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Early Developments in Over-the-Rhine, 1827-1860
The completion of the first portion of the Miami and Erie Canal, along the path now occupied by Central Parkway, between Cincinnati and Middletown in 1827 opened the lands along its banks to new commercial, industrial and residential development. Manufacturers and merchants were attracted to canal sites by transportation advantages and comparatively cheap land. Cincinnati's German population, which had settled mainly in the lower parts of the city east of Main Street prior to 1830, also was lured beyond the canal, initially by the relatively low cost of land and housing. As the community developed, the residents below the canal dubbed it the "Rhine" in acknowledgment of this settlement shift, and the area became known as "Over-the-Rhine."
The period of 1830-1840 witnessed dramatic changes in land use in the Over-the-Rhine area. During this decade, developers quickly subdivided the land and erected rows of small, mostly wood-frame houses. As continued immigration expanded the ethnic enclave in the 1830s and 1840s, German cultural influences predominated in the neighborhood. The establishment of numerous German churches, cultural institutions and German-language newspapers in the community confirmed the emerging German character of the neighborhood.
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