Three Curious Tales Concerning Various Women Known As The “Belle Of Tusculum”

Exactly how many Belles of Tusculum were there?Tusculum, of course, is the verdant hilltop overlooking the old town of Columbia in the eastern reaches of Cincinnati. At least two women acquired the title of “Belle of Tusculum” and it’s possible that a third beauty lurks in the annals of time.We shall start with Anna Rebecca “Reba” Harcourt Long Elliott, born in 1875 to Sarah Ann Greenwald Harcourt and her husband, Doctor Thomas Jefferson Harcourt. The Harcourt and the Greenwald families were both conspicuous in society. According to the Cincinnati Enquirer [5 January 1900]:“Miss Reba Harcourt was the Belle of Tusculum. Her mother was a prominent club woman and an official in most of the fashionable clubs of that portion of Cincinnati. Her daughter Reba was very beautiful and her admirers were legion. Her future was bright for her social victories were sweeping. The one who won her favor, however, was fated to be the one who would disappoint and pain her.”According to the newspaper…