Curator Anita Ellis has been collecting the items that will be displayed in the new Cincinnati Wing over many years. This sample of how and when some pieces came to the museum illustrates the wide-ranging sources and methods involved:

1986 - Arts and Crafts era clock from Oscar Onken's Shop of the Crafters in Cincinnati; gift.

1987 - Round Rookwood plaque, originally installed in Cincinnati's Children's Convalescent Hospital. Removed during renovation, it was discovered by donor Dr. James Sutherland at now-defunct Ferguson Hills Flea Market, "the last stop before the junk pile," Ellis said.

1993 - Rookwood Fountain of the Water Nymph by Clement Barnhorn, museum purchase from the Wooden Nickel, which salvaged it from Losantiville Lanes bowling alley.

1994 - American Aesthetic movement carved dresser from the home of designer Benn Pitman; gift from Mary Jane Hamilton in memory of her mother Mary Luella Hamilton, made possible through Rita S. Hudepohl.

1997 - Arts and Crafts era china cabinet from Onken's Shop of the Crafters; purchased from out of state through a local dealer.

1997 - R–rstrand black line ceramic vase, purchased from a Cincinnati dealer.

1999 - 19th-century French stoneware pitcher by Ernest Chaplet, purchased from a confidential source in Cincinnati.

- Marilyn Bauer