Life in Cincinnati

Life in Cincinnati

History of Cincinnati

In 1787 Congress adopted the Northwest Ordinance which opened the land between the Alleghenies and the Mississippi River to settlement. On October 15, 1788, John Cleves Symmes was granted a charter to develop the land between the Great Miami and Little Miami rivers. This tract is known as the Miami Purchase. That fall and winter three sites were settled in the Purchase. On November 18, 1788, a party of 26 settlers from New Jersey and Pennsylvania led by Benjamin Stites arrived at a site about one mile west of the mouth of the Little Miami River, near present day Lunken Airport. They called this settlement "Columbia." On December 28, 1788, 11 families and 24 men led by Colonel Robert Patterson arrived at a site of 747 acres located directly opposite the Licking River. This second settlement would become Cincinnati. A little more than a month later John Cleves Symmes and his family settled east of the mouth of the Great Miami River and called this settlement North Bend.

John Filson, a partner and surveyor of the second settlement, named it Losantiville, meaning "town opposite the mouth of the Licking" River. The location of Fort Washington here in 1789 provided military protection for the surrounding area and the Territory lands. In 1790, General Arthur St. Clair, the first Governor of the Northwest Territory, arrived at Fort Washington and renamed the settlement Cincinnati in honor of the Society of the Cincinnati, an organization of Revolutionary War Officers to which he belonged. The society took its name from Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus, a patrician farmer of ancient Rome who was pressed into military leadership several times to save the republic.

During the first forty years after its founding, Cincinnati experienced spectacular growth. Daniel Drake wrote in his book, Natural and Statistical View, that "In 1810, the single county of Hamilton, not embracing more than 500 square miles, had 15,204 [people]; and the Miami country, excluding that part which lies beyond the state line on the west, had about 70,000, or one-fourth of the population of the state." By 1820, citizens, extremely proud of their city, were referring to it as "the Queen City" or "the Queen of the West." On May 4, 1819, B. Cooke wrote in the Inquisitor and Cincinnati Advertiser, "The city is, indeed, justly styled the fair Queen of the West: distinguished for order, enterprise, public spirit, and liberality, she stand the wonder of an admiring world." In 1854 Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote his poem "Catawba Wine" to memorialize the city's vineyards, especially those of Nicholas Longworth. The last stanza of the poem reads:

Legend has it that Cincinnati, like Rome, was built on seven hills. The fact that there are more than seven hills has caused considerable confusion as various citizens seek to identify the "original seven." These are the hills most frequently listed: Mt. Adams, Mt. Auburn, Walnut Hills, Fairview Heights, Clifton Heights, Vine Street Hill, Price Hill, Fairmount, Mt. Lookout, Mt. Hope, Mt. Echo, and Mt. Storm.

Description of Cincinnati

Greater Cincinnati is in the middle of the eastern half of the U.S. This prime geographic location, combined with a favorable climate and diverse population base, makes the region an extremely attractive area in which to locate. In many ways, the numbers speak for themselves.

The City of Cincinnati is located in Hamilton County, in Southwestern Ohio along the Ohio River at 84 degrees 30'11" west longitude and 39 degrees 06'07" north latitude. The City occupies 77.2 square miles, and Hamilton County, 412.8 square miles. Within 600 miles (966 km) of Cincinnati are located:

Greater Cincinnati has a moderate climate with average temperature ranges from 30 degrees Fahrenheit in January to 75 degrees Fahrenheit in July. Annual average temperature is 54 degrees Fahrenheit; average monthly rainfall is 3.4" and average monthly snowfall during winter months is only 4.5".

The metropolitan area has the following ethnic composition:

White 87.0%
Asian & Pacific Islander 0.8%
African-American 11.7%
Spanish Origin 0.5%

The Greater Cincinnati 1990 census population of 1,744,124 ranked 23rd in the U.S. and second in Ohio.

A diverse economy, high worker productivity, outstanding air service and extraordinary quality of life are strong factors in positioning the region for solid economic growth in the 2000s. Greater Cincinnati has developed into a major center for research and development, manufacturing, wholesaling, retailing, insurance, finance and health services. Among its prominent manufacturing groups are transportation equipment, which includes aircraft engines and auto parts; food and kindred products; metal working and general industrial machinery; chemicals; fabricated metal products; printing and publishing.

More than 1,000 area firms are engaged in international trade and generate sales of about $4.78 billion to customers outside the U.S. each year, ranking Greater Cincinnati 25th nationally in total exports, and 14th in dollar volume gain. Major export products include jet engines, plastics machinery, computer software, paper and consumer goods. More than 200 Greater Cincinnati firms are owned by foreign firms from Japan, England, Western Europe and Canada. Foreign Trade Zone status is also available in Greater Cincinnati to assist firms engaged in international trade in lowering import duty and tax expenses.

The City of Cincinnati has a council-manager form of government, which provides for the election of nine council members. The council member with the largest number of votes serves as mayor. Council appoints a city manager, who is the administrative head of the government and is responsible to council. Ohio and Indiana counties in the metro area are governed by a commissioner form of government: Three elected commissioners share responsibility, one serves as president. Kentucky counties have a commissioner form of government headed by a separately elected county judge/executive.

Cincinnati links


Cost of Living Comparison

Cost of Living Comparison
Between Various Cities in the US
Our City Our Cost Index Our Graduate Stipend
Cincinnati, OH 98.7 $18,500*
Other Cities Their Cost Index Equivalent Graduate Stipend
Boston, MA 136.2 $25,528
Chicago, IL 109.0 $20,430
Cleveland, OH 112.2 $21,030
Los Angeles, CA 123.0 $23,054
New York, NY 231.8      $43,447 (Fuhgeddaboudit!)
Oakland, CA 156.6 $29,352
St. Louis, MO 97.3 $18,237
Source: Composite Cost of Living Index for first quarter, 1999, taken from the Geographical Reference Report published by the American Chamber of Commerce Research Association

*An additional $700 is paid by the Program to cover Health Insurance.