Memories of a Forty-Eighter

SKETCHES FROM THE GERMAN-AMERICAN PERIOD OF STORM AND STRESS IN THE 1850s

The original edition, Aus den Erinnerungen eines Achtundvierzigers, was printed in Cleveland in 1896. It is an entertaining and informative portrait of immigrant life in the mid-nineteenth century. Mueller (1822-1905), after settling in Cleveland, was a newspaper editor and publisher, antislavery advocate, and civic leader who served as Lt. Governor of Ohio (1872-74) and U. S. Consul to Frankfort (1885-1889).

"The only claim I make for my sketches…is that they are true and faithful to nature, and that they give a concise portrayal…of the deeds and efforts of the German population during the fifties, until the outbreak of the Civil War. "
Jacob Mueller

By Jacob Mueller; translated by Steven Rowan.
Western Reserve Historical Society Publication No. 181

A Stitch In Time: The Cleveland Garment Industry

The garment industry, concentrated in the Warehouse District and along Superior between East 19th and East 25th Streets, left its mark on the city in many ways.  Throughout the 20th century, Cleveland was one of the nation’s leaders in the garment industry.  Small shops established in the 19th century by immigrant entrepreneurs grew to become leading manufacturers.  Companies based in Cleveland made dresses, blouses, sweaters, cloaks, and suits for men, women, and children. Successful manufacturers became prominent philanthropists, helping to turn Cleveland into the best location in the nation, and immigrant workers built lives as Americans.  Workers earned the money to get an education and start their families. The industry declined in the late 20th century, but its mark on the city remains.

 

A Guide to Shaker Manuscripts

A GUIDE TO THE SHAKER MANUSCRIPTS IN THE LIBRARY OF THE WESTERN RESERVE HISTORICAL SOCIETY, WITH AN INVENTORY OF ITS SHAKER PHOTOGRAPHS

This guide describes the bulk of surviving manuscripts of this religious communal society founded in 1774. The material was gathered primarily between 1911 and 1920 by Wallace H. Cathcart, director of the Western Reserve Historical Society. This unparalleled collection reflects much of the history of each of the nineteen major Shaker communities in the northeastern United States (including the colony of North Union located just east of Cleveland from 1822 to 1889). It includes both loose items and bound volumes of correspondence, diaries and journals, financial records, music and hymnals, and inspired writings and drawings.
Compiled by Kermit J. Pike, retired WRHS Chief Operating Officer
 Western Reserve Historical Society Publication No. 131 

 

Standing on Ceremony

Standing on Ceremony

Traditional African arms from the Donna L. and Rubert H. Jackson Collection. The Jackson Collection of hand-forged traditional African arms is the largest in Cleveland and notable for high quality and outstanding condition of its select holdings which date from the later nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Lost Cleveland

Lost Cleveland is an engrossing excursion into the city’s rarefied architectural air during its heyday as the sixth-largest city in the country. Author Michael DeAloia recounts the histories of seven culturally significant and iconic architectural gems that defined Cleveland’s position of wealth and importance during the industrial age. Inspired by noble visions of Cleveland’s most elite residents, these structures reflect the vigor and imagination that suffused city leaders. From Severance Hall, still home to the Cleveland Orchestra and the only structure in this collection that remains standing, to “Andrew’s Folly,” the grandest house built on legendary Millionaire’s Row, Lost Cleveland provides a revealing historical retrospective on the growth, development and ultimate decline of the North Coast’s greatest city.

It Must Be Heard

The Musical Life of Cleveland, 1836-1918

Cleveland’s rich musical tradition is reflected in the wide range of choirs, bands, neighborhood and semi-professional ensembles, schools and institutes, publishers, and musicians that are its history. Among the legendary figures to affect the musical scene are Emil Ring, Alfred Arthur, N. Coe Stewart, Christiaan Timmner, Johann H. Beck, and Nikolai Sokoloff. A wide variety of sources on the individuals, their organized efforts, and their music was mined by Alexander in preparing this publication that accompanied a special WRHS exhibition, It Must Be Heard, in 1980. The author, who taught music at Cleveland State University, was for many years musical director for the Church of the Covenant.

By J. Heywood Alexander.
Western Reserve Historical Society Publication No. 158

The Hay-McKinney & Bingham-Hanna Houses

The story of two houses with many similarities:

– both were built by families whose ancestors lived on Millionaire’s Row;
– both were built by families who never really lived in them;
– both were lived in by families whose income was from Cleveland’s iron ore and steel industry
– both were designed in the Italian Renaissance architectural style;
– both became part of the Western Reserve Historical Society.

Written and published by WRHS, this is a story of the two houses that make up part of what is the WRHS History Center today.

Pelot Family Genealogy

This line of descent is a Continuation of Swiss Ancestry and Decendants of Jonas Pelot who settled in South Carolina in 1734. 

Written by Meredith B Colket Jr., F.A.S.G. (1912-1985)
Published by William Currie Colket and Julia Pelot Colket
First Edition

Eat & Explore Ohio Cookbook & Travel Guide

Cookbook lovers will discover Ohio like they’ve never tasted it before with the latest edition in the EAT & EXPLORE STATE COOKBOOK SERIES. Author Christy Campbell’s mission is to bring readers a taste of each state by sharing the favorite recipes of hometown cooks throughout the state while sharing information about fun festivals, unique attractions, and fascinating tourist destinations. Eat & Explore Ohio is much more than your average cookbook. It is an outstanding cookbook featuring traditional recipes from the people who know them best… Ohio cooks. With easy to follow recipes straight from home kitchens across the state, this latest volume preserves Ohio s most treasured dishes. But that’s not all. Eat & Explore Ohio is a tourist s guide to everything that makes Ohio special. From Old Man s Cave Chalets to Canton Palace Theatre, locals, tourists, and armchair travelers alike will enjoy reading about the festivals, events and unique destinations that are hallmarks of the state s traditions. This new cookbook will allow people everywhere to eat and explore Ohio… deliciously.

The Jubilee Edition of the Cleveland Wachter und Anzeiger 1902

This is a translation of the fiftieth anniversary edition of the Wächter und Anzeiger, the largest German-language newspaper in Cleveland, Ohio. The translated text provides an overview of the economic and social history of Cleveland, Ohio, and a detailed history of its German community and of the organizations (clubs, churches, orchestras, etc.) within the German community along with genealogical information on various early German settlers in the community.

Translation by Steven Rowan
Western Reserve Historical Society Publication Number 187

If Elected… Presidential Campaign Memorabilia Illustrated from the Collections of WRHS

The eight presidential campaigns involving candidates from Ohio are featured in this booklet. The essay describing the origins of campaign items and their manufacture and use in presidential campaigns was written by Joseph G. Brown of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, one of the premier collectors of political campaign memorabilia.

24 pages, paperback. Illus. (color), bibliography.
Western Reserve Historical Society Publication No. 171

Storyettes: Reminiscences of Frederick Coolidge Crawford Volume II

Frederick Coolidge Crawford was not only a Cleveland industrialist and namesake of the Crawford Auto Aviation Collection, but was also recognized worldwide for his leadership in the automotive and aviation industries, and a man who was greatly respected by his peers and his employees.  In his long lifetime, he was able to experience the dawn of the automobile, the invention of the aircraft, and seeing man walk on the moon.  And he played a large part in all of it. 

Storyettes is a collection of memories profiling Frederick C. Crawford. Enjoy this first person encounter of his life.
By Christopher Johnston. Illustrated by Bruce Seretta and Dean Bornstein
97 pages. hardcover

Through the Lens of Allen E. Cole

Samuel W. Black is Curator of African American Collections at the Senator John Heinz History Center in Pittsburgh and a former curator of the Allen E. Cole Collection at the Western Reserve Historical Society. A winner of several awards, Black is the editor of the anthology Soul Soldiers: African Americans and the Vietnam Era and serves as vice president of the Association of African American Museums.

Regennia N. Williams, a WRHS scholar, is associate professor of history at Cleveland State University and founder and director of the Initiative for the Study of Religion and Spirituality in the History of Africa and the Diaspora (RASHAD). She is the founding editor of The Journal of Traditions and Beliefs, and she received a Fulbright Fellowship for research and teaching in Ile-Ife, Nigeria, in 2010.