Where’s the ‘circle’ at University Circle and why the popular name? By Megan Sims December 21, 2023

 

A photo of the University Circle electric streetcar turnaround in 1904. Cleveland Public Library

Where’s the ‘circle’ at University Circle and why the popular name?
By Megan Sims, Cleveland.com Thursday December 21, 2023

The link is here
https://www.cleveland.com/news/2023/12/wheres-the-circle-at-university-circle-and-why-the-popular-name.html

The inside story of how Larry Doby broke the American League’s color line 76 years ago – Terry Pluto July 5, 2023

Larry Doby in his first MLB game with Cleveland on July 5, 1947.

The inside story of how Larry Doby broke the American League’s color line 76 years ago
by Terry Pluto, Cleveland.com Wednesday July 5, 2023
The link is here

Hollenden Hotel: Downtown Cleveland’s glamorous, colorful hotspot for nearly 100 years

Superior Avenue, 1905. Landmarks include the Arcade Building at right, Hollenden Hotel and newspaper offices of the Cleveland Plain Dealer

Hollenden Hotel: Downtown Cleveland’s glamorous, colorful hotspot for nearly 100 years
by Tom Matowitz
Thursday, April 06, 2023 from FreshWater Cleveland

The link is here

Bill would ‘thwart the will of Ohioans.’ State Ed board independent for reason| Opinion 12/8/22

Bill would ‘thwart the will of Ohioans.’ State Ed board independent for reason| Opinion
“The people of Ohio passed the 1953 amendment to make the state board of education a fourth branch of government,” William L. Phillis, Guest columnist

Oct 12, 2022; Columbus, Ohio, USA; LGBTQ+ allies protest outside the Ohio Department of Education building as the board hears public testimony on a resolution that opposes proposed changes to Title IX, the federal law that prohibited discrimination in schools on the basis of sex. Introduced by board member Brendan Shea, the resolution lays out an "unequivocal opposition" to the Biden Administration's proposal to expand Title IX's protections to gender identity and sexual orientation. Mandatory Credit: Adam Cairns-The Columbus Dispatch

 William L. Phillis is a former teacher, principal, superintendent, and assistant superintendent of public instruction.  He is currently the executive director of the Ohio Coalition for Equity and Adequacy of School Funding.

Leaders of the Ohio Senate seem to be inebriated with power.

With a super majority, they do what they want. They are in a position with a super majority in both chambers of the legislature, to overpower the Governor’s office if they wish.

Senate Bill 178 would neuter the State Board of Education by transferring most of the duties of the State Board of Education to the Governor’s office. The move is counter to Article VI, Section 4 of the Ohio Constitution.

In 1953 Ohioans, with a constitutional amendment, removed the state education agency from the governor’s office by establishing an independent state board of education.

A history lesson — which some state officials would ignore — is in order.

Ohio did not have a state school officer until 1837, when the legislature enacted the office of superintendent of common schools and employed Samuel Lewis as superintendent. After three years, Lewis resigned, and the legislature repealed the law which established the position.

This guest column is available free: Support the exchange of local and state ideas by subscribing to the Columbus Dispatch.

The Ohio Constitutional Convention of 1850-1851 called for the common school system.

Delegates debated, but ultimately rejecting the idea of establishing in the constitution a state officer for education.

In 1853 however the legislature enacted legislation providing for a state commissioner of common schools to be elected on a three-year cycle. During the constitutional convention of 1912, delegates crafted language to replace the state commissioner of common schools with a superintendent of public instruction.

Ohioans approved the amendment, and the legislature attached the position to the governor’s office.

In 1953, Ohioans passed a constitutional amendment as follows:

There shall be a state board of education which shall be selected in such manner and for such terms as shall be provided by law. There shall be a superintendent of public instruction, who shall be appointed by the state board of education. The respective powers and duties of the board and of the superintendent shall be prescribed by law.(Article VI, Section 4)

Ohioans removed the superintendent of public instruction and thus the state education agency from the governor’s office.

In the 1990’s Governor Voinovich requested the legislature to allow the governor to appoint State Board of Education members as a means to gain control of the state education agency.

The legislature gave Voinovich the authorization to appoint eight members in addition to the eleven elected members. This action paved the way for a dysfunctional environment that continues to this day.

State officials should restore the state board to an all-elected body to regain the credibility and the respect the state board had from 1956 to the Voinovich era.

The people of Ohio passed the 1953 amendment to make the state board of education a fourth branch of government.

Senate Bill 178 would thwart the will of Ohioans. But that does not matter to some current state political leadership.

The redistricting fiasco is another proof that the will of the people is of no concern to some current state officials.

Senate Bill 178 should be ditched.

William L. Phillis is a former teacher, principal, superintendent, and assistant superintendent of public instruction.  He is currently the executive director of the Ohio Coalition for Equity and Adequacy of School Funding.

“If you build it, they will come” by Robyn Marcs, WRHS

Cleveland’s Professional Baseball Stadiums

Fans at League Park on Opening Day 1930, Image courtesy of the WRHS Library

“If you build it, they will come”
by Robyn Marcs, WRHS (March 2022)

With the recent name change of the Cleveland Indians to the Guardians, one may want to reflect on how far our team has come since its founding in 1901.  The American League Cleveland team has called three ballparks home: League Park, Cleveland Municipal Stadium, and Progressive Field (also known as Jacobs Field to those of us who grew up with that name).

Read the entire post here

Florence Ellinwood Allen: The First Woman State Supreme Court Justice from The Brennan Center

State of Ohio/The Columbus Metropolitan Library Image Collections/General Photographic Agency/crossroadscreative

The link is here

Florence Ellinwood Allen: The First Woman State Supreme Court Justice from The Brennan Center
A century later, her story of perseverance and support from women’s rights activists still inspires.
by Amanda Powers

One hundred years ago, Florence Ellinwood Allen became the first woman to serve as a state supreme court justice. It was one of many firsts throughout her life: she was also the first woman in America to serve as a prosecutor, be elected as a trial court judge, and be appointed to a federal appeals court. Allen overcame numerous barriers based on her gender throughout her legal career, often with the support of grassroots suffragists who rallied behind her. Her achievement is underscored by the fact that there wasn’t another woman on a state supreme court for nearly 40 years.

Allen spent her first year of law school at the University of Chicago, where she was the only woman. She later wrote in her memoir that it was “terrifying to have to enter a classroom first while a hundred men stood aside.” Allen transferred to New York University, which had been accepting women to its law school since 1890. There, she described feeling “on equal terms with men” and became involved in the women’s suffrage movement.

Allen graduated law school second in her class in 1913 and returned home to Ohio, where she opened a private law practice, volunteered for the Legal Aid Society, and continued campaigning for suffrage. While advocating for a ballot initiative to grant Ohio women the right to vote, Allen gave speeches in 88 counties across the state. She later argued and won a case before the state supreme court that granted women the right to vote in municipal elections, although the policy was soon overturned by referendum. In 1919, Allen was appointed as a prosecutor in Cuyahoga County, a national first for a woman.

Just 10 weeks after the ratification of the 19th Amendment in 1920, Allen was elected to the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas and became the first woman elected to judicial office in the country. Because she entered the race late, she had to collect signatures to be listed on the ballot. Her friends in the Woman Suffrage Party circulated petitions throughout the county and collected enough signatures to complete the nomination process. Upon Allen’s election, her male colleagues on the court suggested that she should only rule on marital disputes. Allen disagreed, responding that since she had never married, “she lacked sufficient expertise in the domestic domain,” unlike the men on the bench.

The women’s movement remained deeply involved throughout Florence’s tenure on the court. When Allen called attention to disorganization at the court due to the lack of a chief justice, women’s groups contacted the press and organized mass meetings to raise awareness of the problem. Allen later wrote that this burst of civic engagement among women occurred “because for the first time they were serving on the jury and also because they saw a member of their sex sitting on the bench . . . in a way that made them feel a special ownership in the Court of Common Pleas.”

In 1922, Allen ran for a seat on the Ohio Supreme Court. She was the underdog against a decorated World War I veteran backed by the powerful state Republican party. However, Allen prevailed by a significant margin. Her campaign was driven by “Florence Allen clubs,” which had been organized by suffragists in almost every single Ohio county. Allen relied on this network of volunteers to circulate petitions, organize door-to-door canvassing, schedule speaking engagements, and secure endorsements from local newspapers.

Suffragettes' storefront HQ in OhioLibrary of Congress
Florence Ellinwood Allen (holding flag) at woman suffrage headquarters in Cleveland in 1912.

Allen wrote in her memoir that on her first day on the bench, she “was aware of a certain uneasiness among the men” due to her gender. Allen overcame their uncertainty and asserted her judicial authority during her 11 years on Ohio’s highest court, issuing decisions on questions of education, labor, municipal governance, taxes, and more.

In 1928, the Florence Allen clubs returned in force, and Allen was reelected by a margin of some 350,000 votes.

After unsuccessful campaigns for the U.S. Senate and House, Allen was nominated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in 1934. She faced considerable opposition throughout the confirmation process but found support from unlikely allies. Ohio Supreme Court Justice Will Stephenson, who had staunchly opposed the idea of a woman justice when Allen was first nominated to share the bench with him, traveled to Washington to testify that “there is no Court too big for Judge Allen.” Allen was confirmed by the Senate, becoming the first woman to sit on a federal appeals court bench. She remained in this position for 25 years.

On the Sixth Circuit, Allen maintained that her role as a judge should not be impacted by her gender. Upon noticing that the chief judge was not assigning her to hear any cases involving patents, Allen insisted that she no longer be excluded from this category. She later wrote several opinions on patent-related cases that were affirmed by the Supreme Court.

Allen received national attention when she presided over a three-judge panel in the case of Tennessee Electric Power Co. v. Tennessee Valley Authority, ruling that the federal government had the authority to build dams and reservoirs and regulate interstate commerce on interstate waterways like the Tennessee River.

This case raised Allen’s national profile, and she was considered for the Supreme Court by several presidents. Many allies called for Allen to be nominated, including First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, who wrote in her newspaper column in 1948, “if a President of the United States should decide to nominate a woman for the Supreme Court, it should be Judge Allen.”

Florence Ellinwood Allen was a trailblazer who understood the importance of diversity in the courtroom. In her words, “When women of intelligence recognize their share in and their responsibility for the courts, a powerful moral backing is secured for the administration of justice.”

A century after her election to the Ohio Supreme Court, Allen’s story reminds us of the importance of a representative judiciary to affirm the legitimacy of a system that administers justice for all. There is still much work to be done on that front: as of last year, only about one-third of active lower federal court judges were women, and 12 states had only one woman on the bench of their state supreme court.

Cleveland History Self Study: A 5 Week Syllabus of Recommended Essays

Cleveland Stories: An Informal Look at the City’s Past

A 5 Week essay-based syllabus suggested by Dr. Marian Morton, professor emerita at John Carroll University with expertise in Cleveland area history.

Overview: A discussion of some of Cleveland’s most interesting and important people, places, and events
Objective: To link the city’s past with its present policies, politics, and practices

Week 1. Introduction. Read Teaching Cleveland Stories (TCS)John J. Grabowski, “Cleveland: Economics, Images, and Expectations”

Week 2. TCS: Mike Roberts and Margaret Gulley, “The Man Who Saved Cleveland.” Elizabeth Sullivan, “Immigration”  John Vacha, “The Heart of Amasa Stone”; Joe Frolik, “Mark Hanna: The Clevelander Who Made a President”

Supplemental: TeachingCleveland.org: Timeline of Cleveland/NE Ohio; The Western Reserve, 1796-1820, and Pre-Industrial (Erie and Ohio Canals), 1820-1865 and The Industrial Revolution/ John D. Rockefeller/ Mark Hanna, 1865-1900

Week 3. TCS: John J. Grabowski, “Cleveland 1912 – Civitas Triumphant”; Joe Frolik, “Regional Government versus Home Rule”  John Vacha, “When Cleveland Saw Red”  Margaret Bernstein, ‘’Inventor Garrett Morgan, Cleveland’s Fierce Bootstrapper”  Marian Morton, “How Cleveland Women Got the Vote and What They Did With It”

Supplemental: TeachingCleveland.org: Progressive Era/Tom L. Johnson/ Newton D. Baker, 1900-1915 and Fred Kohler/City Managers/Political Bosses, 1920s and The Van Sweringens/ Depression … 1930s

Week 4. TCS: Thomas Suddes, “The Adult Education Tradition in Greater Cleveland”  Bill Lubinger, “Bill Veeck: The Man Who Conquered Cleveland and Changed Baseball Forever”  Jay Miller, “Cyrus Eaton: Khruschev’s Favorite Capitalist” Roldo Bartimole, “One Man Can Make a Difference”  Mike Roberts, “Cleveland in the 1960s” and “Cleveland in the 1970s”

Supplemental: TeachingCleveland.org: World War 2- Post War, 1940s; Carl Stokes- Civil Rights, 1960s and Ralph Perk-Dennis Kucinich, 1970s

Week 5TCS: Mike Roberts, “Cleveland in the 1980s” and “Cleveland in the 1990s” Supplemental: TeachingCleveland.org: “10 Greatest Clevelanders”; “12 Most Significant Events”; Cleveland Politician Interview Series (George Forbes, Jim Rokakis, Louis Stokes, George Voinovich, Michael R. White); Mike Roberts, “Cleveland in the 2000s

General questions: what is the main point of each article? Did you agree or disagree? What did you find most interesting? What would you add? Or subtract? 

 

The Equal Rights Amendment: Why We Needed It and How Lawyers Have Fought Gender Discrimination Without it by Jonathan L. Entin Nov 12, 2020 at 7pm

The Equal Rights Amendment: Why We Needed It and How Lawyers Have Fought Gender Discrimination Without it
Jonathan L. Entin, David L. Brennan Professor Emeritus of Law and Adjunct Professor of Political Science, Case Western Reserve University

Thursday, November 12, 7pm via Zoom
The videos here:

Gender-based distinctions used to pervade American law. The ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment gave women a constitutional right to vote, but did nothing to disturb other forms of gender discrimination. The Equal Rights Amendment would have guaranteed equal rights regardless of sex, but was never ratified. This program will examine the historical background of gender distinctions in the law and more recent efforts by lawyers such as Ruth Bader Ginsburg to reform the law with or without the ERA.

Zoom RSVP here:
https://cwru.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_yhNoIuuGQ86ACD22VrG_sQ
Free

Made possible with a generous donation from Lin Emmons.

Sponsored by Cleveland History Center, CWRU Laura and Alvin Siegal Lifelong Learning, League of Women Voters-Greater Cleveland

Teaching Cleveland Digital