History & Local Interest

Cincy Obscura: Hidden Safety Deposit Boxes at The Renaissance Hotel

Turn-of-the-century Cincinnatians who frequented downtown’s Union Savings Bank and Trust relied on its 5,576 safety deposit boxes, which still sit (empty, unfortunately) in the basement of the 1901 building.



Cincy Obscura:
Old River Station

Most locals wouldn’t care to swim in the Ohio River today. But Cincinnatians were drinking raw river water up through 1906, when Cincinnati Water Works completed construction of the city’s first-ever treatment plant.

The Money Issue:
Old Money in Cincinnati

Money is a peculiar thing. It’s everything and it’s nothing. It’s flaunted and it’s hidden. And in 2016, it’s just pixels on a screen. For our special issue on money, we looked into the tangible life and history of money in Cincinnati: where it’s been (or being) kept, how its looks have changed over time, and what it’s been used to create. Turns out, the stuff is everywhere.

Cincy Obscura: Where the Coney Island Ponies Hibernate

First of all, don’t mention floods at Coney Island—not unless you want to see park staffers literally cringe.



Cincy Obscura: A 100-Year-Old Fire Truck in Norwood

After making its way to a barn in Indiana, then to Maine, Connecticut, and Texas, it’s finally back in its original Montgomery Road firehouse.

On With The Show

Parkers is part Vaudeville, part Broadway, part small-fry talent show. And at 70 years young, it’s living proof that heartfelt solos, goofy skits, and perky kick lines will never go out of style at Deer Park High School.

Let It Grow at Stockslager's Greenhouse

While we all watch our gardens fade to brown this winter, Jacob Stockslager sees his in living color. But the purple lights in the germination room at Stockslager’s Greenhouse aren’t for show: They are an energy-efficient LED upgrade from traditional metal-halide grow bulbs, and they offer a full light spectrum with very little heat.



New Artwoks Mural Features the Work of Edie Harper

Edie Harper was the wife of acclaimed illustrator Charley Harper, but she had an artistic life of her own—something the art world is only recently coming around to noticing. To that end, ArtWorks has added an Edie mural, Crazy Cat/Crazy Quilt, to its 2017 lineup.



Cincy Obscura: The Saint Francis Seraph Church Crypt

It isn’t often that a group of families will come together and request a mass grave for their long-dead relatives. But that’s just what happened at Over-the-Rhine’s St. Francis Seraph Church, where you can visit a real-deal crypt holding the collected remains of 41 early Cincinnati citizens, mostly of Irish descent.

Crosstown Shoutout

Our Great Divide has its roots in religion, class, and race (those highways didn’t help, either). But are all east-siders WASPy blue-bloods? And are all west-siders blue collar Catholics? Not by a long shot. As it turns out, we share a lot of common ground.