USA > Ohio > Hamilton County > Cincinnati > Centennial history of Cincinnati and representative citizens, Vol. I, Pt. 2 > Part 7
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"The rear of this unique and multifidous edi- fice presents a noble Facade of Egyptian Col- umns, which will vie, in magnificence and nov- elty, with the Arabian windows that decorate its front. The apartments are all to be lighted by Gas, furnished by Mr. Delany. The whole ar- rangement and architectural device of this su- perb building reflects great credit upon the taste and skill of Mr. Palmer, the architect. The interior dimensions of the building are:
"Length . 104 feet
"Width 80
"Height to the top of the Spire, which is to surmount a cupola .. 80 6. "Height from the base to cornice. ... 33
"The Bazaar stands on Third street, East of Broadway." (Directory of 1819, p. 175.)
The picture of Hervieu is described in con- nection with the reception to Lafayette. The walls and ceiling which had been so elaborately decorated were afterwards, when the building had passed into other hands, covered with suc- cessive coats of whitewash, and finally of wall paper, which Mr. Foote well calls as striking an exhibition of vandalism as their original paint- ing was of folly as, although not works of very high art, they possessed too much merit to be de- faced. (Schools of Cincinnati, p. 206.)
Mrs. Trollope's residence in the Gano place at Mohawk while in Cincinnati is described by her son, Thomas Adolphus Trollope, in his book published over a half century later. He did not find the country about Cincinnati especially in- teresting or beautiful and was much disappointed by the Ohio .- La Belle Riviere. He tells us that the house was roomy and bright looking, bniit of wood and all white with the exception of the green Venetian blinds. It stood in its own grounds but these grounds consisted of a
large field, uncultivated save for a few potatoes in one corner of it, and the whole appearance of the place was made unkempt looking-not squalid because everything was too new and clean looking for that-by uncompleted essays toward a making of a road from the entrance gate to the house, and by fragments of board- ing and timber which it had apparently been worthy no one's while to collect after the build- ing of the house was completed. "With all this there was an air of roominess and bright- ness which seemed to me very pleasant. The house was some five or ten minutes' walk from what might be considered the commencement of the town but it is no doubt by this time, if it stands at all, more nearly in the center of it."
The subsequent history of the building is men- tioned by Anthony Trollope upon his visit to the city in 1861 and 1862. He found that the house, which at the time of its erection was considered the great building of the town, had become sadly eclipsed and by no means reared its head proudly among the great blocks around it. "It had be- come a Physicomedical institute when I was there, and was under the dominion of a quack doctor on one side and of a college of rights-of- women female medical professors on the other. 'I believe, sir, no man or woman ever made a dollar in that building; and as for rent, I don't even expect it.' Such was the account given of the unfortunate Bazaar by the present pro- prietor." The building was subsequently torn down in March, 1881, to make way for the Lor- raine Building, which stands on its site, the site of the southwest blockhouse of Fort Washing- ton.
Unfortunately, as stated, Mrs. Trollope's busi- ness venture did not succeed, and after a resi- dence of a little more than two years she left the city. The impressions made upon her must have been very unpleasant, for in her subsequent book, "Domestic Manners of the Americans," she gives a most contemptuous, if amusing, ac- count of the city. Her observation, however, was keen and if allowances are made for her natural disappointment and rather petulant de- sire to make ridiculous the scene of her faihire her work is well worth quoting as a contem- porary account of the town :
"We reached Cincinnati on the tenth of Feb- ruary. It is finely situated on the south side of a hill that rises gently from the water's edge, yet it is by no means a city of striking appear- ance; it wants domes, towers, and steeples; but its landing place is noble, extending for more
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than a quarter of a mile; it is well paved and surrounded by neat though not handsome build- ings. 1 have seen fifteen steamboats lying there at onec, and still half the wharf was unoccupied.
"The sight of bricks and mortar was really refreshing, and a house of three stories looked splendid. Of this splendor we saw repeated specimens, and moreover a brick church which, from its two little peaked spires, was called the two-horned church. *
* Certainly it was not a little town, about the size of Salisbury, without even an attempt at beauty in any of its edifiees, and with only just enough of the air of a city to make it noisy and bustling. The popu- lation is greater than the appearance of the town would lead one to expect. This is partly owing to the number of free negroes who herd to- gether in an obscure part of the eity, called Little Africa, and partly to the density of the popula- tion around the paper mills and other manu- factories. I believe the number of inhabitants exceeds twenty thousand.
"At that time I think Main street, which is the principal avenue, and runs through the whole town, answering to the High street of our old cities, was the only one entirely paved. The trottoir ( sidewalk ) is of brick, tolerably well laid, but it is inundated by every shower, as Cincin- nati has no drains whatever. * Were it furnished with drains of the simplest arrange- mient, the heavy showers of the climate would keep them constantly clean ; as it is, these show- ers wash the higher streets, only to deposit their filth in the first level spot ; and this happens to be in the street second in importance to Main street, running at right angles to it, and con- taining most of the large warehouses of the town. This deposit is a dreadful nuisance, and must be productive of miasma during the hot weather.
"To the north, Cincinnati is bounded by a range of forest-covered hills, sufficiently steep and rugged to prevent their being built upon or easily cultivated, but not sufficiently high to command from their summits a view of any con- siderable extent. Deep and narrow water- courses, dry in summer, but bringing down heavy streams in winter, divide these hills into many separate heights, and this furnishes the only variety the landscape offers for many miles around the town. The lovely Ohio is a beauti- ful feature wherever it is visible, but the only part of the city that has the advantage of its beauty is the street nearest to its bank.
"Though I do not quite sympathize with those
who consider Cincinnati as one of the wonders of the earth, I certainly think it a city of ex- traordinary size and importance, when it is re- membered that thirty years ago the aboriginal forest occupied the ground where it stands, and every month appears to extend its limits and * its wealth. *
* During nearly two years that I resided in Cineinnati or its neighborhood. I neither saw a beggar nor a man of sufficient fortune to permit his ceasing his efforts to in- crease it. Thus every bee in the hive is actively employed in search of that honey of Hybla, vul- garly called money ; neither art, science, learning, nor pleasure can seduce them from its pur- suit.
"Not withstanding fourteen hundred new dwellings had been erected the preceding year, the demand for houses greatly exceeded the sup- ply.
"Perhaps the most advantageous feature in Cincinnati is its market, which, for excellence, abundanec, and cheapness, can hardly, I should think, be surpassed. in any part of the world, if I except the luxury of fruits, which are very inferior to any I have seen in Europe. There are no butchers, fishmongers, or indeed any shop for catables, except bakeries, as they are ealled, in the town: everything must be purchased at market. *
* The beef is excellent, and the highest price when we were there, four cents (about twopence) the pond, the mutton was inferior, and so was the veal, to the eye. but it ate well, though not very fat; the price was about the same. The poultry was excellent ; fowls or full-sized chiekens, ready for the table, twelve cents, but much less if bought alive and not quite fat ; turkeys about fifty cents, and geese the same. The Ohio furnishes several sorts of fish, some of them very good, and always to be found cheap and abundant in the market. Eggs, butter, nearly all kinds of vegetables, ex- cellent, and at moderate prices. From June till December tomatoes (the great luxury of the American table in the opinion of most Euro- peans) may be found in the highest perfection in the market for about sixpence the peck. They have a great variety of beans, unknown in Eng- land, particularly the Lima bean, the seed of which is dressed like the French harrico; it fur- nishes a very abundant crop, and is a most de- licious vegetable.
"The watermelons, which in that warm climate furnish a most delightful refreshment, were abundant and cheap; but all other melons very
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inferior to those of France, or even of England, % when ripened in a common hotbed. * * It is the custom for the gentlemen to go to market at Cincinnati; the smartest men in the place, and those of the 'highest standing,' do not scruple to leave their beds with the sun, six days in the week, and, prepared with a mighty basket, to sally forth in search of meat, butter, eggs and vegetables. I have continually seen them returning, with their weighty baskets on one arm and an enormous ham depending on the other.
"Cincinnati has not many lions to boast, but among them are two museums of natural history ; both of these contain many respectable speci- mens, particularly that of Mr. Dorfeuille, who has, moreover, some interesting antiquities. * * The people have a most extravagant passion for wax figures, and the two museums vie with each other in displaying specimens of this barbarous branch of art.
"There is also a picture gallery at Cincin- nati, and this was a circumstance of much inter- est to us. * It would be invidious to describe the picture gallery; I have no doubt that some years hence it will present a very dif- ferent appearance. * * *
"It seems hardly fair to quarrel with a place because its staple commodity is not pretty ; but I am sure I should have liked Cincinnati much better if the people had not dealt so very largely in hogs. The immense quantity of business done in this line would hardly be believed by those who had not witnessed it. I never saw a news- paper without remarking such advertisements as the following :
"'Wanted, immediately, four thousand fat logs.
"'For sale, two thousand barrels of prime pork.'
"But the annoyance came nearer than this. If I determined upon a walk up Main street, the chances were five hundred to one against my reaching the shady side without brushing by a snout fresh dripping from the kennel. When we had screwed our courage to the enterprise of mounting a certain noble-looking sugarloaf hill that promised pure air and a fine view, we found the brook we had to cross at its foot red with the stream from a pig slaughterhouse ; while our noses, instead of meeting 'the thyme that loves the green hill's breast,' were greeted by odors that I will not describe, and which I heartily hope my readers can not imagine; our feet, that on leaving the city had expected to
press the flowery sod, literally got entangled in pigs' tails and jaw bones; and thus the prettiest walk in the neighborhood was interdicted for- ever."
ATWATER. 1963885
The distinguished historian of Ohio, Caleb Atwater, of Circleville, Ohio, on his way to the Northwest passed through the city in May, 1829. In a subsequent work he gives a description of the city which is certainly most complimentary : "In this city are one hundred, at least, mer- cantile stores, and about twenty churches. Some of the stores do business in a wholesale way, though quite too many of them are occupied by retailers on a small scale. There are a great many taverns and boarding houses. Among the churches, the First and Second Presbyterian, one belonging to the Unitarians, and the Roman Catholics, and perhaps two or three belonging either to the Episcopalians or the Methodists, are the best. There are two museums, in either of which more knowledge of the natural history of the Western States can be obtained in a day than can be obtained in any other place in a year. These collections are very well arranged. and kept by persons of taste, science, and po- liteness. No traveler of learning should ever pass through the city without calling to see them both, and, having once seen them, he will never neglect to see them as often as he visits the place.
"There are nine book stores, and a greater number still of printing establishments, that issue newspapers. The two principal publishers of newspapers issue each a daily paper.
"The mechanics of this city are numerous and very excellent in their several trades. Mann- factures of iron, of wood, of stone, of all the metals indeed, are carried on with zeal, industry and talent. The builders of houses are unrivaled in the rapidity with which they do their work, and they exhibit genius, skill, and taste.
"There are nearly sixty lawyers, who, for learning, zeal, fidelity, industry, morality, honor. honesty, and every other good qualification of heart and head are equal to a like number of the same honorable and highly useful profession, in any city in the United States.
"The number of physicians and surgeons in the city must be, I presume, nearly eighty, who are skillful, learned, and highly respectable in their profession.
"There are probably about forty clergymen in the city ; and from the morality of the place I
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give them credit for a considerable degree of usefulness.
"It will with great ease increase to a popu- lation of about fifty thousand inhabitants. Its increase beyond that number depends on so many causes, not yet developed, that human foresight cannot now scan them. It will, however, con- tinue to be the largest town in the State, unless Zanesville or Cleveland should exceed it.
"There is but one evil hanging over this city- the price of land is extravagantly high, and so are house and ground rents. Every material used in building is cheap, mechanical labor is low in price, and so is every article of food and rai- ment.
"Main street, for a mile in length from north to south, presents a scene as busy, as bustling, as crowded, and if possible more noisy, especially about the intersection of Fourth street with Main street, and also anywhere near the Ohio River, as can be found in New York. If the car is not quite so much afflicted with strange cries as in Philadelphia or Baltimore, yet for drumming and organ-grinding 1 should suppose some few spots in Main street, Cincinnati, would exceed anything of the sort in the world-at least I should most heartily and charitably hope so."
THOMAS.
Mr. Thomas, in his reminiscences, gives us a "view of the city in November, 1829, in which he speaks particularly of the private dwellings and the appearance of the city generally. Conspicu- ous among the new buildings of that year he tells us was Mr. Foote's elegant mansion on Third street, which with its lofty and splendid portico presented itself to the view of the pas- senger in all the lower part of the city. This building, shown in one of the illustrations of this work, stood on the northeast corner of Third and Vine. The beautiful pillars of a single piece of stone each, which supported the front of Mr. Raguet's house on Main street, were also ob- jects of general admiration.
HAMILTON.
Capt. Thomas Hamilton, the English author, visited the city in 1832 and afterwards in his "Men and Manners in America," a book which although higlily commended in England was se- verely condemned in this country for its spirit of unjust depreciation, gives no unpleasant men- tion of our city :
"In two days we reached Cincinnati, a town of nearly thirty thousand inhabitants, finely situ-
ated on a slope ascending from the river. The streets and buildings are handsome, and cer- tainly far superior to what might be expected in a situation six hundred miles from the sea and standing on ground which, till lately, was considered the extreme limit of civilization. It is, apparently, a place of considerable trade. The quay was covered with articles of traffic; and there are a thousand indications of activity and business which strike the senses of a traveller, but which he would find it difficult to describe. Having nothing better to do, I took a stroll about the town, and its first favorable impression was not diminished by closer inspection. Many of the streets would have been considered hand- some in New York or Philadelphia; and, in the private dwellings, considerable attention had been paid to external decoration.
"The most remarkable object in Cincinnati, however, is a large Gracco-Moresco-Gothic- Chinese-looking building, an architectural com- pilation of prettiness of all sorts, the effect of which is eminently grotesque. Our attention was immediately arrested by this extraordinary appa- rition, which could scarcely have been more out of place had it been tossed on the earth by some volcano in the moon. While we stood there, complimenting the gorgeousness of its effect and speculating 'what aspect bore the man' to whom the inhabitants of these central regions could have been indebted for so brilliant and fantastic an outrage on all acknowledged principles of taste, a very pretty and pleasant-looking girl came out and invited us to enter. We accord- ingly did so, and found everything in the in- terior of the building had been finished on a scale quite in harmony with its external magnifi- cence."
VIGNE.
A visitor of the following year, Godfrey T. Vigne, in his book, "Six Months in America," is also complimentary, particularly with relation to the painting of the houses. He also com- ments on the sad financial experience through which the town had just passed.
"In appearance it differs from most of the larger towns in the United States, on account of the great improvement that has taken place in the color of the houses, which instead of being of the usual bright staring red, are frequently of a white gray or a yellowish tint, and display a great deal of taste and just ornament. The public buildings are not large, but very neat and classical; I admired the Second Presbyterian
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Church, which is a very pretty specimen of the Doric. The streets are handsome and the shops have a very fashionable air.
"The principal trade of Cincinnati is in pro- visions. Immense quantities of corn and grain are sent down the Ohio and the Mississippi to New Orleans. Part of it is consumed by the sugar planters, who are supposed to grow no corn, and part is sent coastwise to Mobile, or exported to Havana and the West Indies gen- erally.
"Cincinnati has displayed more wisdom than her opposite neighbor in Kentucky. A specu- lative system of banking was carried on about the same time, and was attended with the same results as those I have before noticed when speaking of that State. Credit was not to be obtained, commerce was at an end, and grass was growing in the streets of Cincinnati. But the judicature, with equal justice and determination, immediately enforced by its decisions the re- sumption of cash payments. Many of the lead- ing families in the place were, of course, ruined, and at present there are not above five or six persons in Cincinnati who have been able to re- gain their former eminence as men of business. But it was a sacrifice of individuals for the good of the community, and fortune only deserted the speculators in order to attend upon the capitalists, who quickly made their appearance from the Eastern States, and have raised the city to its present pitch of prosperity."
IlOFFMAN.
A visitor of the following year was the cele- brated Charles Fenno Hoffman, who was tak- ing a horseback trip through the West in the hopes of recovering his health. His accounts of Western scenes originally printed in the New York American were subsequently published under the title of "A Winter in the West." In this he refers to the city on the banks of the Ohio as follows :
"The population of the place is about thirty thousand. Among them you may see very few but what look comfortable and contented, though the town does not wear the brisk and busy air observable at Louisville. Transportation is so casy along the great Western waters, that you see no lounging poor people about the large town, as when business languishes in one place and it is difficult to find occupation, they are off at once to another, and shift their quarters whither the readiest means of living invite them. What would most strike you in the streets of
Cincinnati would be the number of pretty faces and stylish figures one meets in the morning. A walk through Broadway here rewards one hardly less than to promenade its New York namesake. I have had more than one oppor- tunity of seeing these Western beauties by can- dle-light; and the evening display brought no disappointment to the morning promise. Noth- ing can be more agreeable than the society which one meets with in the gay and elegantly fur- nished drawing-rooms of Cincinnati. The ma- terials being from every State in the Union, there is a total -want of caste, a complete ab- sence of settisliness (if I may use the word). If there be any characteristic that might jar upon your taste and habits, it is, perhaps, a want of that harmonious blending of light and shade, that repose both of character and manner, which, distinguishing the best circles in our Atlantic cities, so often sinks into insipidity or runs into a ridiculous imitation of the impertinent non- chalance which the pseudo-pictures of English 'high life' in the novels of the day impose upon our simple republicans as the height of elegance and refinement."
CHEVALIER.
About the same time the celebrated French political economist, Michel Chevalier, who had just been pardoned from an imprisonment to which he had been condemned for an article on marriage, was sent by Thiers to investigate the railroads and canals of the United States. He afterwards published his letters with reference to his travels in this country. He found the architectural appearance of Cincinnati very nearly the same as that of the new quarters of the English towns. The houses were generally of brick, most commonly three stories high and, what naturally attracted the attention of the Frenchman, each calculated for a single family. At times the prevailing uniformity was inter- rupted by some more imposing edifice and some houses of hewn stone he thought in good taste, real palaces in miniatures, with neat porticoes, where lived the aristocratic portion of Mrs. Trol- lope's hog merchants. Several of the mansions were surrounded with gardens and terraces. Here and there were school houses where girls and boys were taught together and churches, small and plain without sculpture or painting, without colored glass or Gothic arches, but sung and well carpeted and well warmed by stoves. There were a great number of churches that im- pressed him. He specially notes an incident at
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the hotel. He observed at a table a man of medium'height, stout and muscular, of about the age of 50, yet with an active step and lively air of youth, and was struck with his open and cheerful expression and a certain air of com- mand which appeared through his plain dress. " .That,' said my friend, 'is General Harrison, clerk of the Cincinnati Court of Common Pleas. What! General Harrison of the Tippecanoe and the Thames? 'The same; the ex-Governor ; the conqueror of Tecumseh and Proctor; the avenger of our disasters of the Raisin and at Detroit ; the ex-Governor of the Territory of Indiana, the ex-Senator in Congress, the ex-Min- ister of the United States to one of the South American republics. He has grown old in the service of his country, he has passed twenty years of his life in those fierce wars with the Indians, in which there was less glory to be won, but more dangers to be encountered, than at Rivoli and Austerlitz. He is now poor, with a numerous family, neglected by the Federal Government, although yet vigorous, because he has the inde- pendence to think for himself. As the opposition is in the majority here, his friends have be- thought themselves of coming to his relief by removing the clerk of the Court of Common Pleas, who was a Jackson man, and giving him the place, which is a lucrative one, as a sort of retiring pension., His friends in the East talk of making him President of the United States. Meanwhile we have made him clerk of an in- ferior court.' After a pause my informant added, 'At this wretched table you may see another candidate for the presidency, who seems to have a better chance than General Harrison; it is Mr. McLean, now one of the judges of the Supreme Court of the United States.'
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