News

In addition to numerous books about the Civil War, Ohioana’s collection includes several archival items. This letter from Joseph Moore to his father describes the difficult conditions he encountered as he traveled from Atlanta late in 1864, fought in the Battle of Nashville, and traveled on through Cincinnati and Columbus before arriving in Washington in early 1865. The collection also includes ... Read More

In observance of National Archives Month and Columbus Day, we’re featuring this program from the “Columbian Centennial Celebration of the Discovery of America,” which was held on October 21, 1892 in Columbus. The celebration was sponsored by the Board of Education; in addition to the program for the evening, the booklet includes lists of board members, departments, schools, teachers, and staff. The cover ... Read More

As part of National Archives Month we’re highlighting archival items in several areas of our collection, starting with music. In addition to nearly 10,000 pieces of sheet music, Ohioana’s collection includes nineteenth- and twentieth-century songbooks, scrapbooks, and other items related to music and composing. This handwritten and hand-bound songbook appears to have belonged to A.M. Barber of Pennsylvania in 1820 ... Read More

Throughout the month of October we’ll be highlighting archival items in the Ohioana Library’s collection–including scrapbooks, postcards, correspondence and other personal papers, photos, and manuscripts. Stop back often to see images of these rare and one-of-a-kind items! Click here to learn more about archives and archival materials. ... Read More

Ohioan Dav Pilkey appears twice on the American Library Association’s list of Top 100 Banned/Challenged Books: 2000-2009: at #13 for his Captain Underpants series, and again at #47 for The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby. Captain Underpants is also listed at #1 on the ALA’s Top Ten Challenged Books of 2012. Pilkey was born and raised near Cleveland, Ohio. In ... Read More

Ohio native Toni Morrison has three books on the American Library Association’s list of Top 100 Banned/Challenged Books: 2000-2009: #15 The Bluest Eye, #26 Beloved, and #72 Song of Solomon. Beloved is also #10 on the ALA’s Top Ten Challenged Books of 2012. Morrison was born and raised in Lorain, Ohio. After receiving degrees in English from Howard University and ... Read More

Ohioan Chris Crutcher has three books on the American Library Association’s list of Top 100 Banned/Challenged Books: 2000-2009: #41 Whale Talk, #44 Athletic Shorts, and #85 Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes. Crutcher was born in Dayton, Ohio, but grew up in a small town in Idaho. After graduating from college, he taught primary and secondary school and spent nearly a ... Read More

The second Ohio author to appear on the American Library Association’s list of Top 100 Banned/Challenged Books: 2000-2009 is Mildred Taylor. Her award-winning book Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry appears at #66. Taylor was born in Jackson, Mississippi, but spent her childhood in Toledo and graduated from college there. After spending two years in the Peace Corps and earning a ... Read More

September 22-28 is Banned Books Week! Celebrate your freedom to read! Every year the American Library Association collects information on challenged and banned books in schools and libraries across the country. Five Ohio authors appear on the ALA’s list of Top 100 Banned/Challenged Books: 2000-2009. Two of those authors also appear on the ALA’s Top Ten Challenged Books of 2012. ... Read More

James Garfield was born in a log cabin in Cuyahoga County, Ohio. After working various jobs to support himself, he graduated from college and worked first as an educator and then as a lawyer. He served in the Ohio Senate from 1859-1861, then served as an officer in the Union army. He was first elected to Congress in 1862, where ... Read More