I've lived in Cincinnati since 2009 and visit Over-The-Rhine often. My husband and I thought it would be fun to take the kids on the Underground Tour because he's been studying his family tree and was surprised to learn that his ancestors were German immigrants, who settled in Cincinnati for a sizable chunk of the 19th century. We knew the basics about the OTR neighborhood, how it is important as a national historic preservation district, and why it was being revitalized, but we wanted to know more.
Our tour guide, Chelsea, was energetic and knowledgeable and funny. I especially enjoyed how she didn't try to shout over the street noise that was prevalent for the beginning on the tour. In fact, she made the cars going by with their stereos blasting seem like part of the entertainment.
I loved learning about how Annie Oakley, a Cincinnati native, got her start as an internationally recognized sharp-shooter in an OTR theater. It was interesting to find out how Boss Cox ran the city back during the era of political machines, and I wasn't aware that the Charter Party was started in Cincinnati as an antidote to government corruption.
Visiting the St. Francis of Seraph Catholic Church was amazing. The history of the site was dramatic, and the grounds are beautiful. I enjoyed visiting the crypt, though I was less than amused by the young ladies taking crypt selfies. She showed us the sanctuary as well, and we learned about the origins of the swastika and how Hitler ruined everything by taking that symbol as his own for the Third Reich. The discussion veered to swastikas because the floor of the apse is tiled in a swastika design that was done long before Hitler's reign and was meant to be an auspicious sign to promote well-being. The reason the floors were never torn up in the 1930s or 1940s is because the congregation never saw that part of the church and the monks didn't associate their swastika with Hitler's.
The brewery part with the tunnels was super cool. I loved the ingenuity that went into getting the tunnels the right temperature to brew lagers.
I'd say the overall tour was fantastic, and as I said before, Chelsea was great. Her enthusiasm was contagious.
My criticism isn't necessarily of Chelsea or Queen City Tours, but it should not go unmentioned that during the 1940s, OTR went from being a prominent German neighborhood to a predominantly black one. People should know that OTR is being revitalized because of an unconventional alliance between local corporations and the city, 3CDC. It should be mentioned that the riots in 2001 when the police killed an unarmed black man, Timothy Thomas, is what sparked interest in the renewal of OTR at the city level. People should know that the historic preservation is important, but that it has come at a cost for displacing long-time residents.
I love Cincinnati's history and OTR's wonderful architectural heritage, but people should also have an understanding of what has happened in the past 70-80 years in the neighborhood. Otherwise, you're just white-washing an important and somewhat difficult and unpleasant era in our city's history.