Alfred T. Goshorn
Encyclopedia
Alfred Traber Goshorn was a Cincinnati, Ohio
businessman and booster who served as Director-General of the 1876 Centennial Exposition
in Philadelphia
. That was the first world's fair
in the United States
and so resounding a success that Queen Victoria knighted Goshorn and the crowned heads of Europe weighed him down in medals.
in 1854 and earned a law degree three years later. During the Civil War
he enlisted in Company F, 137th Ohio Infantry
, a 100 days service regiment
, serving as captain. After the hostilities he owned a paint company and led the Cincinnati City Council for two years.
baseball boomed in the United States after the end of the Civil War. Scattered clubs from as far away as Fort Leavenworth, Kansas sent delegates to the meeting of the game's national association
in December 1865, roughly tripling membership from 30 to 90. The "Queen City of the West," Cincinnati was not represented, but at least two baseball clubs were formally constituted that season and one established ballclub officially adopted the New York game.
Alfred Goshorn was the first president of the Cincinnati Base Ball Club, established July 23, 1866. The Cincinnati club would rise to the pinnacle as parent of the first professional baseball team, the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings
. Goshorn served until that April, just before the opening of the famous season. So he presided over three years of evolution from strictly amateur local membership and noncommercial play, ending in full professionalism. Affiliating with the Union Cricket Club before its second season, the club thereby arranged to share playing grounds and the services of "club pro" Harry Wright
. The two built a grandstand and modern enclosure, putting competitive matches on a commercial basis and making Union Grounds the physical center of cricket and baseball in Cincinnati (Ellard [1908]).
When planning for the Centennial Exposition
began in 1873, Goshorn was appointed delegate from Ohio. Recognizing his achievement with the Cincinnati expos, the other delegates elected him Director-General. The world's fair
was a great success, attracting ten million visitors including thousands from Europe. Dignitaries celebrated the Director-General and Philadelphia presented him with hundreds of books, pamphlets, and photographs that had been on display, which now compose Goshorn's Centennial Collection at the Cincinnati Historical Society (Tolzmann n.d.).
"General Goshorn" returned to Cincinnati life as a civic leader, thereafter organizing the Cincinnati Art Museum as well as continuing the Cincinnati Expositions.
He died in 1902 and his bequest to Marietta College financed A. T. Goshorn Gymnasium, opened in 1903.
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
businessman and booster who served as Director-General of the 1876 Centennial Exposition
Centennial Exposition
The Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, the first official World's Fair in the United States, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 10 to November 10, 1876, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia. It was officially...
in Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
. That was the first world's fair
World's Fair
World's fair, World fair, Universal Exposition, and World Expo are various large public exhibitions held in different parts of the world. The first Expo was held in The Crystal Palace in Hyde Park, London, United Kingdom, in 1851, under the title "Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and so resounding a success that Queen Victoria knighted Goshorn and the crowned heads of Europe weighed him down in medals.
Biography
Goshorn was born 1833 on the family homestead in Cincinnati. He graduated from Marietta CollegeMarietta College
Marietta College is a co-educational private college in Marietta, Ohio, USA, which was the first permanent settlement of the Northwest Territory. The school offers 42 majors along with a large number of minors, all of which are grounded in a strong liberal arts foundation...
in 1854 and earned a law degree three years later. During the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
he enlisted in Company F, 137th Ohio Infantry
137th Ohio Infantry
The 137th Ohio Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Service:The 137th Ohio Infantry was organized at Camp Dennison near Cincinnati, Ohio and mustered in May 6, 1864 for 100 days service under the command of Colonel Leonard A. Harris.The...
, a 100 days service regiment
Hundred Days Men
The Hundred Days Men was the nickname applied to a series of volunteer regiments raised in 1864 for 100-days service in the Union Army during the height of the American Civil War...
, serving as captain. After the hostilities he owned a paint company and led the Cincinnati City Council for two years.
Baseball
"New York style"New York Knickerbockers
The New York Knickerbockers were one of the first organized baseball teams which played under a set of rules similar to the game today. The team was founded by Alexander Cartwright, considered one of the original developers of modern baseball....
baseball boomed in the United States after the end of the Civil War. Scattered clubs from as far away as Fort Leavenworth, Kansas sent delegates to the meeting of the game's national association
National Association of Base Ball Players
The National Association of Base Ball Players was the first organization governing American baseball. The first, 1857 convention of sixteen New York City clubs...
in December 1865, roughly tripling membership from 30 to 90. The "Queen City of the West," Cincinnati was not represented, but at least two baseball clubs were formally constituted that season and one established ballclub officially adopted the New York game.
Alfred Goshorn was the first president of the Cincinnati Base Ball Club, established July 23, 1866. The Cincinnati club would rise to the pinnacle as parent of the first professional baseball team, the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings
Cincinnati Red Stockings
The Cincinnati Red Stockings of were baseball's first fully professional team, with ten salaried players. The Cincinnati Base Ball Club formed in 1866 and fielded competitive teams in the National Association of Base Ball Players 1867–1870, a time of a transition that ambitious Cincinnati,...
. Goshorn served until that April, just before the opening of the famous season. So he presided over three years of evolution from strictly amateur local membership and noncommercial play, ending in full professionalism. Affiliating with the Union Cricket Club before its second season, the club thereby arranged to share playing grounds and the services of "club pro" Harry Wright
Harry Wright
William Henry "Harry" Wright was an English-born American professional baseball player, manager, and developer. He assembled, managed, and played center field for baseball's first fully professional team, the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings...
. The two built a grandstand and modern enclosure, putting competitive matches on a commercial basis and making Union Grounds the physical center of cricket and baseball in Cincinnati (Ellard [1908]).
Expositions and civic leadership
For two decades beginning in 1870, Goshorn organized the Cincinnati Industrial Expositions, public exhibitions of the arts and industry of Cincinnati people and companies. Or so it began, but the local version grew to regional and occasionally national scope. "Goshorn became world famous for the expositions" according to the Ohio Historical Society (2005).When planning for the Centennial Exposition
Centennial Exposition
The Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, the first official World's Fair in the United States, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 10 to November 10, 1876, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia. It was officially...
began in 1873, Goshorn was appointed delegate from Ohio. Recognizing his achievement with the Cincinnati expos, the other delegates elected him Director-General. The world's fair
World's Fair
World's fair, World fair, Universal Exposition, and World Expo are various large public exhibitions held in different parts of the world. The first Expo was held in The Crystal Palace in Hyde Park, London, United Kingdom, in 1851, under the title "Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All...
was a great success, attracting ten million visitors including thousands from Europe. Dignitaries celebrated the Director-General and Philadelphia presented him with hundreds of books, pamphlets, and photographs that had been on display, which now compose Goshorn's Centennial Collection at the Cincinnati Historical Society (Tolzmann n.d.).
"General Goshorn" returned to Cincinnati life as a civic leader, thereafter organizing the Cincinnati Art Museum as well as continuing the Cincinnati Expositions.
He died in 1902 and his bequest to Marietta College financed A. T. Goshorn Gymnasium, opened in 1903.