Roam Under the Dome

Our blog for the stories behind the exhibit, inside the film and beyond the museum.

Old letter

See the First Drafts of Ohio’s Constitution
Christine Engels
The corrections on the documents are a very interesting piece to inspect. Some changes were cosmetic while others more substantive.
The Fisher Phase pottery vessel after reconstruction

[Carbon] Dating in the 21st Century
Bob Genheimer
As an archaeologist, one of the most frequent questions that I am asked is “how do you know how old something is?” There are many different answers to that question, mostly depending on what exactly we are trying to date.
Termite Damage

Preservation Tip: Dealing With Insect Damage
Scott Gampfer
Insects are attracted to materials containing cellulose. Paper-based collections (documents, books, newspapers) contain cellulose and need to be protected from insect attack. Storing collections in cool dry spaces is preferable because there is a link between higher temperature and relative humidity, and increased insect activity.
The open Robinson Viewer

A 19th-Century Cincinnati-Manufactured Picture Exhibitor
Scott Gampfer
Introduced to the United States from Europe in the late 1850s, the carte-de-visite or calling card photographic format soon became wildly popular.
1952-53 Cincinnati phone directory selection

An X-Ray at the Shoe Store
Scott Gampfer
The customer and shoe salesman (and a child’s parent) could then look into viewing ports and see the position of the bones of the feet within the outline of the shoe.
The Cincinnati Tablet

The Story of the Cincinnati Tablet
Tyler Swinney
The Cincinnati Tablet, approx. 1,200 years old, was discovered during 19th-century construction in downtown Cincinnati.
man holding book page

From the Card Catalog to the Internet
Christine Engels
The challenge facing me and my team is to fit older collections into these new standards and to get them online so researchers can see that we have them.
The Invertebrate Paleontology Collection at Cincinnati Museum Center

A Museum Without Walls: Invertebrate Paleontology Collection Now Online
Brenda Hunda
Accessing information has traditionally been done through contact with curatorial staff or in-person visits to collections, until now.
Curve Lionel Hampton poster

Lionel Hampton at Cincinnati’s Regal Theater
Scott Gampfer
Lionel Hampton, renowned jazz musician and bandleader, known for his work on the vibraphone, piano, and drums, appeared at Cincinnati’s Regal Theater on Saturday, August 18, 1956.
A sample of Google's Egypt questions

Egypt’s Most-Searched Questions
Chris Dobbs
Museums answer questions. But who’s asking? One place that’s full of questions is Google. In Most-Searched Questions, we’ve taken it upon ourselves to answer some of the most interesting questions the world has ever asked Google.
CMC's records on iDigBio

A Museum Without Walls: Technical Aspects
Anne Kling
In an earlier post, we announced the sharing of over 60,000 of Museum Center's Invertebrate Paleontology records to the global iDigBio website and explained how this benefits the scientific community. But, how does this actually happen? What steps are involved to place our records on an international research platform?
Bengals program

Programs From the Original Cincinnati Bengals
Scott Gampfer
The original Cincinnati Bengals professional football team was established as part of the American Football League in 1937. The AFL folded after the 1937 season, so the Bengals continued as an independent team until the formation of a new AFL in 1939.
10 Reasons pamphlet

The Fight for the Vote
Sarah Staples
For many years, women in this country were denied even the most basic constitutional rights. They could not speak publically, sign contracts, gain a formal education, successfully own property separate from husbands or fathers or retain custody of their own children.
sidney maxwell papers

Collections 101: What’s a Collection? Does your collection have good provenance?
Anne Kling
Museums and libraries collect materials in an effort to document human history and to learn more about the natural world. Museum Center acquires and preserves its collections of historically- or scientifically-important items as a public trust.
Cincinnati Union Terminal, c.1933.

Portal to the World: Cincinnati Celebrates Its New Railroad Terminal
Scott Gampfer
On March 31, 1933, a turn of a ceremonial gold key unlocked the doors of Cincinnati’s brand new Union Terminal. The newspaper declared that a portal to the world had swung open.