the Western States. There are also St. Francis de Sales Church, Rockdale Temple (Jewish), the new Court House, and the most imposing of Cincinnati buildings, the Union Central. The City Hall is constructed of granite and Amherst stone. The tower is 32 feet square and 250 feet high. The Government Building and Custom House is a magnificent granite structure costing over $6,000,000.
The Cincinnati May Festivals are probably the most notable musical meetings in the United States. The biennial May Festival began its work in 1873. The wonderful artistic and financial success of that festival, and the one held in 1875, suggested the need of a permanent music hall for Cincinnati. This contains one of the dozen gigantic organs of the world. Cincinnati Music Hall is a public institution — a gift to the city under the control of a self-perpetuating and incorporated organization of citizens. The seating capacity is 3,600, and the stage is 112 feet wide and 70 feet deep—one of the largest in the United States. The Zoological Garden covers over 63 acres of ground. Its collection of wild animals is one of the largest in the world, and it is noted for its scenic beauty.
The work of the Department of Health is carried on under seven main divisions: Administration, Medical Inspection, Sanitary Inspection, Food Inspection, Laboratory, Tuberculosis Dispensary, Vital Statistics. Cincinnati has nearly 3,000 manufacturing establishments. The principal products are: machine tools, soap, men's and women's clothing, boots and shoes, printing and publishing, slaughtering and packing, furniture, leather, rolling mill products, special machinery, sheet metal products, foundry products, printing inks, wood-working machinery, lumber and timber products, electrical machinery, wagons, musical instruments, and chemicals. The capital employed is about $212,000,000 and the annual factory output exceeds $300,000,000. Cincinnati is the banking center for a vast area of thriving territory. Within the municipal limits there are eight National banks, 33 State banks, and 221 building and loan associations. In 1919 the bank clearings were $3,130,811,300. There are several imposing bank structures in Cincinnati, among them being the enormous building of the First National Bank, and the splendid structures of the Second National Bank, the Fifty-third National Bank, the Provident Savings Bank & Trust Co., and the Union Trust & Savings Bank.
The city has about 290 church organizations, including 219 Protestant and 56 Catholic. There are 12 Jewish synagogues. The city is the seat of a Roman Catholic Archbishop and a Protestant Episcopal Bishop. There are over 60 benevolent and welfare organizations and 17 hospitals, besides numerous denominational and non-sectarian homes. The public school system is thoroughly modern and well organized. There are 83 schools with over 1,800 teachers. Higher education is provided by the University of Cincinnati (q. v.) and the Ohio Mechanics Institute, besides many academic and professional schools, devoted to surgery, theology, law, dentistry, art, and music. There are 17 public libraries, the Free Public Library containing over 500,000 volumes and pamphlets.
The parochial school system includes several high schools, and a well-equipped college. The total Catholic population of Cincinnati is 93,879. Catholic parochial schools number 56, with an enrollment of 16,603. There is one theological seminary, a college for young men, four Catholic high schools for young men and women, one law school, one school for commerce, accounting, and sociology, nine academies for young ladies, and one college for young ladies. The professional schools include the Eclectic Medical College, Ohio College of Dental Surgery, Cincinnati Law School, Lane Theological Seminary, Hebrew Union College, College of Music, and the Conservatory of Music. On College Hill is the Ohio Military Institute, a private undertaking developed from the old Ohio Farmers' College. It furnishes academic and military training. Other private schools are the University School, Franklin School for Boys, Oakhurst, Bartholomew-Clifton School for Girls, various schools of expression, and business schools. The Children's Home, Cincinnati Orphan Asylum, Bethany Home, German Protestant Orphan Asylum, Jewish Foster Home, and the St. Joseph Orphan Asylum are some of the child-caring institutions for the placing of homeless and destitute ones who have been committed to their care.
The government of Cincinnati is based upon a charter, adopted in November, 1917, by referendum vote. In general, the charter provides for a city council, six of the members elected from the city as a whole, and 26 from the 26 wards of the city. The charter also provides for the election of a mayor, who is more or less independent of the council.
The present total property tax rate (including city, schools, county, library, state, and city levies) is a fraction over
