classified to show the development of
knowledge of the Great
Lakes and the Ohio River, as based upon
the return of voyagers
to the Royal Geographical Societies of France and
England.
Maps designed by the explorers
themselves and published in
their works; with few exceptions these are originals,
but we have
also almost a complete line of reprints.
Maps issued to illustrate standard books
of travel and his-
tory. These cover the period of opening of the Great
West.
War maps of the Revolution and the
border wars.
Maps for the tourist and emigrant of the
pioneer period.
Colonial maps based on first surveys and
political develop-
ments of Ohio.
Wall maps and atlases of the various
counties and cities of
the Western Reserve.
Among the outstanding manuscript maps of
the State of
Dedication of Ohio's World War
Memorial 471
Ohio, we might mention the first map of
the Ohio Land Company,
showing the location of Marietta, Rufus
Putnam's map of the
Military Lands, the John Kerr map of the
Northwest Section of
the State, the maps of Duncan McArthur
and Nathaniel Massie
of the Virginia Lands. We have several
hundred manuscript
maps of the various towns of the Reserve
and other parts of the
State. In the Civil War Collection we
have a good many, both
printed and manuscript. Among the latter
are those used by
General Hancock, General Braxton Bragg
and others.
The publications of the Society first
consisted of tracts
printed in simple newspaper form. In
other words the newspaper
set them up and ran them as news items
and from the type, sep-
arates were printed for the Society,
although of late years we have
not been able to use the newspapers in
this connection. The Tracts
now number 107.
The Journals of Trent, Heath and Brule,
all pertaining to
Ohio, were issued indirectly through our
Society and from ma-
terial we have gathered and preserved.
The Museum of the Society.
For the last two years we have had
conducted an educational
survey in Cleveland, and we have
surveyed and resurveyed, until
I don't know just what to say about this
phase of our work. We
have a large collection of
archaeological specimens and pioneer
relics, but I am afraid, as Dr. Flick
says, and as Dr. Parker, who
spoke so strongly at the last meeting of
the American Museum
Association, said, they have been thrown
together in a more or less
hodgepodge way, on account of lack of
space, and that is one of
the reasons why I rejoice with you in
this beautiful building,
where space seems ample and your
material can be shown and
grouped to its best advantage and for its widest
educational ser-
vice. We have plans for a new building,
in which we have ar-
ranged to carry out the work on very
similar lines to those of
which Dr. Flick has so, ably spoken.
Now, just a word in closing. I have brought
these things to
your notice, not with an egotistic thought, but with
the idea that
you are interested in history as we are and that you
like to know
where and what sources of the history of
our great State of Ohio
can be found in Cleveland. I think we
have done fairly well in
Cleveland, and it has been done entirely
without help of taxation
in any way, and only by private means.
In our individual zeal for our good
Mother State, Ohio, per-
haps one or another feels disappointed, as is perfectly
natural,
when this or that item has been obtained
by some one else, but
this should be only a passing feeling,
for think how much better
it is to have it preserved and made accessible than to
have it in-
472 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications
accessible, or irretrievably lost. I do
not feel that way when an
item belonging to the State's history
comes into, one of our larger
Ohio institutions, but I do regret
seeing things go out of the state
that would be of greater importance here
in Ohio.
I very often have a chance to point with
personal pride to the
Ohio Archaeological and Historical
Society. I am interested in it
and have been for years. Colonel Hayes
has talked over the
Hayes Memorial at Spiegel Grove and its
work a number of times
with me. I have urged him, instead of
trying to form another
collection of Ohio books, which would to
a large extent simply
duplicate the collections in Cincinnati,
Columbus and Cleveland, to
render to Ohio a service which to me
seems of greater value, that
of gathering from the French, English
and Canadian Archives
the manuscript records of this territory
which may be found there,
and publish them. To what greater
service can he put the funds
he has so generously given or with what
greater memorial can he
honor his father, who was so deeply
interested in Ohio history
and gathering of its sources?
I have been anxious to see some action
by the Legislature for
the preservation of the real history of
Ohio, as contained in the
State archives. I think it would make
anyone here sick to go into
the basement of the State House as I
have many times, and see
the records and files of this state,
manuscripts of the period of the
Civil War, scattered over the floor,
where anyone going into the
room would walk on them. Go into the
Governor's office and try
to find papers of the previous governors
that have been in office.
If the State Historical Society could in
some way get hold of those
records and safeguard them, I think it
would be one of the great-
est advance steps they could take.
Iowa is a much younger state than ours,
but her archives
are well preserved, and are being
published. I would like to see a
man like Mr. Galbreath doing the same
work in Ohio that Prof.
Stambaugh is doing in Iowa. There is not
a better man that I
know of to put in charge of these
valuable archives and make
them accessible by publication, than
your worthy Secretary, Mr.
Galbreath.
I stand shoulder to shoulder with
everyone here, willing to
do all I can to preserve the history of
Ohio in Ohio for the world
at large.
I thank you.
Under the energetic administration of
Mr. Cathcart,
the fine collection in the library of
the Western Reserve
Historical Society has been greatly
increased, the addi-
Dedication of Ohio's World War
Memorial 473
tions in manuscripts, newspaper files
and local history
being especially notable.
ADDRESS OF CHARLES T. GREVE
At the conclusion of Mr. Cathcart's
address, which
was liberally applauded, Professor
Siebert introduced
Mr. Charles T. Greve, Secretary of the
Historical and
Philosophical Society of Ohio and
well-known author,
who spoke as follows:
Mr. Chairman and Our Hosts: The Ohio
State Archaeolog-
ical and Historical Society and fellow
guests, representatives of
sister historical societies and
libraries:
I come from the South bringing to you
the greetings of
an elder sister, -- an elder sister
born and bred in your midst
almost a century ago -- who departing
seventy-seven years since
from the scenes of her youth, now
returns to share in the reveren-
tial tribute to Ohio's sons, many the
sons of the city of her home
by the beautiful river, and to add her
felicitations upon the occa-
sion of this opening of new
opportunities for cultivating the field
of Ohio history, -- the greetings and
congratulations of the His-
torical and Philosophical Society of
Ohio.
On behalf of that Society, afflicted as
you, with a super-
abundance of name, betraying perhaps a
common origin, -- a
family trait, -- I wish to extend
thanks for your cordial reception
and appreciation of the warmth of your
welcome to our home-
coming after so many years, -- an
occasion of more than usual
significance to us who were here before
you and who claim your
capital city as our own, -- our common
mother consenting to share
with us her pride in her younger
offspring.
Ninety-five years ago, on February 11,
1831, a charter was
issued to Benjamin Tappan, of
Steubenville, S. P. Hildreth of
Marietta, Alfred Kelley of Columbus,
James McBride of Butler
County, Ebenezer Lane of Huron and some
twenty others, to or-
ganize The Historical and Philosophical
Society of Ohio. Among
the charter members for the city of
Cincinnati were Nicholas
Longworth, John P. Foote and Timothy
Flint. To anyone
familiar with the history of our state,
the names of these empire
builders must awaken a thrill of
enthusiasm, and the fact that men
of such standing should be sufficiently
interested to take part in
such an organization should be a source
of inspiration. The So-
ciety whose greetings I bear was
organized on December 31, 1831,