Civil War history right in your backyard

For 25 years we have lived in the Symmes Township and Loveland areas of suburban Cincinnati, and for 25 years we have been passing by the Meade Historic Preserve…and never once had we stopped in to check it out.

Of course, those 25 years we were busy raising our family. Every time we passed by this preserve we were shuttling kids to school, figure skating lessons, skating competitions, baseball games, batting lessons, piano recitals, girl scout and boy scout activities, youth group activities, and so much more.

Once the kids left the nest, we finally had the time to stop in and explore the grounds. Find out what we discovered in our own backyard.

Note that we did visit these properties two years apart, but we recommend they be visited in the same day. Meade Historic Preserve can be visited in the morning. Then head to Camp Dennison for lunch at The Schoolhouse Restaurant. Finish out the afternoon at the Waldschmidt House.

Meade Historic Preserve (Symmes Township, OH) 

For decades we thought the Historic Preserve was all about the beautiful white Greek Revival house on N. Lebanon Rd. We were surprised to discover it was so much more. In fact, you can’t even visit the inside of the house as it’s structurally unsound. What we did find was a two-story log house nestled in this 27-acre property that opened to the public on 2012 and is surrounded by scenic walking trails.

One summer afternoon we decided to explore the grounds. We happened upon a beautiful sunflower garden complete with one of Cincinnati’s exclusive butterfly benches (another one can be found at Krohn’s Conservatory). This was a great photo spot!

Several hundred feet behind the garden was the 190-year old Ross Family log home. Originally located on Rich Rd. and Mulberry St. this home was moved to the Meade property and reconstructed log by log thanks to the Symmes Township Historical Society and the Symmes Township Board of Trustees. Read more about the cabin’s history here.

It was at this log home that the docent told us about the Christian Waldschmidt House in Camp Dennison, OH. I added this to our bucket list, which at the time was very short, and went on our way.

Christian Waldschmidt House

As our empty nester years grew, so did our bucket list, and the Waldschmidt House kept getting buried under other activities. Finally, one day in October, we realized that it was one of the few items left in to do in Cincinnati, and it was about to close for the season. This house is only open May - October on Sundays. We knew we had to cross this off the list this year!

So off we went to Camp Dennison. Our first stop was The Schoolhouse Restaurant for lunch. This old one-room school house was the perfect preface to the Waldschmidt House visit we were about to embark on. The menu was written on the large chalkboard in the classroom, and the desks were replaced by round tables packed with patrons enjoying down home cooked meals. The chalkboard menu was adorned with cursive alphabet borders and the walls still had the old-time intercom speakers. I could still hear Sr. Jane doing morning prayer on those speakers. If you have never set foot in this lovely restaurant, add it to your list. Everything is scratch made. No canned green beans here. The fried chicken is crispy on the outside yet moist on the inside. The meatloaf has unique ingredients and tasted out of this world. All the fixins are served family style on a lazy susan. This is also the kind of place where you don’t skip the dessert. Trust us. The caramel apple pie cobbler was the exact opposite of what you would find on a school cafeteria tray. Let us know what you order when you go!

After lunch, we finally reached the Christian Waldschmidt House--a piece of Civil War history right here in Cincinnati. We were a little confused at first as there are multiple buildings when you pull into the grounds. Just head to the newer looking warehouse building next to the parking lot and go in the white door at the front. This is where they sells tickets and give you all the information you need about what to do there. Upon entering, we were surprised to see three different wagons from ye olden days, one of which was owned and used by President Garfield. There’s a great story about how it was sold after his death, but we’ll save the spoilers. There are also a ton of very interesting antique tools hanging on the walls in this room--enough to make the folks at Cracker Barrel feel inadequate--as well as a very large Ohio flag from the 1800’s. The history is already hitting us over the head and we haven’t even started the tour!

We bought tickets for the Waldschmidt house tour but proceeded to the Civil War museum just down the gravel walkway first, which was part of the ticket. It’s a small two-room museum, but packed with cool Civil War artifacts. There are some interesting lists of soldiers from the area here, some bullets that were dug up from the grounds, a few guns that are well documented and even some swords. Don’t even get us started on how much Eric wants a sword…he resisted the urge to break through the glass, raise one up and do his best “charge!" There’s also a really cool Civil War drum with some history about how it was used. We’re guessing child labor laws didn’t apply to drummer boys back in the day, as they would send these kids out front to lead the battalions into battle.

Once we finished at the Civil War museum, we proceeded to the Waldschmidt house to take in some more history and learn about this industrious man and his family. Waldschmidt founded Camp Dennison to train soldiers before they were shipped off to the war, and this was his house on the grounds. The current Miami bike trail runs right through the middle and was once the train line that would take the soldiers to battle from the camp. There are lots of interesting rooms and history here, including some original period dresses that were quite stunning, original furniture, a fully equipped kitchen with a giant fireplace for cooking, and even schoolhouse desks with kids’ names carved into them. We’re guessing “Billy” did some time in the corner for that one. The docents are very knowledgeable and gave us lots of interesting details on the man and his family, and we even connected some faces to names, so to speak, with Waldschmidt relatives such as Kugler of Kugler Mills fame and John Cleves Symmes of Symmes Township. But, perhaps the most interesting room was down in the cellar--a basement bar with access from the outside. Travelers and people staying at Camp Dennison used to come here for a smoke and a “nip,” as our docent said, and it’s complete with drop down “bars” to close things up. The “bar” is either open or closed…this is where the modern bar gets its name! Who knew? It also reminded us that things haven’t changed much in Ohio, with lots of people having basement bars here. This one would definitely qualify as a “man cave” with the stone walls and floors and pewter mugs on shelves behind the bar. Shout out to the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) who have their mugs there and for being great tour guides. They mentioned that they’re all related in some way to patriots who fought in the Revolutionary war. Yet another cool connection to the past.

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As we wound down our tour and walked to our own modern day carriage, we both reflected on how much Civil War history is right in our backyard.