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My Visit To The Cincinnati Museum Center

Cincinnati Museum Center

Cincinnati Museum Center

Cincinnati Union Terminal
Now known as the
Cincinnati Museum Center

A train ride into Cincinnati, Ohio from the small town that I lived in as a boy was always exciting. I had not visited Union Terminal in over 45 years when I went there in early October, 2003. This day there was some unplanned excitement while I visited the Cincinnati History Museum that now occupies Union Terminal. More on this later.

Union Terminal's architecture is awesome. It is shaped like a band shell in its interior and has wonderful acoustics, a fact that has not gone unnoticed. Since Union Terminal has been converted for use as the Cincinnati Museum Center, a Skinner pipe organ has been installed. There are also large mosaics and murals that would inspire awe in anyone who saw them. When the site was renovated and the concourse that led to the tracks was removed, the mosaics and murals that were in that area were moved to the Greater Cincinnati Airport in Northern Kentucky for preservation.

Ohio historical marker

The Ohio state historical marker in the photo on the left contains a short histroical sketch of Cincinnati's Union Terminal.

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Union terminal Grounds Cincinnati History Museum Cincinnati Railroad Club Cincinnati Fire Dept.
Designed by Bill Johnson

Union Terminal Grounds

Fountain and pool

Main Entrance
Fountain and pool

Fountain and pool
Manicured gardens

<-- Manicured gardens

Bat art -->

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Bat art

Cincinnati History Museum

Roebing Suspension Bridge

The amazing Cincinnati in Motion exhibit, in the above picture, is the premier exhibit of the Cincinnati History Museum.  It is also the first thing one sees as you enter the museum. There is more to see here than one can take in at a glance, much less with a camera.

The view that is shown here is what one would have seen by looking across the Ohio River from Covington, Kentucky.  I lived within 30 miles of this place in Northern Kentucky until I left home to join the US Air Force when I was eighteen years old.  There is enough detail here to flood my mind with memories of when I was a boy.  Using this exhibit as a back drop, I would like to share some of them with you.

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Cincinnati Railroad Club

Tower_A-v1.jpg (35888 bytes)

Cincinnati Union Terminal tower A,
home of the Cincinnati Railroad Club

Tower_A1-v1.jpg (38542 bytes)

I probably would have not found out about this neat place except for the unplanned excitement that I mentioned in the introduction frame of this web page.  I started a conversation with a gentleman outside of Union Terminal while we waited to reenter the building.  He was showing me pictures of his "O" gauge layout that was under construction.  During the conversation he told me about Tower A and gave me directions to go up there.

Since it was scheduled to be open for only an hour after we reentered the building, I went there first.  There was a lot of neat railroad items that I did not get to look at.  I hope I get an opportunity to visit again when I can stay for a little while.  Best part is that except for the parking fee, it is free.

The Cincinnati Railroad Club has a nice website too.  Be sure to check out the Tower A view and photograph links too. 

I shot a few pictures from the windows of Tower A.  I hope that you enjoy them.

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The Cincinnati Fire Department

Cincinnati Fire Department ladder truck
Cincinnati Fire Department ladder truck

A visit by the Cincinnati Fire Department was the unplanned excitement that I mentioned in the introduction frame of this page.

At the time that the alarm sounded, I was in the restored street car listening to a recorded narration that was telling the story of Cincinnati's contribution to the W.W.II effort.  The motorman, a mannequin that was dressed in a uniform of that time, was telling the story.  At the point that he mentioned black out curtains and other precautions that were taken, the fire siren went off.  The timing of it fit so naturally that I thought that he was about to announce an air raid drill.  Several children entered the car at that time and were talking so that I could not understand the recording at that point, so I left the car and the siren grew louder.

At that point a staff member from the museum in a very courteous manner explained that everyone must leave the building.  The CFD arrived very quickly.  I don't think more than five minutes passed between the fire siren's first blast and their arrival.  I asked one of the firemen what had happened as he was leaving and he told me that it had only been a sensor in the kitchen that had become overheated.

Everything and everyone performed just as they were supposed to, and hopefully this fine facility will be around for many years to come.

There were three more vehicles not shown in these pictures
There were three more vehicles not shown in these pictures

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