• Black-and-white photo with overview of a gas station with a large flag pole and red text overlaying the image that says "Rutherford B. Hayes Birthplace. Delaware, Ohio."
    Ohio,  presidents

    Rutherford B. Hayes Birthplace in Delaware, Ohio

    In 1817, Rutherford Hayes Jr. and his wife Sophia moved from Dummerston, Vermont, to Delaware, Ohio.  On October 4, 1822, Sophia gave birth to the couple’s fifth child, Rutherford Birchard Hayes.  The elder Rutherford died about two months before his son’s birth, so Sophia raised her son and his sister Fanny Arabella by herself.  The future president later graduated from Kenyon College, earned a law degree from Harvard, and moved to Cincinnati.  In 1926, the local chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution erected a marker near the Rutherford B. Hayes birthplace.  Unfortunately, the house was torn down the same year.  Currently, a gas station stands at the location…

  • Overview of a large, brick house and a brick church with a patio in between them. Text overlays the image saying "A pint at Urban Artifact in Cincinnati, Ohio.
    craft beer,  Ohio

    A pint at Urban Artifact in Cincinnati, Ohio

    There are a lot of spaces that are ideal for hosting a brewery.  Opening a brewery in a former church continues to be more common.  The space is usually quite large, which is ideal for brewing beer.  The group behind Urban Artifact initially planned to open its facility in a former brewery.  However, the current space allowed the group to open significantly earlier, which led to the change of plans. Brewery’s history Urban Artifact encompasses many things.  It includes a brewery, an event space, a music venue, and a radio station.  Bret Kollman Baker and Scotty Hunter, who attended Ohio University together and studied engineering, oversee the brewery.  Eventually they…

  • Diagonal view of a bar top with text overlaying that says "3 Points Urban Brewery (Section Sign) Cincinnati, Ohio."
    craft beer,  Ohio

    A pint at 3 Points Urban Brewery in Cincinnati, Ohio

    An equilateral triangle possesses three sides of equal length and three congruent internal angles.  3 Points Urban Brewery brings together three equally important components to offer craft beer drinkers a unique experience in the up-and-coming neighborhood of Pendleton in Cincinnati, Ohio. Brewery’s history A few years ago development firm Model Group and hospitality group Hickory Wald sought to open a brewery in Pendleton.  Ultimately that led to a pair of brewers from Cincinnati mainstay Rhinegeist Brewery seeking to make their own mark to join the yet-to-be-named brewery.  Head brewer Patrick Mulrey and brewer Caleb Ochs-Naderer are responsible for the beers people consume at the brewery.  Despite the notoriety the brewers…

  • Overview of a living room into a patio with a textbook overlaying it that says "My experience at The Guild Cincinnati at The Banks."
    hotel review,  Ohio

    My experience at The Guild Cincinnati at The Banks

    During a recent business trip to Cincinnati, I was searching for a unique accommodation near downtown.  I ended up finding The Guild Cincinnati at The Banks.  The Guild offers apartment-style accommodations in prime locations.  The Guild Cincinnati at The Banks is a two-minute walk from Great American Ball Park and a five-minute walk to Paul Brown Stadium.  Visitors have several restaurants within walking distance ranging from quick eats like Jimmy John’s to craft beer-focused Yard House. 2-bedroom Although I was traveling by myself, I ended up choosing a two-bedroom.  It is approximately 1,300 square feet and has a king-size bedroom, a queen-size bed, and a sleeper sofa that can sleep…

  • Nighttime view of tall hotel with text saying "My experience at the Crowne Plaza Dayton" overlaying the image.
    hotel review,  Ohio

    My experience at the Crowne Plaza Dayton

    For my latest visit to Dayton, I was looking for a hotel in downtown so I could walk to the Dayton Dragons baseball game (read my visit to the ballpark).  The Crowne Plaza Dayton was the perfect choice for a downtown hotel.  It is two-thirds of a mile to Fifth Third Field, one-third of a mile to the Oregon District, and two-thirds of a mile to RiverScape MetroPark.  The hotel is a five-minute drive to the University of Dayton, a fifteen-minute drive to Wright State University, and a twenty-minute drive to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.  It is a 15-minute drive to Dayton International Airport and the hotel offers a free…

  • Overview of a baseball field with text overlaying it that says "My night with the Dayton Dragons."
    ballparks,  Ohio

    My night with the Dayton Dragons – June 10, 2019

    It is rare for Minor League Baseball teams to sell out their home games.  It is even more rare for teams to consistently sell out games.  However, the Dayton Dragons have sold out every home game since moving to Fifth Third Field in 2000.  So any baseball fan traveling through the Midwest should make a stop and become part of a sellout streak that spans over 1,000 games. Arriving at the ballpark With its downtown location there are several parking lots near Fifth Third Field.  Some lots are free, but according to the team’s website most parking spots are about $5.  Metered street parking is free after 6 p.m. during…

  • Overview of a baseball stadium with letters above the rooftop that spell out "Huntington Park" with text overlaid that says "My day with the Columbus Clippers."
    ballparks,  Ohio

    My day with the Columbus Clippers – June 9, 2019

    The Columbus Clippers are extremely proud of their award-winning ballpark.  Huntington Park, which opened in 2009, has been named “Ballpark of the Year” a total of six times by various publications.  So it jumped to the top of my list of ballparks to visit this summer. Arriving at the ballpark Huntington Park is part of downtown Columbus’s Arena District, which means there are numerous parking spots within a short walk from the stadium.  According to the team’s website there are 14,000 spots within a 10-minute walk of the ballpark.  Standard Parking-controlled lots charge between $3 and $5 depending on proximity to the field.  Visitors staying at a downtown hotel should…

  • A photo of a brick building at a street intersection with text overlay that reads "A pint at Listermann Brewing Co. in Cincinnati, Ohio."
    craft beer,  Ohio

    A pint at Listermann Brewing in Cincinnati, Ohio

    The craft beer industry is full of stories of homebrewers who opened their own commercial brewery.  Listermann Brewing Company in Cincinnati takes a unique twist on the homebrewer turned commercial brewer.  The history of Listermann Brewing closely mirrors that of craft beer in Cincinnati with each growing year by year to reach their current stature. Brewery’s history In 1991, after several years of homebrewing Dan Listermann officially started a small manufacturing company that produced homebrewing equipment.  Listermann continued his day job as a quality engineer, and with his wife Sue’s encouragement they rented out space at the Hamilton County Business Development Center.  Fast forward four years, Dan had quit his…

  • An open floor space with people playing cornhole and sitting at tables with text on top that reads "A pint at Rhinegeist Brewery, Cincinnati, Ohio"
    craft beer,  Ohio

    A pint at Rhinegeist Brewery in Cincinnati, Ohio

    Cincinnati, Ohio, was once a city well-known for its beer.  With a large German immigrant population, the city boasted over thirty breweries by 1860.  However, Prohibition in the early-1900s led to several breweries closing.  The explosion of craft beer in the United States since 2000 has led to the city boasting more breweries now.  Rhinegeist Brewery was not the first craft brewery in town, but may be one of the city’s best known brands with its easily recognizable ghost skeleton logo. Brewery’s history The short version of Rhinegeist’s history is that the brewery opened in a former Christian Moerlein Brewing Company building in 2013.  However, the tale is much longer…

  • craft beer,  Ohio

    Five great places for beers & bites in Cincinnati’s OTR

    There is a lot to say about the Queen City and its beer and culinary scene.  However, instead of trying to cover everything available across the city, let’s focus on the one area at a time.  The hippest, hottest part of Cincinnati is the Over-the-Rhine (OTR) District.  So here are five great places for beers and bites in OTR. A brief history of OTR The district earned its name because of the large German population that walked over the Miami and Erie Canal (now Central Parkway) to work in downtown in the mid-1800s.  The canal was jokingly called “the Rhine” in reference to the important river in Germany.  Today, the…