Globe Wernicke Bookcases and Bookplates

November 21st, 2010 by Larry T. Nix No comments »






















































I came across this promotional item for the Globe-Wernicke Co. at the CHICAGOPEX stamp show this weekend.  It is not a perfect fit for my postal librariana collection but it was too neat an item to pass up. The top part of the item is a detachable postcard which can be mailed to the Globe-Wernicke Co. in Cincinnati to receive free bookplates and and a booklet "The World's Best Books". The objective of this advertising ephemera is probably to get your name and address so one of their "Bookcase Agents" can try to sell you one or more bookcases. The bookcases are advertised on the bottom of one side of the card which includes the statement, "An Individual Globe-Wenicke Bookcase Encourages Self Culture". News-Antique.com has a lengthy article about the Globe-Wernicke Company and its stackable bookcases. These bookcases originated in the 1890s and were extremely popular for the early half of the 20th century. They continue to be highly desirable to antique collectors.

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British Museum Library Reading Room Ticket

November 20th, 2010 by Larry T. Nix No comments »

The piece of library ephemera shown above has no overt identification text or markings. In fact, it was miss identified as being from an American library when I purchased it.  The text at the top of the item reads "Permission to use the Reading Room will be withdrawn from any person who shall write or make marks on any part of a printed book, manuscript, or map belonging to the Museum."  The word "Museum" was the clue which pointed to it not being what it was purported to be. A notation at the bottom of the item indicated that 100,000 were printed in 1884 which meant that it had to be a pretty active library/museum. I wondered if it could perhaps be from the British Museum Library, and further investigation proved this to be the case. I have a copy of Gertrude Burford Rawlings' The British Museum Library (H.W. Wilson Co., 1916) which describes the process for obtaining books in the British Museum Library. It reads: "To obtain a book from the general library the reader must transcribe from the catalogue, on one of the tickets provided, the name of the book and its author, its date and its pressmark. to this ticket he adds his signature, the date, the letter of his table, and the number of his desk, and then places it in a box at the centre counter.  He may have to wait for his book from twenty minutes to half-an-hour, or even more ... ."  This description matches up perfectly with the information on the item which is a "ticket" for requesting books. On this ticket, the press mark (location) is 2500-a, the reader is F. H. Stoddard, and the Reader's Seat is C. 1. F. H. Stoddard turns out to be a Professor of English at New York University who was evidently doing research at the British Museum Library. Information on the back of the "ticket" indicates that after the ticket is submitted it is retained by staff until the book is returned at which time the ticket is given back to the reader who in this instance obviously retained the ticket as a record of his research. A more substantial verification of the origin of the ticket can be found in this publication which was found on Google by Ben Abrahamse. The Library of the British Museum was spun off as the British Library in 1973. A brief history of the Museum and its Library can be found HERE. I've had the pleasure of visiting both the old Reading Room of the British Museum and the new building of the British Library. I have a web page on my Library History Buff website which includes library related postal items from the British Isles. Stamps related to both the British Museum and the British Library are included.

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William S. Dix, Princeton Librarian

November 19th, 2010 by Larry T. Nix No comments »
Today is the 100th anniversary of the birth of William Shepherd Dix (1910-1978), Princeton University Librarian (1953-1975).  Dix was serving as President of the American Library Association when I attended my first ALA Conference in Atlantic City, NJ in 1969.  It was a volatile and exciting time in ALA with lots of calls for change. Dix was credited with calming the troubled waters within ALA during this period. Unlike some of the previous library notables highlighted in this blog, there is a considerable amount of information about Dix on the Internet. His papers are located at the Mudd Manuscript Library at Princeton and they have a nice biographical sketch along with a photograph of Dix which is shown here. Dix is included in the Supplement to the Dictionary of American Library Biography (Libraries Unlimited, 1990). There is also a nice entry in the World Encyclopedia of Library and Information Services (ALA Editions, 1993). All of the information about Dix leads to the conclusion that he was one of the most highly regarded librarians of his generation.

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Government Documents: Africa and the State Department

November 18th, 2010 by rachel sher No comments »

The U.S. State Department and Africa

The United States Department of State (often referred to as the State Department) is the federal executive department responsible for international relations.

The State Department has a blog called, Dipnote where you can read blog entries from State Department officials about their work and international travels.  “Dipnote” refers to a diplomatic note, which is one of the ways with which governments formally communicate with one another.

A recent blog entry from Dipnote featured the winner of Apps 4 Africa, a technology competition inviting entrepreneurs to build tools to serve the needs of local Non-Governmental Organizations and communities in Africa. The winning application, iCow, lets farmers manage the breeding periods of their cows and monitor their cow’s nutrition.

Watch a video on the Dipnote blog of Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, sharing the winners.

 

Gleeson’s Government Documents collection also has several documents about the State Department and Foreign Aid to Africa.  Below are some links to recent documents in the collection:

*Department of State, foreign operations, and related programs appropriations bill

*U.S. assistance to Africa: a call for foreign aid reform


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USF Book Club: The Help by Stockett

November 18th, 2010 by Kelci No comments »

Hello book lovers and library patrons! The USF Book Club has selected its final title for 2010: The Help by Kathryn Stockett. We will meet on Wednesday, Dec 8, 2010 from 12-1 pm in the electronic classroom of Gleeson Library, which is room #139.

Better pick up this book fast! It’s insanely popular right now and our meeting is less than 3 weeks away. I hear it’s a real page turner so I don’t think anyone will have trouble finishing it :) With the selection of this title, we continue our tendency to read historic novels about minorities and issues of equality. I am pretty excited and just requested a large print edition through Link+… just because that’s the only copy I could get!

How to get the book:

Our copy in Gleeson is checked out, but our Kindle and iPads have the e-book version on them. To get a hard copy, try requesting the book through this list of holdings on Link+, or put a hold on one of the SF Public Library’s copies. Worse case scenario, support your local book store by purchasing a copy.

Publisher’s Weekly says:

What perfect timing for this optimistic, uplifting debut novel (and maiden publication of Amy Einhorn’s new imprint) set during the nascent civil rights movement in Jackson, Miss., where black women were trusted to raise white children but not to polish the household silver. Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan is just home from college in 1962, and, anxious to become a writer, is advised to hone her chops by writing “about what disturbs you.” The budding social activist begins to collect the stories of the black women on whom the country club sets relies–and mistrusts–enlisting the help of Aibileen, a maid who’s raised 17 children, and Aibileen’s best friend Minny, who’s found herself unemployed more than a few times after mouthing off to her white employers. The book Skeeter puts together based on their stories is scathing and shocking, bringing pride and hope to the black community, while giving Skeeter the courage to break down her personal boundaries and pursue her dreams. Assured and layered, full of heart and history, this one has bestseller written all over it.

We hope to see you there!


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