USA > Ohio > Hamilton County > Cincinnati > Cincinnati illustrated: a pictorial guide to Cincinnati and the suburbs > Part 8
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CITY OFFICERS .- Hon. Chas. Jacob, Jr., Mayor; Richard C. Rohner, City Clerk; S. W. Hoffman, Auditor ; Henry Knorr, Treasurer ; Henry Stegner, Jr., Assistant Treasurer ; Harry D. Blackburn, Pay-master; P. H. Kumler, City Solicitor; Alex. Kennel, Wharf-master; Michael Quinlan, Superintendent of Markets; C. B. Ebersole, Milk Inspector; J. V. Guthrie, Regis- ter Public Landing; John Birnbaum, City Sealer. Fred Fisch- er, Hay Weigher ; M. F. Wilson, Judge Police Court; Sam'l Smiley, Jr., Clerk Police Court; W. F. Doyle and Michael Spaeth, Assistant Clerks; John P. Murphy, Prosecuting Attor- ney; Henry Von Martels, Interpreter of Police Court; E. G. Armstrong, Sup't Police Telegraph, and Leopold Greenwald, City Weigher.
CITY PARK-Is an inclosed green plat, ornamented with trees, shrubs, flower beds and a fountain on the east front of the City Building.
CITY WORK-HOUSE, THE-Is npon the Colerain turnpike, one third of a mile east of Mill Creek, and within the corporate limits of the City. The buildings present a very fine appearance, having a frontage of 150 feet. In the south or main wing are contained 360 cells for male prisoners ; all are built in a single block of six tiers, with a hall or passage-way surrounding them 224 feet long and 16 wide. The north wing (female department) contains 240 cells, built on one solid block, and a hall or passage- way surrounding it 162 feet in length and 16 in width. Immedi- ately in the rear and center of the main building are the domestic departments ; first the prisoners' kitchen, where all the food is pre- pared and passed by means of endless belts, to the prisoners, the food having already been divided into the proper rations. The labor in this department is performed by female prisoners under the supervision of a guard. East and in the rear of the domestic apartments is the chapel, a beautiful hall 65 by 68 fcet, 30 feet in height, and capable of seating nearly 600 persons. During the year 1873, a large and commodious workshop, 200 feet long by 60 feet wide, was added to the improvements, af- fording ample room for the employment of any number of prisoners, equal to the capacity of the prison. Commencing at the extreme end of the north wing of main buildings and run- ning due east 600 feet, then south 505 feet, then dne west 600 feet to the south end of main building, is a solid stone wall, 15 feet in height, and inclosing the entire back part of main structure, as well as out-buildings, the entrance to which is made through three large portals or gateways. The work-house receives adult criminals convicted of minor offenses. It is managed by an un- paid board appointed by the mayor and council. In 1874 there were 4,175 prisoners committed. The Work-house was opened on the 17th November, 1869. The total balance and receipts of the Work-house for the year ending 31st December, 1878, was $65,086 and the expenses, $51,687. The number of prisoners committed during the year 1878, was 2,984, and the number discharged, 3,002. The total number of prisoners committed since the opening of the prison was, up to the same date, 33,709, and the number discharged, 33,264. The following table shows the average expenses per capita :
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KENNY'S CINCINNATI ILLUSTRATED.
Average expense of food, per capita, per day, . 105% cents.
Average expense of clothing, . 2 cents.
Average expense of light, fuel, furnishing, transporta-
tion, hospital, sundries and services, per capita, per day, . 21 cents. Average expense, per capita, per day, for improve- ments and repairs, 3% cents. Average cost of prisoners each day, per capita, for 1878, including all expenditures, . 34 cents.
Average cost, per capita, for 1877, . 3812 cents.
Total amount expended 1878, . $51,687 19
Total amount expended 1877,
61,633 53
The occupations of the prisoners committed during 1878, were as follows : Males, laborers, 1097 ; mechanics, 706 ; professions, 95; various other occupations, 311. Females, prostitutes, 415 ; house- work, etc., 360. The officers for year ending December 1879, are : William Dunn, Superintendent; William L. Thompson, Assist- ant Superintendent and Secretary; Francis Dowling, Physician ; Geo. W. Neare, Jr., Captain of the Guard; Miss Mary Shaffer, Matron.
CLEARING HOUSE (Sec Banks).
CLERK OF THE COURTS. - The Clerk of the Courts is elected every three years by the voters of Hamilton Coun- ty. Lewis G. Bernard is the present incumbent. The Courts in which he officiates are the Common Pleas, Dis- trict, and Superior. His salary is five thousand dollars per annum. All fees collected in excess of that sum are turned over to the Fee Commissioners. The excess of fees is sometimes as higli as $10,000. Mr. Bernard has twelve deputies, and as many clerks. The deputies are : Emil Hoffman, Issuing Deputy: J. II. Garrison, Index Deputy ; Jos. Shelt, Book-keeper; Henry Bertling, Ex- ecution Deputy; M. K. Drake, Deputy in Room 1 Com- mon Pleas ; J. J. Farrell, Deputy in Room 2 Common Pleas; E. A. Lucius, Deputy in Room 3 Common Pleas; C. McDevitt, Deputy in Room 4 Common Pleas; H. C. Holabird, Deputy in Room 5, Common Pleas; Jos. Furst, Deputy in Room 1 Superior Court; R. J. Manning, Deputy in Room 2 Superior Court; Joseph Seiter, Deputy in Room 3 Superior Court.
CLEVES-A flourishing village in the State of Ohio, with 750 inhabitants, possesses a Presbyterian and a Methodist Church, and good public school. It is on the line of the I. C. & L. and O. & M. Railroads 16 miles from Cincinnati.
CLIFTON. - Among the many suburbs of Cincinnati, there is no one that is more favorably known than Clif- ton. Its beautiful drives, splendid improvements, and . fine prospects, have been for years among the chief at- tractions of Cincinnati's surroundings. The configura- tion of the land is such that the entire district is admira- bly adapted to country seats; and this is specially true of that which lies adjacent to the point where the hills be- gin rapidly to descend to the Millcreek Valley. Every person who has passed along the Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton Railroad, or the common roads that run through the valley of Millereck, remembers the noble hills that sweep around for several miles to the east, covered with rich foliage or luxuriant grass, with now and then a tower, a buttress, or a veranda, partially disclosed by openings in the forest trecs. These highlands are Clifton, from the slopes of which the beholder looks out upon a valley of great extent and
On Lafayette Avenue is situated the home and grounds of Henry Probasco, the gentleman who presented Cincinnati with of rare beauty. For many miles to the north are suburban | the great Fountain; they are the finest in the suburbs of Cin- cinnati. The grounds are spacious and varied in their attrae- tions, and the house rich in all that delights the eye.
places, beautiful farms, comfortable farm-houses, fields rich in pasturage, interspersed with beautiful groves. Beyond are the grand hills, their sides covered with verdure and dotted with the houses of thrifty farmers. Through the valley the ereek wanders, and the landscape is scarcely ever without a railroad train to lend it additional interest.
Clifton is purely a suburban place. There is nothing of the town aboutit. There is neither store, grocery, mechanie's shop, nor saloon, and the whole place is so completely under the con-
trol of those who desire to keep it for purposes of country resi- dence, that it must be many years before the general character of the place can change. Of course, it will become more thickly settled. Each year the inhabitants will increase in numbers, until it will become less retired; but it will be among the last places about Cincinnati that will suffer from eneroachments of business.
While there are fewer buildings in Clifton than in other sub- urbs, there is also more difference in size and value. The ex- tremes are the neat cottage, with its airy verandas and witching vines and flowers, and the palatial residence, with massive walls, and porches, and imposing tower, upon which wealth has freely used the skill of the best mechanics and artists, and to adorn which the galleries of Europe have been made to pay tribute. The tender plant that bears its tiny flowers and scents the air with its delicate perfume bears quite as necessary a part in the landscape as the great forcst tree, under whose branches flocks and herds find shelter from the storm.
Clifton Avenue, throughout its entire length, and Lafayette Avenue, from the former to the property of Mrs. Bowler, has on
RESIDENCE OF CHARLES STEWART, ESQ., CLIFTON.
one side an asphaltum pavement, as solid and beautiful as can anywhere be found. On the east side of the Avenue is the handsome residence of Charles Stewart, Esq., with tower and veranda, and a little further along is the large roomy mansion of J. Burnett Resor, of the firm of Wm. Resor & Co.
RESIDENCE OF J. BURNETT RESOR, ESQ., CLIFTON.
The house is constructed of blue limestone. The quoins, angles and buttresses are of freestoue, each piece of which is hammer-marked to make it harmonize with the rough limestone. The walls are of rubble-work, the face of the stone having been untouched by chisel or hammer. The general style is Anglo- Norman. It is one hundred and twenty feet long by seventy in width, fronting south wardly. In front is a massive stone terrace,
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KENNY'S CINCINNATI ILLUSTRATED.
which extends the entire length of the building. The house is entered through a magnificent stone porch, with elegant Nor- man arches. At the northeast end of the edifice is a porte cochere, constructed of freestone, and the building is surmounted by a round tower, which springs from the walls of the main stairway. The whole external appearance of the building . is one of spaciousness without useless room, of dignity without coldness, of varicty without the loss of harmony.
Running through the building from the main porch is the grand hall, seventy by fifteen fect. This is wainscoted with oak, cedar and white pinc, and ceiled with white pine and oak. These materials are all finished in the highest degree.
Intersecting the main hall on the right, as you enter the build- ing from the front, is a side hall, capacious, though of less width than the principal onc. This leads directly to the porte cochere. From this hall two large arched doors lead, the one to the north into the library, the other to the south into the parlor. The li- brary is thirty-five by twenty-five feet, terminating on the north in a spacious bay window. The walls, shelves and sides are of cedar, and the air is loaded with the grateful perfume of the wood. The books are contained on shelves that are intersected at short intervals by oak columns. The latter are surmounted by capitals of solid oak, upon which are exquisitely carved rep- resentative leaves and flowers of the flora of this country. From these columns spring arches which contain niches for busts and statuettes. All the panels of the room are red cedar, while the ceiling is frescoed in harmony with the architectural character of the room. The library table is constructed of the best quality of oak, carved in an elaborate and unique manner, and is a mas- terpiece of art.
RESIDENCE OF HENRY PROBASCO, ESQ., CLIFTON.
Immediately opposite the library is the parlor, a room thirty by twenty-four feet, entered from the side hall through a mas- sive circular doorway of exquisite workmanship. The room it- self, independent of its expensive pictures, its rare mosaics, and its superb furniture, is a work of art. The cornice is of varied finish, and in the ceiling there is a wonderful combination of colors and shades. This room contains two massive bay win- dows, which are approached through arches of oak, supported by highly-polished pillars of the same material. The soffit of the arch in the front bay window is embellished throughout its length with a representation of the honeysuckle carved in oak, which is a work of rare perfection. The capitals of the pillars arc also carved to harmonize with the remainder of the work.
The reception room, dining-room and bed chambers are all in unison with the remainder of the house. The stairway is a su- perb design and a triumph of mechanical skill. The wood-work of the kitchen and laundry, like the remainder of the house, cven
to the sash of the windows, is of solid oak. Mr. Probasco's ample grounds are in keeping with the house crected upon them. The improvement of them was begun immediately after the pur- chase ; and the present perfect state, with the gentle slopes, the gradual rise and fall of the surface, has been attained by years of labor and large expenditure. Deep ravines have been filled, elevations cut down and inequalities reconciled, until the pres- ent grounds bear no resemblance to their condition twenty years ago. Besides the beautiful lawns which surround Mr. Probasco's residence, he has almost every thing in the shape of shade and ornamental trees. In addition to the forest trees of America, he has a large collection of foreign beech, ash, oak, elin and ma- ple, and a valuable collection of evergreens, gathered from var- ious countries of the globe. The Pyrenecs, the Himalayas and the Rocky Mountains have each made their contribution.
Besides these, Mr. Probasco has a rosarium, in which he has four thousand roses. He has also a beautiful collection of varie- gated-leaf plants and hardy shrubs, together with many hardy ferns. This is a meager description of the floral beauties of this place. If space would permit, there could be given a formidable list of plants and flowers which the forests and gardens of the world have contributed. In addition to other treasures, Mr. Pro- basco has been quietly but rapidly collecting one of the richest and most valuable libraries in the United States, and adorning his residence with some of the most expensive and meritorious works of art ever brought to this country. Before entering the house, we meet upon the terrace Kiss's Amazon, in bronze. Of these there are but three iu existence: the colossal one before the palace in Berlin, one in possession of the Emperor, and the one here alluded to, purchased of the widow of the artist by Mr. Probasco, during his recent visit to Europe. In marble, there are "San Souci," by Ives; "Reading Girl," by Magni; "Cordelia," a bust of exquisite workmanship, by Conolly; the " Reading Girl," by Tantardini ; "Innocence," by Prof. Fedi, of Florenec; "Ruth," by Rogers. In addition to these are splen- did mosaics, one of them representing Rome from the Forum to the Coliseum-a work of unusual excellence. There are also two Mosaic tables-one Roman and the other Florentinc-which are rare and expensive works of art.
To the superb gallery of paintings, comprising some of the most costly and beautiful ever brought to this country, no more than a passing notice can be given. The library is filled with books of remote antiquity, as well as many volumes, attractive and useful, of modern times. It contains nearly one hundred copies of the various cditions of the Bible, a few of which are upon vellum, comprising those in Hebrew, Greek, Latin, English, German, French, Irish, etc. The collection is particularly rich in early illuminated manuscripts, commencing with a matchless copy of the Greck Testament of the twelfth century. It also con- tains exquisite and rare Missals of the thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth centuries; the carliest printed copies of the Old and New Testaments ; a magnificent Latin Bible, printed on vellum, in Venice, in 1480; the first Bible printed in Greek, by Aldus, in 1518; rare and complete English Bibles, of 1539, 1541, 1549, 1568, 1585, and splendid copies of the present version of 1611; the "Holic Bible, conteynyng the Old Testament and the Newe," of 1568, called the Bishop's Bible, and the magnificent Polyglot of Walton, in eight volumes. The collection is likewise rich in the various editions of Shakespeare, commencing with a very valua- ble first folio of 1623, as well as the works of Dante, beginning with the superb folio of 1481, containing nineteen copper-plates. Copper-plates were used in printing in that year for the first time. There are at least one hundred and fifty copies of the earliest printing, among them specimens of the earliest Aldines, Elzevirs and Pynsons, and coming down to the most superb speci- mens of modern times, including copies of works that took the medals at the French Exposition, to which may be added rare specimens of rich and expensive binding. Natural History, too, is specially represented in this collection. Here are found Audubon's Birds, elephant folio, Gonld's Humming-Birds, etc., besides a rare collection of illustrated works generally. From this enumeration, meager as it is, the reader may forin an idea of
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KENNY'S CINCINNATI ILLUSTRATED.
the richness of this collection of literature and art. To it might be added almost indefinitely books, works of art, souvenirs and euriosities. Among the latter is found the gold medal which the King of Prussia gave Humboldt. This, by the will of that illustrious man, passed to one of his servants, who sold it to Asher & Co., booksellers of Berlin, from whom it was purchased by Mr. Probasco. To complete the rare attractions of Mr. Probasco's place, he enjoys to the full extent the splendid panorama of the valley to the northward from his residence; thus combining in one home, the charming attractions of nature with the rich contributions of literature and art.
Adjoining Mr. Probaseo's on the west are the premises of George K. Shoenberger. Mr. Shoenberger has forty acres of land, the general characteristies of which are not unlike the remainder of the fine sites that are found on the brow of this hill-Mr. Shoenberger, however, having for his house the advantage of a position upon a spur, that gives him a superb outlook. The ground falls suddenly to the southwest and north, leaving the house on the point of a long spur running from the east. The edifice is one of the most expensive and beautiful within the suburbs of Cincinnati. The style of the building is of the French Gothie domestie order.
to correspond with the remainder of the building. In the lateral hall, to which allusion has been made, is the grand stairway. It consists of two flights, approaching each other from
AYIN
RESIDENCE OF P. H. HARTMANN, ESQ., CLIFTON.
F.JENGLING.
RESIDENCE OF GEO. K. SHOENBERGER, ESQ., CLIFTON.
opposite ends of the hall to a common landing, from which return flights conduct to the second story. This arrange- ment is unique and beautiful. The same hall eommuni- eates with the picture gallery, which is immediately on the south. The latter is fifty feet in length by twenty- five in width; it has a ceiling twenty feet in height and is finished in a style to best serve the purposes for which it is used. Connecting with the main hall on the right is the billiard room twenty by thirty feet, and, on the left, a dining room, eighteen by twenty-five feet, the latter eonnceting with a breakfast room by two sets of double doors. The porte cochere, sixteen by twenty-six feet, is construeted almost entirely of eut freestone, and, in architectural beauty, is not inferior to any other part of the building. The ceilings of the lower floor are fifteen fcet in height; of the second floor, fourteen fect. The , arrangement of the rooms of the second floor conforms generally to that of the first. The bed chambers are large, and furnished with all the modern conveniences. The basement contains kitchen, laundry, etc., with ample cellars. The general finish of the building inside is very elaborate and pieturesque. 'Hard wood enters largely into the composition, and the best materials has been used throughout. The building is covered with slate. The main tower, rising from the end of the west hall, is fourteen by twenty feet, with staircase-turret attached. The whole rises eighty feet from the ground. In front
815700
The house is built of blue limestone, with freestone trimmings of an elaborate character. The walls are uncoursed aslılar work. The entire building is one hundred and twenty-six feet in length by one hundred and twenty-six feet in width. This is the measurement from the outer points. The area of the ground floor is about ten thousand square feet. The building faees the north, and is entered through a magnificent eut- stone porch, twelve by eighteen fect, that opens im- mediately to the main hall, which is twenty feet wide and twenty-six feet deep. This hall leads to a lateral one, ten by fifty-two fect, and is continuous with one running south, ten feet wide by fifty-seven feet in length. The main hall is open to the roof, with a gallery around it at the second story. This is paneled and richly fres- coed and open-timbered at the ceiling. The main hall opens to the parlor, on the right-a room forty feet long by twenty-seven feet wide. The front of this room con -. sists of two magnificent bay windows. On the left RESIDENCE OF HON. RICHARD SMITH, CLIFTON. of the hall is the library, eighteen by twenty-six feet, finished | of the entire building there is a magnificent stone terraee, fifty
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KENNY'S CINCINNATI ILLUSTRATED.
feet, wide upon which a carriage drive has been constructed. There is also a stone terrace on the east, twenty feet wide.
On the southeast corner of Glenway and Brookline Avenue, P. H. Hartmann, Esq., consul for Belgium and Holland, has a very tasteful residence. The house is a two-story brick, amply supplied with verandas, and, in addition, has what is beautiful, but rare in this country, a bay window at the angle. IIis dwell- ing is furnished with modern improvements, and his command- ing lot of five acres gives him an outlook which is exceedingly desirable.
On the south side of Ludlow Avenue, west of Clifton Avenue, is the new residence of Richard Smith, of the Cincinnati Gazette. Few persons have been so fortunate in the selection of sites. From an elevated position, Mr. Smith looks out upon the splendid improvements on the north, and enjoys the distant landscapes in which this locality is so rich. His residence is of brick, two stories ; with observatory, and spacious portico looking to the Avenue. His parlors, library, and every thing, indced, per- taining to the premises, are characterized by simple elegance. The entire house is supplied with hot and cold water, and no appointment seems wanting to make it one of the most complete suburban homes.
A wonderful advance has taken place in the price of lands in this locality since public attention was first turned in this direction. In the year 1844, James Robb, of New Orleans, a prominent banker, purchased about sixty-five acres of land, for which he paid $65 per acre. In 1849 this was sold by him for $275 per aere, and six years afterward a portion of the same lands was sold for $1,000 per acre. Early in 1868 lands belong- ing to the Bryant estate, on Clifton and Ludlow Avenues, sold at an average of about $3,000 per acre. This indicates that eligible 'lands in this locality have increased about forty-six hundred per cent. in twenty-four years.
CUVIER CLUB .- In 1871, a few gentlemen, fond of field sports, determined to form a sportsmen's society, whose object should be to elevate the tone of field sports and to en- force the game laws. They met at long intervals, and their meetings were of a desultory nature, but their membership increased. Subsequently the original idea of a sportsmen's eluh solely was abandoned by them, and it was resolved to enlarge their scope so as to include game preservation. Out of this resolution sprang the Ohio State Society for the Protection of Game and Fish, for such was the title adopted by the new society. It began its errand weak in numbers, and poor in purse. Its early meetings were held in the law office of Hon. Thos. A. Logan and others. An attendance of ten or twelve was deemed a full attendance. But the purpose of the society, as indicated by its title, was a fixed purpose in the minds of its founders, and they determined that the society should not perish, and that it should acquire a local habitation, as well as name. Upon their personal responsibility they rented the front room in the present building, No. 200 West Fourth street. Here they persist- ed in their endeavors, encouraging the old, and solicit- ing new members, until their enterprise seemed placed on a permanent basis. It was then resolved to rent the present spacious rooms in the rear, and this was done once more upon the personal responsibility of a few, for the pecuniary liabilities. The last regular meeting, in the front room, was upon February 5, 1874. The name of the society had proved too cumbersome, and it was changed to the Cuvier Club. Throughout the year 1874 there was gradual progress. Upon January 1, 1875, the club issued its invitations to the eitizens at large, and received the calls of about 500 visitors. The effect of this open display was most beneficial. Those who never before had dreamed of the existence of the elub, or of such a collection (which, by this time, had been increased by the Florida collection and by private donations), became warmly interested. New mem- bers gladly joined, and the treasury began to assume healthful proportions. During 1875 the club grew rapidly in numbers, in
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