Lafcadio Hearn came to Cincinnati 150 years ago as a 19-year-old Greek-Irish immigrant and later became the foremost Western interpreter of Japan, renowned in his adopted country as both a writer and a teacher.
In honor of the life and works of Hearn, the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County is hosting the Lafcadio Hearn Anniversary Symposium 1 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28, at the Main Library Downtown. The symposium features presentations by five Hearn aficionados:
- Kinji Tanaka, chairman of the Japan Research Center of Greater Cincinnati and one of the founders of the Lafcadio Hearn Society/USA — "The Story Behind my Groundbreaking Research Findings on the Ship Hearn Took and the Departure and Arrival in the U.S.”
- Steve Kemme, president of the Lafcadio Hearn Society/USA, retired Cincinnati Enquirer reporter, author of yet-to-be-published Hearn biography — “Lafcadio Hearn’s Relationship with and writings about Cincinnati’s African-Americans”
- Kevin Grace, university archivist and head of the Archives and Rare Books Library at the University of Cincinnati — “Ireland's Support and Development for Favorite Son, Lafcadio Hearn”
- Mary Gallagher, professor of French and Francophone Studies, University College Dublin, Ireland — “Lafcadio Hearn’s Cincinnati Period: Whose Stories Mattered?”
- Noriko Tsunoda Reider, Japanese professor and program adviser, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio — “Snow Woman: Yuki Onna, a Mysterious Woman in the Mountain.”
Also, there are short presentations, one by Gary Eith about the 30th anniversary of the founding of the Hearn Society/USA in Cincinnati, and one by renowned local sculptor, Tom Tsuchiya (best known for his Cincinnati Reds player statues) about the Hearn Memorial design unveiling.
Hearn distinguished himself at the Cincinnati Enquirer (1872-1875) and the Cincinnati Commercial (1875-1877) for his sensational crime stories and his penetrating portraits of African Americans. He moved to New Orleans in 1877, where he wrote about the Creole culture. He moved to Martinique in 1887. During his two years there, he wrote two novels and a book about his experiences and observations of life on the island. Hearn went to Japan in 1890, married a woman from a samurai family, assumed the Japanese name of Yakumo Koizumi, and lived there until his death at the age of 54 in 1904.
The symposium is presented by the Lafcadio Hearn Society/USA. For more information, call 513-369-6909 or visit www.CincinnatiLibrary.org. View the Lafcadio Hearn Collection digitally at https://cinlib.org/2zup7D7.
