Olivia DrakeSpecial Collections & Archives hosted "A Reading of Documentary Nonfiction and Poetry" on May 13. Each student in the "Creative Criticism and Inquiry: Writing Documentary Nonfiction and Poetry" course chose an archival collection from the holdings of Special Collections & Archives and wrote a creative piece inspired by the collection. The class was taught by Teagle Fellow Kate Thorpe. "The results are wonderful examples of thinking outside the box of traditional archival research," said Suzy Taraba, director of Special Collections & Archives. "The collections chosen range from Civil War letters to the Hewlett Diversity Archive." A selection of the archival…
Leith Johnson was hired as Olin Library's new university archivist and he will begin the new position on May 14. Johnson is returning to Wesleyan from the Knights of Columbus in New Haven, Conn. where he holds the position of multimedia archivist. From 2007 to 2009, he was the project archivist for the William Manchester Papers in Wesleyan's Special Collections and Archives, and he was the associate curator (later co-curator) of Wesleyan’s Cinema Archives from 1990 to 2007. Johnson holds a M.L.S. from Southern Connecticut State University and a M.A. in history, Certificate in Public History and Archival Management, and…
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Olin Library’s copy of the 1874 F.W. Beers County Atlas of Middlesex Connecticut has brittle pages and tattered maps. However, anyone investigating 19th-century local history finds the Beers atlas invaluable. “We’d love to make the book accessible to the Wesleyan community and outside researchers, but we can’t do so without damage to the book until its physical condition is stabilized,” explains Pat Tully, university librarian. “It needs to be preserved so that it is usable by current and future scholars.” To help old books find a home back on the shelves, The Friends of the Wesleyan Library created an “Adopt A…
Suzy Taraba, University Archivist and head of Special Collections, received a grant from the George Frederick Jewett Foundation for the purpose of upgrading its exhibition area, located outside Special Collections & Archives in Olin Library. The $50,000 award will be applied Jan. 15, 2011 through Sept. 15, 2012. “The grant will enable us to improve the lighting in the area, and allow us to install new cases that are more secure and attractive, and that offer some humidity control,” Taraba says.
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Suzy Taraba, university archivist and head of Special Collections, received a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) for a preservation assessment of the Henry Bacon Papers. The grant for $5,810, expires June 30, 2011.
In 70 C.E., Roman Emperor Vespasian and his son, Titus, sacked the city of Jerusalem, destroying the Jewish temple. To commemorate the success of quelling the Jewish Revolt, the Romans minted a series of nearly 50 "Judea Capta" (Captured Judaea) coins in gold, bronze and silver to remind the Roman Empire of its victory. Most of these coins depict a Roman soldier or leader, outfitted in military attire, and a mourning female Jewish woman, seated under a palm tree or trophy. On Jan. 14, Jewish Chaplain Rabbi David Teva Leipziger Teva, director of religious and spiritual life, donated a silver…
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When John Chambless was rummaging through a pile of old books at his mother's home in Newark, Del., one mammoth album with an ornate and intertwined "WU" stuck out. Curious, he opened it up and discovered an album containing more than 50 black and white hand-laid photos of students, staff and campus buildings dated 1873. Intrigued by the mysterious book that lacked attribution, Chambless began a series of internet searches in attempt of finding the book's origin. (more…)
During his 82-years of life, author and historian William Manchester made himself known for his writings on Winston Churchill, President John F. Kennedy, Douglas MacArthur, among other great figures. On Feb. 5, the Friends of the Wesleyan Library will sponsor an event honoring and celebrating Manchester, a writer in residence at Wesleyan whose ties to the university date back to 1955. Manchester died at his home in Middletown, Conn. in June 2004. "There are so many people on campus who still remember Manchester," says Leith Johnson, project archivist for Wesleyan's William Manchester Papers. "Almost all of his books made it…