The 1989 Annual Report of the Cincinnati Historical Society

32 Queen City Heritage 1989 Annual Report of the Cincinnati Historical Society Presidents' Reports At the close of my final year as president of the Society, it seems appropriate to review very briefly what has been accomplished in the time. In 1974 when I became president of the Cincinnati Historical Society membership stood at 1,543 and the annual budget was $154,000. During my fourteen year tenure we have grown at a lively but prudent pace. The membership now stands at close to 4,000 including a heartening increase in business members and the annual budget exceeds $850,000 with a substantially increased endowment. Our staff has doubled to thirty-nine very capable persons. Extensive and valuable additions to our superb collections have outgrown the capacity of our present quarters. We continue to grow in patronage of the library and usefulness to the community. We have attained a solid visible presence in the region. Most satisfying is the prospect of the Society's new museum. It began as a tenuous, hopeful wish in 1975, went through a long series of discussions, planning, and fortunate circumstances and is now on the very threshold of reality. The move to Union Terminal will provide not only ample space and facilities for an enlarged and greatly enhanced library, with plenty of room to grow, but also a world-class history museum that will tell the important, fascinating story of the Cincinnati area in a wonderfully exciting, visual way. This remarkable progress is due to the cooperative effort of a legion of devoted people. I wish there were space to list each and every person who participated. Many were truly outstanding in their unstinting gifts of time, treasure, expertise, and loyal concern. There were, and are, the diligent, forward-looking trustees; an exceptionally able, innovative director; a most capable, dedicated staff; an active, very supportive Women's Association; a great band of truly indispensable volunteers; and a veritable host of generous members and friends. With people such as these on our team, how can we possibly falter. I am deeply grateful for the privilege and pleasure of associating and serving with them. The future bodes well for the Cincinnati Historical Society. Godspeed. John Diehl President 1974-1988 John Weld Peck (center) suc- ceeded John Diehl (right) as president of the Cincinnati Historical Society in 1988 and Theodore Emmerich (left) was elected treasurer. Winter 1989 Annual Report 1989 33 The past year was dedicated to initiating the were able to maintain the fiscal integrity of the Historical process of thoughtfully expanding the Cincinnati Historical Society, thanks in part to the hard work of our Director of Society so that when we move to the Museum Center at Union Finance and Administration, Judy Madsen. This expansion Terminal in November 1990, we match the scale of the will continue in 1990 and will require additional sources of building and are able to meet the expectations of our funds from increased membership, increased levels of support membership and our new public. Laura Chace, the Frederick from present members, and increased revenues from other A. Hauck Librarian, has had an immense amount of planning fund raising efforts. Sue Painter and the Development staff to do. Ruby Rogers, our Museum Director, during her first have seen one challenge after another during 1989 and this full year with the Society, became totally immersed in the job pace promises to continue. of creating a major cultural and historical museum out of With all of the energies which were invested whole cloth and Geoff Giglierano began the process of during the year to the Museum Center move, I am pleased adapting the education department to a completely new to report that the Society maintained a solid level of environment with tremendous demands upon it from all sides. programming for the year, including tours, educational These individuals and other staff members, under the programs, and special events. In fact, we ended the year with leadership of Gale Peterson and with the support and a very memorable Sunday Brunch aboard the Delta Queen. I direction of our Board, made tremendous strides during the commend Gale and the staff for a year which benefited our year although it was just the beginning. members and many in the community. Obviously the prospect of increased levels of As always, our dedicated corps of volunteers programming and other activities has necessitated that was the critical component in making 1989 a good year for additional resources of the Historical Society be available. the Society. We remain dependent upon the volunteer interest These needs are in addition to our capital costs of preparing, in the work of the Historical Society and we are especially furnishing, and equipping our new offices and of designing grateful for the willingness of so many to take active roles in and constructing the Museum and the opening of temporary our work. At no time in our history is volunteer participation exhibits. As the accompanying financial report indicates, we more important than it is during this period and in 1989 we began planning to increase the level of volunteerism substantially to meet the demands that will be placed upon us in 1990 and in the coming years. John Weld Peck President The annual meeting was well attended by Society members. 34 Queen City Heritage Director's Report Gale E. Peterson The decade of the 1980's brought great change to the Cincinnati Historical Society. Programs and membership expanded rapidly in the early years of the decade, but a pivotal event occurred in May 1986 with the passage of a county-wide bond levy that enabled the Society to initiate plans for moving to Union Terminal. The vast Art Deco landmark building will be shared with the Cincinnati Museum of Natural History and will include the region's first Omnimax theater, museum gift shops, restaurants, auditori- ums, and all the other facilities that make up a first class museum complex. Once the bond levy had passed, the Society's staff and trustees began planning for the institution's future. The library, which had been filled beyond capacity for several years already, would now have enough space to bring its collections together under one roof and would have room to grow again. The education staff first had to complete a variety of projects that had been initiated in support of the city's 1988 bicentennial celebration before it could turn its attention to developing the story line for museum exhibits. Moreover, there was no museum staff at all to coordinate the planning for turning Union Terminal's cavernous spaces into exciting three-dimensional exhibits bringing to life the city's fascinating and colorful history. In this report to our members, the senior staff of the Historical Society has summarized how their work has progressed during 1988 and 1989 in anticipation of the move to Union Terminal that will occur in the fall of 1990. With much hard work by the members of the staff and of the board of trustees, and with the generous support of its members, the Cincinnati Historical Society ended the decade preparing to move from its home in Eden Park, where it has been located only since 1964, and to become part of the Museum Center at Cincinnati Union Terminal. With the library and Omnimax theater opening in November 1990, and a major area of permanent exhibits under development for opening in October 1991, the decade of the 1990's should bring changes to the Historical Society that will soon eclipse those of recent years. The past, it seems once again, is prologue. The press toured Union Ter- minal after an October press conference announcing the results of the endowment fund raising campaign. Winter 1989 Annual Report 1989 35 Report of the Treasurer For The Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 1988 Theodore H. Emmerich Treasurer Judith L. Madsen Dir. of Finance &Adm. General Museum Restricted Support & Revenue: Fund Fund Funds Total Investment Income $ 304,519 $ 16,808 $ 321,327 Membership Dues-Individual 172,797 $ 475 173,272 Membership Dues-Corporate 45,125 45,125 Gifts & Grants 70,195 119,650 201,007 390,852 Fees & Services 17,339 1,435 18,774 Sales 141,144 141,144 Special Events 124,231 124,231 Other 8,774 7,255 16,029 Total Support & Revenue $ 884,124 $ 145,148 $201,482 $1,230,754 Expenses: Administrative $ 435,538 $ 106,834 $ 0 $ 542,372 Development/Communications 72,697 0 0 72,697 Library/Collections 337,349 0 0 337,349 Education 100,639 0 263,409 364,048 Total Expenses $ 946,223 $ 106,834 $263,409 $1,316,466 Excess (Deficiency) Support & Revenue Over Expenses $ (62,099) $ 38,314 $ (61,927) $ (85,712) Net Gain On Sale Of Securities 867,198 (102,198) 765,000 Increase (Decrease) Fund Balances $ 805,099 $ (63,884) $(61,927) $ 679,288 Fund Transfers 17,914 (16,994) (920) 0 Fund Balances July 1, 1988* 3,608,994 1,064,018 195,371 4,868,383 Fund Balances June 30, 1989* $4,432,007 $ 983,140 $132,524 $5,547,671 Notes on the Treasurer's Report 1. The Women's Association Includes Endowment Fund reported income of $4456 and stated at book value. expenses of $4148 that are not included in the report above. 36 Queen City Heritage Report of the Treasurer For The Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 1989 Theodore H. Emmerich Treasurer Judith L. Madsen Dir. of Finance &Adm. General Museum Restricted Support & Revenue: Fund Fund Funds Total Investment Income $ 373,123 $ 373,123 Membership Dues-Individual 212,935 $ 165 213,100 Membership Dues-Corporate 58,670 58,670 Gifts & Grants 87,929 $507,443 259,310 854,682 Fees

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