USA > Ohio > Cuyahoga County > Cleveland > Official report of the centennial celebration of the founding of the city of Cleveland and the settlement of the Western Reserve > Part 20
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At the Ashtabula table were Mrs. Rufus P. Ranney, Mrs. N. B. Prentice, Mrs. S. A. Northway, Jefferson; Mrs. E. C. Wade, Jefferson; Mrs. George E. Nettleton, Ashtabula; Mrs. H. P. Fricker, Ashtabula; Mrs. J. P. Treat, Geneva; Mrs. S. F. Higley, Geneva ; Mrs. E. L. Lampson, Jefferson; Mrs. S. J. Smith, Conneaut; Mrs. Hiram Lake, Conneaut ; Mrs. Willis E. Robison, Kingsville ; Mrs. E. C. Sheldon, Mrs. Myra B. Binger, Andover; Mrs. Sara Phelps-Holden, Kingsville; Mrs. Martha Coleman Robertson, Mrs. E. Robertson-Miller, Canton; Mrs. Elvina Lobdell Bushnell, Mrs. J. A. Howells, Jefferson; Mrs. R. B. Hickox, Kelloggsville; Mrs. C. M. Traver, Conneaut; Mrs. Edward H. Fitch, Jefferson; Mrs. W. F. Stanley, Conneaut.
At the electric light table were Mr. and Mrs. George Hoag, Mr. and Mrs. C. W. Phipps, Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Scovill, Mr. and Mrs. J. P. Mckinstry, Mrs. R. G. Pate, Mr. and Mrs. S. E. Cox, Mr. and Mrs. E. J. Bagnall, Mr. George B. Tripp, Mrs. W. E. Scovill, Mr. and Mrs. J. A. Dalzell, Mr. and Mrs. K. Gill, Mr. and Mrs. L. H. Rogers, Mr. and Mrs. S. C. D. Johns.
At the Trumbull County table were Mrs. Henry C. Ranney, Mrs. A. E. Adams, Mrs. W. Packard, Mrs. Homer Stewart, Mrs. Mary Hutchins Cozzens, Mrs. Jane Tod Ratliff, Mrs. L. P. Gilder, Mrs. C. B. Darling, Mrs. E. P. Babbitt, Mrs. H. B. Perkins, Miss E. H. Baldwin, Mrs. Cornelia Fuller Harmon, Mrs. B. F. Taylor, Mrs. Mantie L. Hun- ter, Mrs. Charles Ranney, Mr. Charles Ranney, Mr. Julius Lembeck, Mr. Alfred Adams, Mr. and Mrs. Homer, Mrs. Helen Tayler MeCurdy, Miss Olivia Hapgood.
Before partaking of the feast the guests listened to an address of welcome by Mrs. W. G. Rose, who spoke as follows:
Ladies and Gentlemen: I greet you to-night as citizens of the Western Reserve. In this year of retrospect we have been astonished at the number of able men and famous women given to the nation by a section of but 120 miles east and west and sixty miles north and south. Twelve counties are here represented, and each has in the past century produced some persons of whom we are proud. Mahoning has its Maguffy and Governors Tod and Mckinley. Trumbull has Simon Perkins, of canal fame, Seth Pease and Judge R. P. Ranney. Ashtabula has Joshua R. Giddings, Ben Wade, Howells, Tourgee, and Spencer, of the Spencerian system. Lake was the home of President Garfield and Governor Huntington, Peter Hitchcock, Almeda Booth, and
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Miss Evans. Geauga has Governor Ford. Portage has Arthur Tappan and Roswell Kent. Summit has John Brown, David Hudson, David Bacon, Presidents Pierce, Hitchcock, and Cutler, Dr. Crosby. R. P. Spalding, O. C. Barber, Ferd. Schumacher, J. D. Rockefeller, General Voris, and many others. Medina has General M. D. Leg- gett and General Alger, Huron has the great traveler, Kennan, Erie has Rush R. Sloane, and is the birthplace of Thomas Edison, the great inventor. Lorain has Charles G. Finney, the evangelist, A. A. Wright. the geologist, Asa Mahon and Pro-
fessor Morgan. Cuyahoga has Governors Wood and Hoadly, John Baldwin, E. I. Baldwin, the authors. Sarah K. Bolton, Lydia Hoyt Farmer, A. M. Perkins, and Arte- mus Ward. It was General Leggett who gave us the graded school system. It was the Mack Brothers, of Akron, who solved the problem of running sewing machines over thick and thin material. It was Charles F. Brush who gave us the brilliant elec- tric light and who is bringing to perfection the storage battery. H. B. Hurlbut gave his home for an art gallery. Mrs. S. M. Kimball, was the founder of the School of Design. John Huntington, gave his home for a school of ceramics. Amasa Stone gave us Adelbert College, and the Home for Aged Women: and H. R. Hatch, the col- lege library building. J. H. Wade gave the Wade Park, and W. J. Gordon and J. D. Rockefeller the boulevards more beautiful than are in any city east or west.
CLEVELAND YACHT CLUB HOUSE.
The Western Reserve is said to send through the mails more personal letters, books and magazines, than any other like portion in the United States.
One word to our guests from the committees. The electric car brings people to all our great assemblies. Our own citizens now live out on the hilltops and country roads. They feel the invigoration and health which come from being in contact with nature. Our citizens are no longer confined to city limits. We can claim you in the same sense that you contribute to our intelligence and wealth. We are one. The Western Reserve is one.
- In the Western Reserve centennial album we present to you to-night, we have en- deavored to gather on its pages buildings, people, and avenues that will soon be for- gotten except. in name. We have been assisted by almost every prominent citizen. They gave us willingly of photographs and cuts from colleges, seminaries, and parks. We only regret that we did not enter upon it earlier. But we trust that it will and our grandchildren in recalling the times and places when the next centennial is celebrated in Cleveland and the Western Reserve.
Rev. Dr. HI. M. Ladd, of the Euclid avenue Congregational Church, invoked divine blessing, and attention was then given to the menu. During the serving of the courses musical selections were rendered by
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the Schubert Club and the Wagner Quartette. Following the banquet interesting after-dinner speeches were made. Mrs. Sarah E. Bierce was the toastmistress. By way of introducing the programme she said :
Madame President, ladies and gentlemen-guests of the Woman's Board of the Centennial Commission :- It was a happy thought to make Cleveland, the beautiful Forest City, the Mecca of all Western Reserve pilgrims for this Centennial summer. It is especially fitting that one day should be set apart for the daughters of the Re- serve. For this purpose, the Women's Board extended the invitation which has met with such a flattering response. Thousands came to the great Central Armory to-day and even this capacious hall cannot hold those who would fittingly close this auspicious occasion at the reception and banquet. Between these daughters of the Reserve gathered as we are from many States, there are bonds of sympathy and love that are strong and true. We are daughters of the men and women who have made some of the very best chapters of American history. We are proud and happy upon this cen- tennial occasion to pay our tributes of love and respect to these most worthy ances- tor's. We are honored to-night, sisters,-the next President of this great Republic is from the Reserve and he is our guest. If we are the daughters of noble men and noble women, we are also the mothers of the young men and young women who will bear the standard names for liberty, and truth, in the century upon which we have just entered.
We greet you, too, as co-workers in every grand movement looking to the advance- ment of women in the industries, in higher education, in the charities, and all along the lines that make a higher type of womanhood and better service for God and humanity. Mayor Robert MeKisson will welcome you for the City of Cleveland.
The mayor, in response to the toast " For the City of Cleveland,"
said :
Madam Toastmistress, Women of the Western Reserve, and Gentlemen :
It was Lamertine, I believe, who said: "There is a woman at the beginning of all great things." The century now closing has been prolific in great achievements for our city and our nation, and were a true record made woman's hand might be found as the guiding force in nearly all of them. Well may her praises be sounded to- night; well may her glorious deeds be recounted in speech and song. This occasion is one of rare significance and dignity. A hundred years have passed since woman, side by side with man, began her noble work, enduring hardship, sharing toil for the up- building of our fair and now illustrious city. On woman's brow we place a laurel wreath, and one and all rise up and call her blessed. It is an accepted fact long known to mankind that the silent forces of the world are the greatest. All along the pathway of our nation's history woman's quiet but ever powerful influence has manifested it- self in countless ways. Chief of all it has made itself felt in the relationship of wife to husband, of mother to son, and of sister to brother. One of the most eloquent things the great and sturdy Lincoln ever said was: "All I am I owe to my mother." See Garfield on the happiest, grandest moment of his life, that of his inauguration, turn aside from the plaudits of the multitude and press upon his mother's lips a sacred kiss. Hear Lady Washington say, with true motherly pride: " I am not surprised at what George has done, for he was always a good boy.
Tributes such as these speak volumes for the devoted womankind of our land. In the Western Reserve there are 3,000,000 acres of land; in no section of the country are to be found more worthy women than here. They have gone out during the years through the country elevating society and brightening the firesides and homes. No- where in the land are better wives to be found. This was shown in the very first wed- ding that occurred on the soil of the Western Reserve. History tells us that a young Canadian, after looking over her Majesty's Domain, came down to our little settlement and married one of our girls. That wedding took place in the first log cabin built in Cleveland, and was solemnized by a land agent who happened to also be a minister. I do not know how the young men of the town felt toward this Canadian, but he was allowed to escape with his bride. The records do not show, however, that any more of his countrymen ever dared to follow his example and run the risk of facing the suit- ors of our native city.
It is interesting to recall the many incidents of pioneer life in those early days. Necessity compelled the early settlers to be ever alert in guarding their homes against attacks from enemies both on land and lake. With what vigilance this was done is
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COLONEL RICHARD C. PARSONS. President of the Early Settlers' Association.
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demonstrated by the story which I am about to relate. It was during the scare of 1812 and there was great fright all along Lake Erie about the contests with the In- dians and the British. Soon after Hull's surrender, a fleet of vessels was seen one day bearing down upon the shore. It was first noticed by a woman in the vicinity of Huron. No sooner had she beheld the sight than she rushed into the house, emptied her nearest bed, threw the tick across her horse's back, and catching up her two chil- dren, rode at breakneck speed towards Cleveland, giving the alarm in loud cries along the way. At 2:00 o'clock in the morning, almost dead from fear and fatigue, she reached the village shouting: " The British and Indians are coming! the British and Indians are coming !" The populace of Cleveland rushed wildly into the streets, and there was a general call to'arms and preparation for war. A picked force of the strongest men decided to take a stand near the mouth of the river, and intercept the vessels. When the first boat came within hailing distance, an anxious crowd called , out to know what name it bore and who were on board. "An American vessel loaded with Hull's troops," quickly came the reply. Fear turned to rejoicing as the happy news spread through the town, and some there were who chided the woman for having needlessly caused all the fuss. She rode back home no less a heroine, however, for having done what she considered to be her duty to her neighbors and friends. Had it not been for her mistake in the identity of those vessels, her name might have come down in history with that of Paul Revere, and her fame been only second to that of that famous rider. Yet how clearly this illustrates the thought and act of woman, always anxious for her loved ones at home, always interested in the welfare of her neighbors.
The city of Cleveland is fortunate in having such splendid women within its bor- ders as are represented here to-night. Your clubs, societies, and various associations are among the richest products of the closing century. They mean much to the city, to its schools, its colleges, and to the betterment of its social and intellectual condi- tions. I congratulate you upon the noble work of the past and turn hopefully with you to hail the still greater progress of the advancing century. In closing, I can say with countless others to-night: "God bless the women of Cleveland, and the Western Reserve."
Governor Bushnell, upon being introduced, responded thus on be- half of the State:
Madam Toastmistress, Your Honor, Governor Mckinley, and Ladies :
You see I don't include the gentlemen. This is woman's day and all you can do is to be good boys and congratulate yourselves that you are here, as I do. Ladies, I salute you. It is unspoken bliss, and worth half a life to see a crowd like this. I take great pleasure in welcoming you to your own Western Reserve, and city of Cleveland. It is safe for me to say that Cleveland is the largest city of Ohio. (Applause.)
It is always a delight to me to speak of Ohio.
Ohio is a great and growing State, and no city is of more importance to its growth than this city. Mr. Mayor, I congratulate you on the magnificence of Cleveland. Women have been an important element in advancing the interests of the State, and we may properly say that the women of Ohio are first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of their countrymen. In the love for you, ladies, there should be no limit, and that is the only thing in which I am willing to concede a ratio of 16 to I. For the benefit of those who do not understand the comparison, I will explain that we should love the women sixteen times more than they do us. This is one of the most pleasant occasions of my life. I congratulate you on the great success of this affair, and I trust you may all have great happiness and prosperity.
" We'll tak' a cup o' kindness yet for Auld Lang Syne, " was the toast to which Mrs. T. K. Dissette responded. She said :
The log cabin pioneer of the beginning of the century is the hero of to-day. And as we recall how much the early settlers suffered and accomplished; how much we have that they didn't have, we exalt them as marvels and canonize them as saints. But I think these fathers and mothers of our civilization were not unlike the frontiers- men that are found on the extremes of American civilization at the present time. They despised effeminacy. Take one of those young men, with spike-toed shoes, fashiona- ble garb, carefully creased trousers, immaculate shirt front, cuffs as large as a small bandbox, a collar that threatens his cars, and one of those senseless things called a cigarette in his mouth, set him down amongst those pioneers, and they would either
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set him up in the cornfield to scare crows or would ship him to the nearest institution for imbeciles.
'The pioneer never heard of railroads, the application of electricity as a means of locomotion, the telephone, the bicycle, and knew nothing of other marvelous develop- ments the benefits of which we are now enjoying. But, after all, these things are the heritage our fathers and mothers made possible for us when they planted our civiliza- tion in the forests of the Western Reserve. They understood well and contended earnestly for the true principles of human greatness, a pure morality, an educated brain, and an industrious application of the talents of each individual in some useful department of life. These were the underlying principles of the fathers and mothers of the Western Reserve, and they have been the foundation of the marvelous achieve- ments of the past century.
Mrs. May Wright Sewall responded to the toast, "The Present Situation." . She said :
The woman is the important element of the situation. She has been represented as somewhat audacious and extravagant, but it is to another phase that I would draw attention. The new woman has come to occupy the new earth and the new heavens, which long ago were foretold as the outcome of the past. The new woman, and the new man, too, are getting their poise. A little invention has accomplished what three decades of talking could not do. Think of all the women who have brought all their knowledge of hygiene and of art to bear on the subject of dress. What has delivered her from the tyranny of dress? It is, forsooth, the bicycle.
During a recent rather nondescript gathering, it was reported that a woman was on the floor among the delegates. "No, she is not a delegate," it was said; "she is not yelling." In the present situation we see an increasing number of women in our great universities. It surely is the new woman who is lifting what has been supposed to be abject labor into the dignity of a science and the beauty of an art. Among the things of the present that would strike the observer of a hundred years ago, as very odd, is this very assembly. In the chariot of progress ride side by side those whom for centuries we have tried to divorce. Never have we had so abounding proofs of the fact that in the beginning God joined man and woman together. In this present situation of great stringency we see that the men, who have spent their lives turning it into money, find no pleasure in their money except as they give it back to be con- verted into life. It is well worth while that one life may be coined into millions, that millions may in turn be coined into lives forever. This present situation is fleeting. But none of us believe that the present man and woman will give way to their inferi- ors, but summon their superiors to enlarge and decorate their places.
Mrs. N. Coe Stewart discussed the toast, " The Wheels of the Past and the Wheels of the Present." As she arose a beautifully decorated spinning wheel and a bicycle profusely decorated with flowers were car- ried forward and placed on the table at her side. Mrs. Stewart spoke as follows:
Woman invented the wheel. Archaeologists tell us that the potter's wheel, which was woman's invention, is the oldest form of mechanism the pictures of which, on an- cient pottery, show it to be essentially the wheel of all ages, no improvement having been made on the original idea. It is the foundation of all mechanical art. Woman has been criticised for her lack of inventive power. What need for her to be continu- ally inventing when she can revolutionize the world by one turn of her hand! Oh, the wheels and wheels, the wheels within wheels which she set in motion! The world has been seeing "wheels go around" ever since. The innumerable mechanical wheels, from the tiny wheel of the watch to the awe-inspiring Ferris wheel! The wheels of industry revolving more and more rapidly and intricately as the world ad- vances! The metaphorical wheel of fortune which like the bicycle of the present is difficult for the uninitiated to mount! The wheel of time! Poor old Father Time, what a tiresome journey he would have had without a wheel! I wonder some ambi- tious bicycle dealer has not claimed to have invented it. It would have been such a good advertisement in our Centennial parade for, while its staying qualities are a dead failure, it always keeps at the head of the procession and increases its speed at the end of the race. For ages woman was the slave of her uncorked genius. Harnessed to the spinning wheel by the thread of her family needs, pressed on by the lash of necessity.
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she spun her life into its evolutions. But the wheel has been conquered by its own cardinal principle that what goes over must go under. The wheel has be- come subject to the will of man. The drive-wheel of industry is halted at an eight-hour journey instead of sixteen, with a Saturday half holiday preinding the Sabbath day's rest. The modern bicycle is the embodiment of the conquered wheel and of the liberation of woman. Riding her wheel she has conquered her circum- stances. Skimming over the country she forgets to cultivate nerves and her vision broadens as the spokes of her opportunity lengthen, while her wheel obeys not only her every gesture but her every thought, thus fulfilling the prophecy of Ezekial, "And when the living creatures went the wheels went with them, and when the living crea- tures were lifted up from the earth the wheels were lifted up. When those went, these went, and when those stood, these stood, and when those were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up over against them, for the spirit of the living creature was in the wheels." Woman invented the wheel of the past; woman has conquered the wheel of the present.
Mrs. Annette Phelps Lincoln, of London, O., had as her subject " The Ohio Federation of Women's Clubs." She was well qualified to discuss it, being president of the organization. Mrs. Lincoln said :
Madam Toastmistress, Ladies of the Woman's Department of the Cleveland Con- tennial Commission, and Friends :
In extending to me an invitation to attend the celebration of the one hundredth anniversary of the City of Cleveland, you have afforded me a delightful privilege and pleasure. Dear friends, yours has been a dual courtesy. You have not only made me very happy but you have recognized the organization with which I have been pleas- antly and interestingly connected during the past two years. Are we not daily realiz- ing that largely through organized efforts we more easily attain the best ideals? The various associations represented here to-day fully attest this fact. Notable among these are the local organizations represented from Cleveland. Their work speaks of their advanced ideas and methods. The Cleveland women are well and widely known for their intellectual and social culture.
They have directly and indirectly planned and executed many noble undertakings. They have in their respective orbits aided and advanced the material wealth and pros- perity of this city.
Every woman has contributed her increment of power to the utility and unity of the commonwealth of this city. " We are glad to say all honor to the women of Cleve- land for their progressive tendencies. This all speaks for organized effort. The or- ganization which I represent, " The Ohio Federation of Women's Clubs," is a state organization. It is a conservative, dignified association of women worthy of the sup- port of all good, broad, and refining influences. If time would permit, I should like to demonstrate more fully both in spirit and in word my appreciation of the good I think can be accomplished by organized effort among women. History is the record of a force and its achievemets. I will attempt no history, but will only briefly allude to the object the aims and the achievements of the Ohio Federation of Women's Clubs. No movement is useful or stable unless it has some safe underlying principles. The foun- dation stone upon which this state organization is builded and upon which its success largely depends, is the co-operation of the intellectual, social and moral forces, whose aim is to benefit and lift humanity. This organization has for its purpose the founda- tion of a nucleus of the various women's clubs in the state, and hopes to bring them into communication with one another, that they may compare methods and be mutu- ally helpful.
All women's clubs are welcome, but no distinction of creed or political bias is ac- cepted. While the humanitarian movements may be recognized, the primary object is not philanthropic or technical, but it is to demonstrate the value of three elements, viz. : social, literary and scientific culture as factors of a force that will promote a higher publie spirit and a better social order. This plainly directs the work of the clubs along social and educational lines. They are free to wander, even explore the many avenues, where these factors will lead them. We are happy to say to you the clubs appreciate their unlimited privileges and the work is daily unfolding and broad- ening in scope.
The aim of the organization is to represent general advantages and activities that will benefit women. The literary clubs are agencies which if wisely used help their individual members to become earnest, intelligent and self-poised members of society.
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By these associations women have the advantages for study, and for individual im- provement, being in touch with the best methods and the best masters of art, music, and literature. Again, by organized effort, with a unity of purpose, women will better understand the aims, the purposes of living. They will give attention to questions that affect the home, the public health, moral and educational interests and will endeavor to unify and weld the best elements in all classes, and aid in making them powerful forces in society, and advance the whole social superstructure.
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