CheckItOut@WrightLibrary from Wright Memorial Public Library

Great Dayton Flood II

Reference Staff — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 07:14:37 GMT

Join Oakwood Historical Society past-president and current board member, Mark Risley for an encore presentation Saturday, June 22nd at 2 p.m. in the Library Meeting Room. Mark's presentation will follow the story of the flood and beyond.

After the presentation, local author, Crystal Hoblit, will be available for a book signing. She will have copies of her children's book, Catching Raindrops, which is about the 1913 flood.

Advance registration is required and limited to the first 65 people. Contact Wright Library's Reference Department at 294-7171 or by email to register beginning Friday, June 7th.

Book Discussions

Reference Staff — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 15:28:31 GMT

Oakwood High School is hosting An Evening with Gerda Weissmann Klein, a special author event open to the public on Thursday, April 11, at 7 p.m. in the Oakwood High School Auditorium.

To encourage community participation in this special visit, Wright Library is holding book discussion groups of All But My Life on March 26 at 1:00 p.m. and March 27 at 6:30 p.m. in the Library Meeting Room.

For over six decades, author, historian, speaker, and Holocaust survivor, Gerda Weissmann Klein has captivated audiences worldwide with her powerful message of hope, inspiration, love and humanity. In her speeches and books, Klein draws from her wealth of life experiences: from surviving the Holocaust and meeting her future husband on the day of her liberation, to her journey to the United States, accepting an Oscar and Emmy for a documentary based on her life, and her constant fight to promote tolerance, encourage community service and combat hunger. Gerda Klein has authored nine books on a wide variety of topics for an array of different audiences. These include her memoir, All But My Life, which was the foundation for the Oscar and Emmy-winning HBO documentary One Survivor Remembers.

Online Biographies:

Great Dayton Flood

Reference Staff — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 14:22:42 GMT

100^th Anniversary of the Great Dayton Flood

The Great Flood of 1913 adversely affected communities all along the Great Miami River from Piqua to Dayton to Hamilton and beyond. It garnered world-wide attention as one of the most photographed and documented disasters of the early 20th century. Join Oakwood Historical Society past-president and current board member, Mark Risley, Saturday, March 16 at 2 p.m. for a presentation following the story of the flood and beyond.

Also, there is a Great Dayton Flood display in the South Reading Room of the Library, which be available until March 25th.

The picture above is from the Dayton Flood collection at Digital@UDayton, where more images can be found.

Trolleys and Buses: A History of Transit in Oakwood

Reference Staff — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 16:39:07 GMT

Join Tom Morrow, Oakwood resident and Oakwood Historical Society member, as he makes a presentation on early trolleys and buses in Oakwood Saturday, February 9at 2 p.m. Mr. Morrow has an extensive collection of photos of early streetcars and buses, maps of their routes and terminals he will have on display.

Transportation to and from Oakwood to Dayton and points beyond was a critical piece of Oakwood’s history. Mr. Morrow will talk about how transit played a key role in Oakwood’s growth and prosperity from the beginning up until the 1950’s.

Presidential Trivia

Audiovisual Librarian — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 16:48:43 GMT

Don't Know Much About the American Presidents by Kenneth C. Davis is a recent book on CD, which is a great way to brush up on your presidential knowledge in this election year. Test your knowledge with these trivia vidoes.

Part I
Part II
Part III

Time-Capsule Home Tour

Reference Staff — Fri, 26 Oct 2012 11:18:46 GMT

Join us Sunday, November 11th, from 2 - 3 p.m. for a Time-Capsule Home Tour presented by the Oakwood Historical Society. The home on Wiltshire Avenue, was the site of an Historical Society open house in September, which presented it as it would have been in the 1930s, both in terms of decore and the items you would have found within. If you missed the open house, this program will give you a chance to see what the house was like and to hear stories of Oakwood at the time.

Advanced registration is required and limited to the first 65 people. Contact Wright Library’s Reference Department at 294-7171 or by email to register beginning Friday, October 26th.

The Town of Oakwood

Reference Staff — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 17:20:11 GMT

Wright Library and the Oakwood Historical Society will present “The Town of Oakwood” Tuesday, April 17th from 7:00 – 7:45 p.m. in the Library Meeting Room. Advance registration is required and limited to 65. Contact the Reference Department at 294-7171 or by email to register beginning Friday, April 6th.

“The Town of Oakwood" lecture will follow the creation and development of the town of Oakwood from 1872-1908, the “rocky years”. In 1872 four men purchased and platted 78 acres of rural farmland in Van Buren Township with hopes that people would follow. They quickly learned few people were willing to move so far out of the city. Three of the four investors bailed, lost their money, and died. An early Dayton biographer called Oakwood “a failure”. Come hear the whole story as it is presented by Mackensie Wittmer and Harrison Gowdy of the Oakwood Historical Society. Additional financial support was provided by the Oakwood Rotary Foundation.

African American History Month

Reference Staff — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 17:16:10 GMT

February is African American History Month. Here is a list of resources for any student of history. Included are timelines, biographies, essays, videos, and primary source material.