Mr. McClure

In honor of our 200th post on this blog, here is a little slice of local history!    

McClure Street is an important part of the fabric of St. Anne's Hill.    The McClure Street bridge, on the south end of the neighborhood represents one of the major gateways into the community, leading to the Twin Towers area and Ruskin Elementary School.    There are many interesting homes along McClure, which leads north to the Fifth Street corridor.    

But where does the name come from?  Who was McClure in Dayton's history?  Luckily, there are some great sources of information that help us answer that question.    This is from http://www.daytonhistorybooks.com/page/page/3423054.htm ....

 In 1806 D. C. Cooper built a brick store room on the northeast corner of Main and First streets, and entering into partnership with John Compton, opened a stock of goods there. The same year James Steele, who since November 12, 1805, had been in partnership in Dayton with William McClure, built a brick store of two stories on the southeast corner of Main and First streets. November 30, 1807, McClure and Steele dissolved partnership.

In 1807 the Dayton Academy was incorporated by the legislature. The corporators were James Welsh, Daniel C. Cooper, William McClure, George F. Tennery, John Folkerth, and James Hamer. William M. Smith was the first teacher. In 1808 a brick school house was built by subscription on the west side of St. Clair, near Third Street. During the winter of 1807 and 1808 a debating club was formed. Its meetings and also spelling matches, which were very popular entertainments, were held in the school house for several winters. 

For more about Cooper and Dayton's earliest days, check out the City's website, which has some interesting information.   

According to the Dayton Daily News, William McClure was also President of the Dayton City Council from 1807-1807.   The City Council was the predecessor to the Dayton City Commission, later established in 1829.  McClure took the reins from his colleague, Mr. Cooper.

And there's more....  he was also a publisher:

WILLIAM M'CLURE and George Smith printed the first issue" of The Dayton Repertory on September 23, 1808, to judge from the date of Vol. 1, No.2, which appeared on Friday, September 30. The office address was given as "Main Street".

The Dayton Repertory was a small four-page sheet, 70 by 120 inches in size, with two columns to the page. From a publication statement on the last page of the second issue, we learn that it "Is printed weekly, at two dollars, paid in advance, or two dollars and fifty cents, paid at the end of the year.

As to news, the greater part of the issue was devoted to reprinted dispatches from Spain, England, and France. Almost no local news, which would be of the greatest interest to us, was published. The pioneer editor evidently assumed that the residents knew what was going on locally.

In the fifth issue, which was dated October 21, 1808, the printers made the following announcement: ''The office of the Repertory is removed to the south side of second street, between Main & Jefferson streets - in consequence of which the publication of the paper will be suspended for a few weeks."

During the suspension, Smith sold his interest in the enterprise to Henry Disbrow. The newspaper reappeared on February I, 1809, the definite article being dropped from the title which now read. Dayton Repertory and was embellished by flourishes. This was Vol. I, No. 6. The publication had been materially enlarged to a four­-column, four-page paper, measuring 83/4 by I8 1/4 inches in page size.

In the issue of April 12, 1809, was announced the death of William M'Clure, sen., of Montgomery County, apparently the father of one of the co-publishers of the Repertory. In the issue of June 7 of the same year, we learn that William M'Clure, the printer, was a trustee of Miami University.

The issue of December, 1809, is the last known copy of The Dayton Repertory.

So, thanks to his work we now enjoy the street that bears his name.  This is just one small part of the fascinating history of Dayton and St. Anne's Hill.   

Do you have any questions, or an idea for a blog topic?  Let us know, and help keep this blog going for another 200 posts!   Write to us at news[at]stanneshill.org today.

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Day of Peace

More great news from the Missing Peace Art Space here in St. Anne's Hill!

Dayton’s celebration of the U.N. sponsored International Day of Peace will be held at the Missing Peace Art Space on Tuesday, September 21, 2010, from 5:00 to 8:30 p.m. City dignitaries will hold a ribbon cutting ceremony for the Grand Opening of the Urban Youth Peace Academy, which will be headquartered at the gallery.

In 1981, the United Nations designated September 21 as International Day of Peace and the day has since been celebrated worldwide. “Dayton: Peace in Perspective” is this year’s local International Day of Peace theme in recognition that most of us are fortunate enough to have a high degree of peace in our lives.

The Urban Youth Peace Academy is a grassroots student organization that grew out of streetpeace, a peace and social justice education program at Ruskin School and East End Community Services. As students completed their 8thgrade year at Ruskin, they wanted to continue their peace studies, sustain the community of learners they had formed, and invite new students from the various high schools they would be attending, into the peace process. In response to this dream, they came together as a core group of student leaders to form the Urban Youth Peace Academy, with a membership representing schools throughout the Dayton Public School district.

Students in the Urban Youth Peace Academy will participate in a full curriculum on Tuesday evenings, including the study of such books as A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah; Man’s Search for Meaning by Victor Frankl; and Savage Inequalities by Jonathan Kozal. They will participate in discussion circles around such movies as Blood Diamond; Life is Beautiful; Schindler’s List; Gran Torino; and The Chamber. Students will have opportunities for instruction and practice in non-violent responses to real life conflict.

Ruskin Update

 FYI.... check out the new website for the school, too!

Do you have at least 1 hour a week? 

The kids are back in school and volunteers are needed!

Volunteers are needed at Ruskin School for one on one tutoring (K-8^th), grounds crew (pulling weeds, trimming bushes), and more!  If you are interested contact David Lobo at 259-1898 or email him at dlobo@east-end.org.  Each volunteer will need to complete an application, background check and brief orientation.

Amanda Arrington

Community Organizer

East End Community Services

624 Xenia Avenue

Dayton, OH 45410

937.259.1898 ext 21

East End

Check out the new house going up on McClure Street! Okay, technically it is not in St. Anne's Hill but just across the bridge, near Ruskin School and St. Mary's Church. Still, this is good news for the community.



The house is part of the Twin Towers Crossing project, that will build almost 40 new lease-to-own homes in east Dayton. The project is driven by East End Community Services with financial support from the City of Dayton and State of Ohio.



They are are also running the new (and very popular) De-Construction program. That program hires unemployed workers to dismantle nuisance structures by hand, and then sell the materials. Not only does it create jobs, but it reduces the waste stream going to landfills.



Just another example of the great things happening in Dayton!

An Old Map

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Just for fun, here is an interesting old map of the St. Anne's Hill neighborhood prior to the construction of Ohio Route 35 through the city. Today, the highway runs along what was then called Richard Street.

Highlights include Stivers High School, Ruskin Elementary School, and Bomberger Park - all of which are still important community assets. Sharp-eyed readers will also notice some of the surrounding streets were taken for urban renewal areas as well.


Thanks to Gordon for providing the photo!

To see more photos and maps, try clicking here to see some of our older blog topics, or click this link to our website.

Do you have old maps and photos to share? Let us know!



PS. Don't forget - our next monthly meeting is Tuesday, January 5th at 7 pm!
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Ruskin, Part II

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Hot off the presses, here's another great article about Ruskin Elementary from the Dayton Daily News. The new school has created a community garden for the kids. An excerpt:

The Ruskin prototype is a 40-feet-by-40-feet garden that contains tomatoes, green beans, cucumbers, squash and other vegetables. Local kids involved with Street Peace, an after-school program overseen by Ruskin teacher Julie Mcglaun, donated $1,000 in seed money to get the project off — or into — the ground.

Yet another reason why Ruskin is a great asset for our neighborhood!
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Ruskin & UD

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Thanks to an anonymous source (... okay, it was me), we learned that the summer edition of the University of Dayton alumni magazine featured an inspiring article about Ruskin School (p 16).

The school is located just across the McClure Street bridge in the Twin Towers neighborhood, but also serves the children of St. Anne's Hill and the surrounding area. Here is an excerpt:

That children and teachers were spending from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on their spring-break days in school preparing for standardized tests had much to do with the school becoming an intrinsic part of the neighborhood. A sign in a commons area proclaimed: “Change the Streets. Study.” A message being sent to the students, said Devon Berry, a 2007 UD master’s in education grad and Ruskin principal, was, “Nobody wants to send kids to a school with poor test scores.” If the students achieve, then people want to move into the neighborhood, and the streets indeed change.

What's the connection to UD? Besides the Principal being a UD alum, Ruskin School is supported by the University of Dayton's "Fitz Center for Leadership in the Community" and they work closely with the parents and teachers at the school. Their programs at Ruskin make them an important partner in our community.


Side note: this page has a great summary of how the new Ruskin School was built, as told by the architects, with an impressive investment of over $10 million by Dayton Public Schools.

So anyway, please take a moment to read this great article from UD Magazine about an important asset for our neighborhood.

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Education News

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Our neighbhors at Ruskin Elementary and East End Community Services are seeking voluteers and tutors....

East End Community Services partners with Ruskin Pre-K-8th Elementary School in East Dayton with the goal of helping all students achieve academic success. In April students in grades 3-8 will take the Ohio Achievement Tests to determine degrees of proficiency in Reading, Math, Social Studies, Science, and Writing as defined by the Ohio Department of Education. East End is supporting Ruskin’s teachers in preparing children for the test by making ourselves available for one-on-one tutoring. We are recruiting others to join us in tutoring children – particularly in the areas of Reading and Math.

If you can spare an hour a week, after 2:00 until 5:00 we can match you with a child at Ruskin. The child’s academic needs have been assessed, and a tutoring plan has been tailored to meet the needs of the student. You will attend an orientation program that includes information about how to effectively tutor a child, and you will be equipped with a tutoring kit that includes flashcards, worksheets, and other academically relevant materials. Prior to being matched you will need to go through a background check that takes just a few minutes of your time.

Please contact Stephanie Smith at East End Community Services for more information and to receive an application form. Thanks for considering this opportunity to change a child’s life.

Stephanie Smith, Volunteer Coordinator
East End Community Services
937 259-1898
ssmith@east-end.org
624 Xenia Avenue
Dayton, Ohio 45410

Also, the new STEM regional school is now taking applications! We got this note from one of our neighbors in South Park:

Do you have a child who is very interested or gifted in the fields of Science, Engineering and Math? The New Dayton Regional STEM School (DRSS) is taking applications through March 2nd for the new class of 9th graders that will start in August.

This is a public school and is hosted by Wright State University and the Air Force Research Lab, with additional support from the University of Dayton, Clark State University, and the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT). It will serve Greene, Montgomery and Clark Counties.

Here is the school's website - http://www.daytonstemschool.org/ as well as a few great articles about this school and the other six that Ohio has created this year. These articles explain how these schools are key to helping Ohio migrate from an industrial age to an information age economy.

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Ruskin Dedication

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It's back to school time!

Ruskin PK-8 School
Dedication & Open House
Sunday, August 17, 2008
3:00 pm

Please stop by and show your support for this neighborhood asset!

As we learned earlier this year, Ruskin will be a charter school within Dayton Public Schools but operated by East End Community School, with additional support from the University of Dayton Fitz Center. The school is located just across the McClure Street Bridge from St. Anne's Hill.

Here is the original Ruskin School, from the late 1800's, when St. Anne's Hill was built:

Ruskin Merger

There was a major announcement tonight regarding the future of the new Ruskin School. The school, located at the intersection of McClure Street and Xenia Avenue, is within walking distance of the St. Anne's Hill neighborhood. Read on!

Ruskin to house former charter school

By Scott Elliot, Dayton Daily News
Tuesday, May 20, 2008, 10:07 PM

The city school board Tuesday entered into what may be a first-of-its-kind partnership when it inked a deal to absorb an independent charter school but allow it to operate independently under the district’s control.

Construction of the district’s new Ruskin Elementary School in the Twin Towers neighborhood is nearing completion, but East End Community School had operated in a nearby district-owned school and draws many students from that neighborhood.

East End is an independently run and sponsored charter school founded in 2002. Under the agreement, the school board will have ultimate authority for the school but its day-to-day operations will be overseen by a five-person committee with two representatives from the school board. School officials said they believed the deal is the first such partnership in Ohio.

The school, with about 200 students, will roughly double in size when it moves to Ruskin. Its students will become part of the district’s enrollment count for school funding and the students’ state test scores will count toward the district averages.

So that seems to suggest a student head-count around 400 when the school opens in the fall. That number is consistent with the other new elementary schools in Dayton.

Along with Stivers, the new school will be a huge asset for the neighborhood in terms of attracting new families to our community. We should all look forward to welcoming these students to the new Ruskin School!