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This collection of articles provides a greater in-depth look at topics presented in our newsletter or during some of our popular public presentations. We hope you enjoy these articles.
Let us know what other topics you’d like to read about!
Jack Spieker above center, was killed in Belgium in World War II. Read more about Delhi heroes of the Second World War.
Written by: Anita L. Klawitter, Delhi Historical Society
Please click here to open blog: Unknown Heroes of Delhi: Time Will Not Dim the Glory of Their Deeds
We are in the midst of a worldwide pandemic but it is relatively mild compared to the granddaddy of pandemics. Little more than 100 years ago, the world, our nation and even our Delhi Township suffered from the scourges of the 1918 Influenza epidemic.
Few people are left alive from that time, but many can name relatives who died from the flu. We don’t know the true number since there was no testing like there is now, but it’s estimated more than 60 million people died worldwide – 675,000 of them in the U.S.- about 6 times the number who have died from this year’s Covid 19. According to an Enquirer article printed January 20, 1919, Ohio reported more than 22,000 deaths from the Influenza the previous three months (Oct-Dec 1918). On one day alone, Oct. 27, 52 people died at Cincinnati General Hospital of the flu.
The flu hit pockets of Delhi. We are able only to analyze from death records as official numbers were never reliable since Hamilton County didn’t require communities to report cases, and many were treated and died at home. The outbreak near Mount Alverno started in late November 1918, when 15-year-old John Schroder, only child of Fred and Lizzie Hehe Schroder, got sick. He died Dec. 7. A week later, Magdalena Ihle, a neighbor of the Schroder family also died leaving behind eight children, four of them under the age of 10. Her next door neighbor 20-year-old Aloysius Fox died December 18, 1918, following a six-day battle with the flu. Four days later, his mother Agatha Fox died. They were both buried the day after Christmas. In addition to her husband, Agatha left behind a 17-year old daughter, and three sons 15, 12 and 6.
Another flu pocket was on Cleves Warsaw west of Prout’s Corner. Joe Witsken, owner/operator of Witsken Dairy died Dec. 8, 1918. One of his dairy hands,Charles Metzger, died a week later, leaving a widowand 6 children under the age of 10. His death certificatelists “la Grippe” a name often used for the Spanish Flu.
Death records show that the Sisters of Charity suffered at least 3 deaths. Thirty-two year old Sister Anna Marie Finn’s death in November 1918 was listed as “pneumonia - probably influenza” on her death certificate. Sister Mary Felix Creedon, age 75, died in February 1918 from lobar pneu- monia—influenza.
Other Delhi deaths include Magdalena Pessler – 28 – Hillside Avenue, Loretta Rosella Fischesser, age 2, of Martini Road, and her aunt Sophia Fischesser 37, who died enroute to General Hospital. Sophia left behind a young daughter who suffered from another scourge of the time, infantile paralysis, better known as polio.
To learn more about the 1918 Spanish Flu Pandenic and how it relates to the Covid-19 Pandemic of this year, view a slide presentation created by member Matt Maley.
Fred and Lizze Schroder, around 1910, lost their only child to the Spanish flu.
Joe Witsken, left with his dog, died in December 1918 of the Spanish Flu. He is shown here at his dairy on Cleves Warsaw near what is now Covedale about 1907 with his son Henry, wife Mary holding Lawrence, and farmhand Henry Messick.
Looking west toward the 5 Points Inn at the intersection of Neeb, Rapid Run, and Devil’s Backbone roads as it looked in the late 1950s. Neeb is the crossroad. Rapid Run continued to the left of the Inn, while Devil’s Backbone begins to the right of the Inn.
by Ray Grothaus
The intersection of Rapid Run, Neeb and Devils Backbone has a long and interesting history. What were just farms in 1890 became the home of a roadside inn, a well-known blacksmith and an industrious family who built and/or occupied 4 houses a few feet north the juncture.
The first family to come to this crossroads was John G. Bens and his wife Mary Hausman Bens. John was a blacksmith who learned his trade from Sothaneses Fischesser whose shop was just up the road at Neeb and Cleves Warsaw. John was obviously successful as he operated his business from 1895 until his death in 1940. The company letterhead read: “John Bens Blacksmith and Horseshoer. All kinds of Blacksmithing promptly attended to and satisfaction given. Horseshoeing a specialty.” He was true to his advertising as the Historical Society has in its archives a 1921 bill of sale for iron bars, blocks, winch hooks as well as pick and hammer handles.
The parcel included the family home (John and Mary had 6 children) the blacksmith shop and a large barn. Three of the children never married and remained on the property for most of their lives. Harry Huber operated a carpenter business there for a while in the late ‘50s.
John Bens Blacksmith Shop on Neeb Road around 1900.
The next entrepreneur to ply his trade there was Lawrence Imholte and his wife Caroline Bachscheider Imholte who opened a roadside inn about 1900. Their enterprise served travelers needing a place to rest after a long journey with their wagons and horses. They were the original owners of the famous 5 Points Inn/Tavern which occupied this spot for more than 60 years.They provided not only refreshments but also a place to stay if needed.
Here is an image of the intersection from the 1914 Hamilton County Atlas, showing how the 5-point intersection was aligned. the property marked Caroline Imholte is where the tavern stood.
Ownership changed hands many times through the decades and not all owners actually lived at the property. Once trucks gave farmers the freedom to drive places quickly, the Inn ceased renting rooms. Beginning in 1920, the business was sold 5 times before Harry and Stella Cole purchased it in 1928. The Coles were good stewards and were well liked by their patrons. The Joseph and Otilda Ludwig family were so close to the Coles that one of Joe and Tillie’s sons shares Harry’s name; James Harry Ludwig!
The tavern was closed during the war years and then in 1946 it was bought by Henry “Whitey” Aufderhaar. He and his son Robert’s names are on the deed but neither lived there or operated the bar. They left those duties to Bob and Louise Hopping. Pioneer Vending currently owns the land, leasing the barbershop and bar to Greg Lanzilotta and Al Wittich.
Members of the John Conrad Ludwig family have lived in Delhi since 1860. John C., Jr. married Caroline Tuchfarber and for the first few years of their marriage lived on the Tuchfarber farm, west of 5 Points at what is now 5851 Rapid Run. John worked on road crews in Hamilton County for more than 30 years and was a Delhi constable for 3 decades as well. In 1906, junior took a leap of faith and purchased a dozen acres from William Feldwisch north and west of 5 Points. The land encompassed everything from the John Bens property up to Selhorst florist and was more than 500 feet wide. The acreage included the home at 942 Devils Backbone where John and Caroline initially took up residence.
This view heading north on Neeb Road toward Rapid Run was taken around 1960. The Bens Blacksmith barn sits beyond the Bens house (white building with the red roof.) Several of the Ludwig houses are shown north of the barn, and then St. John’s Church with its steeple still attached. On the east side of Neeb, you can see Delhi’s original police station (white one story building). Later this would be razed for the Delhi Township Administration building.
Through the next 44 years, John and his son were responsible for the construction of three additional homes on this land; 969, 957 and 923 Neeb. John and Caroline’s only child to survive into adulthood was Joseph. He married Otilda Kirchman in 1915 but lived with his parents for a few years until starting his own family at which time they moved into 969 Neeb. When Caroline passed away, Joe, Tillie and their kids Letta, Edna, John, Helen, Joe, Jr. and Jim moved into 957 to live with Pop. Shortly after John died, the family moved to 942 Devils Backbone where they stayed until relocating to east Delhi in 1951
.In 1964, Hamilton County decided to re-route Devils Backbone and Rapid Run roads, eliminating the little island where 5 Point Tavern sat along with the blacksmith/carpenter shop land. A park occupies the space now appropriately named 5 Points Park. Another bright spot for the area is the former John C. Ludwig property. All homes that he built or lived in are still standing and occupied in 2019.
Book tells story of Robbery and Murder at the Cabinet Supreme Savings and Loan".
by Alan March
Even after fifty years, the words "Cabinet Supreme" generate a visceral response from residents of Delhi and its surrounding area.
It was the Summer of 1969. The Cincinnati Reds, America's first professional baseball team, were celebrating their centennial. Ohioan Neil Armstrong was the first human being to walk upon a celestial body other than the Earth. Thousands of Americans were fighting a determined enemy in Vietnam. Half a million people attended a "music and arts" festival in Woodstock, New York. A Massachusetts senator crashed his car off a bridge and swam to safety leaving his female passenger to drown at Chappaquiddick. In California, Cincinnati-born Charles Manson convinced a group he called his "family" to go on a murder spree leaving seven dead including movie star Sharon Tate.
Three petty criminals were looking for ways to make money in Delhi Township that summer. They ended up becoming mass murderers.
On Wednesday September 24, 1969, the three men arrived at the Cabinet Supreme Savings and Loan on Delhi Pike. An O'Reilly's Auto Parts store stands there now. The men sat in their car in the parking lot, waiting for the Cabinet Supreme manager Jerry Grueter to leave as he always had. When Grueter left, the men went into action.
Raymond Kassow was the driver of the borrowed convertible Chevy Malibu. His friends, Watterson "Red" Johnson and John Leigh were passengers. As they sat in the Cabinet Supreme parking lot, Kassow provided guns to his accomplices and said, "There's only one person in there, the teller. And we can't have any witnesses, you understand? No witnesses." Leigh agreed, and with Johnson, entered the building.
Moments after Leigh and Johnson went inside, Helen Huebner and her husband, Joe, arrived and parked in the lot. Joe noticed a dirty convertible with a man waiting in the driver's seat. He also saw two ladies arrive together in another car. The women were sisters-in-law Henrietta and Luella Stitzel. The Stitzels and Helen entered the bank lobby together just as Leigh announced the hold-up.
What happened inside and what led up to the crime is told in the true crime book, "No Witnesses, the story of Robbery and Murder at the Cabinet Supreme Savings and Loan." "No Witnesses" was written by veteran journalist Kate March, who covered the story when it happened, and retired Delhi Police Chief Howard Makin. "No Witnesses," has been praised by journalists, police, politicians, and the publishing industry for its detailed research and excellent story telling.
Copies are available at the Delhi Historical Society's Farmhouse museum or online at www.DelhiHistoricalSociety.org/shop.
Front page of the Cincinnati Enquirer Sept. 25, 1969.
Cabinet Supreme at 5162 Delhi Pike in 1969.
The building was razed many years ago.
O’Reilly’s Auto Parts at 5162 Delhi Pike today.
Photo: 1895, on a horse is Henry Reimerink, Kate Kuper Klawitter, (Proprietress), baby is Clara Miller, Theresa Reimerink-Miller Alyward, Anna Miller, Eduard Klawitter (Proprietor), dog, Joseph Klawitter, John Barnhorst, Herman Nutter.
Read moreOral Histories are both one of the oldest forms of recording history and one of the newest! Long before the written language, stories were passed down orally from generation to generation to share the history of families and culture.
Read moreThis cemetery, on the property of the Sisters of Charity behind the Pristine Riverview Retirement home, is the only known family graveyard in Delhi Township. It holds the marked headstones of two families, six belonging to the Lees, six belonging to the Darbys, and one belonging to baby Margaret Anderson (daughter of J & E), who died in 1841.
Read moreThe Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati archives houses a wealth of local, national, and international historical resources in its collections just waiting to be discovered! The Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati is an apostolic Catholic community of women religious that exists to carry out the Gospel of Jesus Christ through service and prayer in the world. Since the Community was founded in 1852, the Sisters of Charity have sponsored hundreds of schools, hospitals, orphanages and social service agencies throughout the United States as well as many countries including China, Peru, and Guatemala. In the past two years, the department has made accessibility a top priority for its collections through a variety of endeavors.
Read more
Captain James Fitsmorris with plane.
Golfers at Western Hills Country Club sometimes stumble upon a plaque on the course honoring one Captain James Fitzmorris, RAF, who died when he crashed his Sopwith Camel aeroplane on takeoff from the Club.
By Peg Schmidt, Delhi Township Historian, and DHS Trustee.
In August, the Delhi Historical Society will go visit an old friend at Heritage Village in Sharon Woods. Few know that the Myers Schoolhouse, which stood on Neeb Road south of Delhi Pike for more than 100 years, almost became a part of the DHS family in 2004.
Myers Schoolhouse, constructed in 1891. All rights reserved: Delhi Historical Society
The Myers Schoolhouse now at Heritage Village was the third school on the site. The first school was a log building that was also used for meetings of the first trustees of the western section of Cincinnati as early as the 1830s. The second building was handmade brick, probably constructed around 1843, which was the year that District School #3 opened with 19 students and one teacher.
Myers Schoolhouse. All rights reserved: Delhi Historical Society
The current Myers School was constructed in 1891 and opened for class on October 4 of that year. It was named for Cornelius Myers, who was a longtime school trustee, as well as a township trustee. It was a fine building for its time, with a pyramid-roofed bell tower at the front of the gable peak. The peak contains a date stone inscribed “1891 Dist. School No. 3”
Teacher and students, date unknown. All rights reserved: Delhi Historical Society
Myers Schoolhouse classroom with teacher, William Chidlaw in the early 1900s. All rights reserved: Delhi Historical Society.
Alas, it was only to serve Delhi students until 1926, when modern motorized transportation allowed for the consolidation of all Delhi one- and two-room schools into the new Delhi School at Anderson Ferry and Foley roads. The Myers Schoolhouse was auctioned at public sale and purchased by Henry and Emma Backus, who just happened on the auction while taking a ride in the country.
Mrs. Emma Backus, a Cincinnati author, and civic leader was very involved in the Delhi community. She wrote a historical play called “The Trail” as well as the “Centennial Pageant of Cincinnati” (1919) which celebrated the 100th anniversary of the incorporation of Cincinnati as a city. Emma Backus ended up in Delhi after purchasing the Myers Schoolhouse at auction in 1926 and soon after decided that Dehli Hills was a more peaceful place to move to concentrate on her research and writing. She also founded the original Delhi History Club (c. 1930) and the Delhi Arts Guild (c. 1928-1929). Photo via Cincinnati Enquirer.
The Backus family built a white cottage attached to the back of the school. The three-room addition included a bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen. In 1932, they built a colonial home behind the schoolhouse that now serves as the Sisters of Charity Earth Connection ministry.
In 1958, the Backus’ son Harry moved his interior design business into the old schoolhouse. He retired the business in 1986 and sold the property to Charles and Pauline Johnson for $107,000. Once again, the schoolhouse was used for educational purposes. Pauline was a vision therapist who specialized in reading problems for students with dyslexia. Four years later, the Johnsons sold the property to the College of Mount St. Joseph (now Mount St. Joseph University). Two parcels of land adjacent to the school, still owned by Harry Backus, were also sold to the college.
The college used it for a pre-school, and once again the walls of the old building contained the laughter and chatter of students. It eventually became a daycare facility for children of Mount adult students.
In 2004, Sister Barbara Hagedorn of the Sisters of Charity met with then DHS president Don Blaney, consultant Sue Ann Painter and Peg Schmidt to see if we would be interested in using the building with the stipulation that we would need to make some structural repairs. After having a structural engineer estimate $60,000 to $70,000 in repairs, we suggested they contact Historic Southwest Ohio, which operates Heritage Village in Sharon Woods. HSO set about raising the money needed to deconstruct, move and reconstruct the building - brick by brick - from Delhi to Sharonville.
Today, the building is undergoing continuing restoration in order to reopen to visitors to the living history village.
Myers Schoolhouse c.1915 All rights reserved: Delhi Historical Society
Join us Monday, August 6th for a field trip focused on the Myers School House. Delhi participants will meet at the Delhi Historical Society at 9:30 am for a short talk on early schools in Delhi. Then they will depart by bus to the Sisters of Charity Motherhouse to hear about the Sisters’ part of the story and tour the Motherhouse. Afterward, the group will travel to Heritage Village for a catered lunch and tour of the Myers Schoolhouse and the village. The group will arrive back at DHS around 4:30 pm.
The Early bird rate is $35/member, $40/non-member and includes travel, admission, and lunch. Prices go up after July 30. Reservations Required. Reserve your spot by calling 513-451-4313. Mail checks to 468 Anderson Ferry Rd, Cincinnati, OH 45238 (Must be received by August 1) or visit our click here to pay via credit card.
Yearbooks from the Myers Schoolhouse.
Anita Klawitter’s story of how she found her great-grandmother Kate’s real name and biological father. Kate and her husband, Eduard Klawitter owned the Klawitter’s General Store and Saloon which used to sit on Neeb Road just across the street from Our Lady of Victory Church.
Read moreWho maintains the Farmhouse Museum Gardens? The Western Hills Garden Club! Learn more about all that they do for us!
Read moreA Prescription for Genealogy
Warning: It May Be Habit Forming!
JoAnne Fischesser's Genealogy Adventure.
Read more
Image provided by the Delhi Historical Society, all rights reserved.
As the congregation marks its bicentennial, it might be good to recall Judge Doan's words in a speech to his fellow parishioners...
"I'm really attempting to demonstrate here is that our predecessors in this venerable old congregation gave their time and their resources to provide for us. They had faith in us and in the future of Shiloh back then."
Read moreFamily photos and documents are treasures to be handed down from generation to generation. We can preserve and protect those treasures two ways. Protect them using archival quality storage materials, such as folders or envelopes, sleeves, and boxes (See January's post for more details). Preserve them through digitization.
Put simply, digitization is scanning photos and documents into a computer. Delhi Historical Society has been actively digitizing its collections so they can be used by researchers and visitors without exposing the originals to potential damage through handling. Delhi Historical Society scans photographs and slides at 1200 DPI using the TIFF format. Those are the standards for digital archives. The high resolution (1200 Dots Per Inch) allows higher quality enlargements. TIFF files can be opened repeatedly without losing image quality.
Delhi Historical Society has digitized thousands of images but has only just begun digitally preserving its large collection of photographs. Many of the images are simple family photos from years ago.
Others are more formal family or business portraits. Through the DHS' Scanning Station project, Delhi residents have shared their family photos with the historical society. Those images are now preserved for researchers and family members for generations to come.
Don't think your family photographs and documents are "not historical." Today's snapshots are tomorrow's history. Documents such as personal letters, newspaper clippings, high school yearbooks, and many other items are treasure troves to historians. Preserve them by scanning them at home. Or, contact Delhi Historical Society to arrange to have your photos and documents scanned. You will keep the originals while donating the digital images to DHS. That way you are preserving your family treasures and sharing them at the same time.
If you have photos related to Delhi Township, we would love to add them to our digital collection!
Please contact us for details.
Delhi Historical Society's collections priority over the last few years has been to properly organize and preserve the Delhi Township photo collection. Photos are our most requested object from the public so we want to make sure we have them easily accessible and protected for our researchers and volunteers. We hope you made it out to our January 8th lecture, but if you could not, we are happy to share some resources and our slides with you. Enjoy!
Video by the Smithsonian Institution shows how to safely remove photos from those pesky magnetic albums!
This is a great ad for Stabilo pencils showing the dos and don'ts when writing on photographs!
(This where the workspace photo on slide 2 came from)
Photographs: Archival Care and Management
If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. Be sure to check back next month for scanning tips!
http://www.uc.edu/news/NR.aspx?id=14943
The worst natural disaster in the history of Cincinnati left families without homes and without basic needs such as food, water, and electricity. However, it is remembered through the way the community came together to overcome the flood and help their neighbors.
1. Funds were collected to rebuild and repair damaged homes and public structures, and volunteers teamed up to bring the city back.
2. Nearly one of every eight people in the tri-state were left homeless.
3. At least 10 gas tanks exploded and there were oil fires on the Ohio River.
"Black Sunday" Gas tanks ruptured near Mill Creek that took firefighters over 12 hours to put out. Photo provided by Phil Lind
4. Rainfall fell in just a 12 day period, from January 13-24, with a total of 80 inches.
5. Today, a scale marking the heights of floodwaters that have reached its walls since 1800. The flood of 1937 stands the highest at 80 feet, with the flood of 1884 coming in at a close second at 71 feet.
Riverside St. Rose Church scale shows how high the water got on the church during each major flood.
6. Seventy-five million dollars in damages had been caused, and that was in 1937 when one dollar was equivalent to twelve dollars now. The damages would be equal to nearly one billion dollars today.
7. The home plate at Crosley Field, home of the Cincinnati Reds, was submerged 20 feet during the Ohio River flooding.
8. When Duke Energy was going around the tristate to fix power outages and gas leaks, they consumed 3,000 sandwiches daily and 200 gallons of coffee.
Delhi Historical Society's exhibit, United by High Water: The Great Flood of 1937 opens Friday, April 28 at 7pm.
For more amazing pictures and documents relating to the 1937 flood visit one of the sources below!
http://www.weather.gov/iln/1937OhioRiverFlood
http://www.lib.niu.edu/2002/ihy020227.html
http://www.uc.edu/news/NR.aspx?id=14943
http://illumination.duke-energy.com/articles/workers-powered-hope-and-lights-during-1937-flood
http://digital.cincinnatilibrary.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/p16998coll11
We are excited to announce that our new website got a makeover! We hope this new site gives us new ways to connect to our community and make our collections more accessible to researchers. Right now, we are focused on getting the basics together and working out design glitches, but we will continue to constantly add new things so keep checking back!
Our newest addition is an events calendar! This will allow us to post our events months in advance to assist with marketing.
Some of our future plans include:
We are open to suggestions. If you'd like to share your ideas, please email us via the form on the contact page. http://www.delhihistoricalsociety.org/contact/
