Spotlight on Student Workers: Gabrielle Gorton

Gabby Gorton

It’s no surprise that Gabrielle Gorton is this week’s featured student worker.  Gabby has only worked in the Special Collections Department for about a year, but the Library is grateful for all of her hard work on a variety of projects.

Gabby has assisted with processing negatives from the Terry and Paula Connors Photograph Collection and has also accessioned files from the Office of the Provost into the Archives.  Last spring Gabby volunteered at the Friends of the Library Annual Book Sale. Her major project at the moment is helping Special Collections Librarian Michael Knies organize his research that he gathered from the British National Library while on sabbatical in January.

Gabby is an Early Childhood Education major, and this semester she is completing a field placement in a first grade classroom. She is involved in various education clubs on campus and plans to graduate in the fall after finishing her student teaching placement.  Her outgoing and ambitious nature, along with her passion for education, will certainly prove valuable in a successful teaching career.

As an outdoor enthusiast Gabby loves horseback riding and camping, but currently most of her free time is spent excitedly planning her upcoming October wedding.

Gabby enjoys how friendly and helpful the Library staff is.  Her recommendation for other students is to take the time to become familiar with the Library and the many resources that it offers.

Thank you, Gabby, for all of your support to the Library!

The Mutiny on the Bounty: A 225-Year Voyage from Fiction to Fact

Mutiny on the Bounty Exhibit FlyerAlthough the mutiny on the Bounty will always stand as a signal event in maritime history, the circumstances surrounding the mutiny have been clouded by early attacks on Lieutenant William Bligh and by motion pictures, which portrayed him as a tyrant. Doubtless, Bligh had a sharp tongue which he used quite effectively to berate his petty officers. But contrary to the portrait created by partisans of the mutineers, Bligh was an enlightened commander who limited the use of disciplinary flogging.

The mutiny is only part of the story. After the Bounty was taken by Fletcher Christian and his fellow mutineers, Bligh and 18 loyalists squeezed into a launch for a harrowing 47 day open boat voyage in bad weather. Bligh and most of his men survived one of the greatest feats of navigation in history and returned home.  But Bligh, eventually a Rear-Admiral, was always dogged by the mutiny and by the concerted smear campaign waged by a couple pardoned mutineers and the family of Christian.

In celebration of the 225th anniversary of the mutiny, Weinberg Library is presenting an exhibit on the topic drawn from the collection of University benefactor and alumnus Edward R. Leahy.   Mr. Leahy has acquired rare and fascinating books showing both the historical facts and the efforts to sully Bligh. From Bligh’s Narrative to the mutineer’s court martial transcripts to the spurious Fletcher Christian letters and the authentic and extremely rare Peter Heywood letters, Mr. Leahy has assembled the historical evidence. But he has also collected the start of the Mutiny saga in the arts with works like Lord Byron’s The Island. This exhibit provides both the fiction and the facts of the mutiny on the Bounty.

The Heritage Room exhibit will open February 7 and close April 17, 2014. On April 9 at 5:30 PM Edward Leahy will speak on The Mutiny on the Bounty: Myth and Fact in the Heritage Room with a reception to follow. The talk is free and open to the public.

Contact Special Collections Librarian Michael Knies Michael.Knies@Scranton.edu 570-941-6341 for more information.

The Lindisfarne Gospels Facsimile

Lindisfarne Gospels Facsimile  The Weinberg Memorial Library Special Collections recently received an extraordinary gift in honor of the 20th anniversary of the Library.  Dr. Midori Yamanouchi, Friends of the Weinberg Memorial Library Board Member, provided funding for the acquisition of a fine art facsimile of the Lindisfarne Gospels.  The original Lindisfarne Gospels is at the British Library in London, and it is one of the most important and one of the best-preserved early medieval manuscripts.

 

The Lindisfarne Gospels is an Illuminated manuscript gospel book created approximately 715-720 AD in a monastery at Lindisfarne off the coast of England. It is considered one of the best early versions of St. Jerome’s Latin Vulgate.  The Lindisfarne Gospels also includes an interlinear Old English translation of the Gospels.  This word-for-word English gloss was added to the Gospels around 950-970 AD.  It is the oldest known translation of the Gospels into English.

This fine art facsimile of the Lindisfarne Gospels was produced in 2002 by Faksimile Verlag of Luzern Switzerland, a company that specializes in the highest quality reproductions of liturgical medieval manuscripts.  The facsimile was produced in cooperation with the British Library using state of the art digital photographic technology.

The facsimile is currently on display in the Library’s 4th floor Special Collections Reading Room.

Lindisfarne Gospels FacsimileLindisfarne Gospels Facsimile

 

Gifts for Archivists: Zaner-Bloser Moleskine Notebooks

Many thanks to ArchiveGrid Blog for including our custom-printed Zaner-Bloser Moleskine Notebooks on their list of “24 Fun and Practical Gifts for Archivists”! We’re proud to share a blog post with these nifty Oinx microfiche necklaces and Green Market’s “The Archivist” scented candles.

As always, all proceeds from notebook sales benefit the preservation and digitization of our Zaner-Bloser Penmanship Collection.

The Nation's Pet

Happy Thanksgiving – Holiday Hours

The Nation's Pet
From the Zaner-Bloser Penmanship Collection: “The Nation’s Pet,” by penman John Rockwood

Happy Thanksgiving to all, from your friends at the Weinberg Memorial Library! We’ll be on reduced hours for the holiday:

Wednesday, November 27:  8:00am – 4:30pm
Thursday, November 28: CLOSED
Friday, November 29: CLOSED
Saturday, November 30: CLOSED
Sunday, December 1: 12:00pm – 11:30pm

Fifty Years Later

Day in the Life of President Kennedy Book Cover_001Today marks the 50th anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

To commemorate that tragic day, the Library is exhibiting popular culture biographies of JFK, writings by him, and publications from around the world commemorating his death.

EPOCA Spanish Magazine Kennedy Memorial Issue_001

Look Magazine Cover JFK Memorial Issue_001

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You can view the display in the 4th Floor Special Collections and the Quiet Study Rooms now through the end of the semester.

 

 

 

 

The Library also has a wide variety of resources about the life, death, and legacy of America’s 35th president.

 

 

Finally, here’s a look back at the report by The Aquinas student newspaper about the reaction on campus when the sad news first broke.

Aquinas Article on JFK page 1 copy2Aquinas Article on JFK page 3 copy 2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Evolution of the University of Scranton from 1888 to the Present

Frank's Flyer

An illustrated history talk and exhibit reception will be held in the Weinberg Memorial Library on October 2nd at 6 p.m. in celebration  of the 125th Anniversary of the University.

The presentation, titled From the 300 Block of Wyoming Avenue to the Hill Section: The Evolution of the University of Scranton  from 1888 to the Present, will be presented by Dr. Frank X.J. Homer, Professor of History Emeritus.  The talk will be held in Library Room 305.

A reception will follow in the Library’s 5th Floor Heritage Room for the exhibit, Pride, Passion, Promise: Celebrating the 125th Anniversary.

The event is sponsored by Friends of the Weinberg Library.

For more information please contact Michael Knies, Special Collections Faculty Librarian, (570) 941-6341 or michael.knies@scranton.edu

The Proud Art of Beautiful Writing: Limited Edition Moleskine® Notebooks

This holiday season, the Weinberg Memorial Library is selling a new line of limited edition Moleskine® notebooks, inspired by the calligraphic and ornamental masterworks preserved in the Library’s Zaner-Bloser Penmanship Collection.

Featured on each notebook is “The Proud Art Shall Conquer,” a peacock flourish by master penman Fielding Schofield (1845-1924). Schofield’s work references the motto of 19th century professional penmanship journal The Teacher of Penmanship:

“The Proud Art of Beautiful Writing Shall Conquer the Hearts of All Men.” 

On campus, the notebooks are available for purchase at the Weinberg Memorial Library‘s 1st floor Circulation desk for the price of $20.00 per set (cash or check). Off campus, the notebooks are available for order at $20.00 per set plus shipping and handling. You can either fill out and send in one of our order forms (to pay by check) or contact our Special Collections library at 570-941-7002 to put in a credit card order.

All proceeds benefit the care, preservation, and digitization of the Zaner-Bloser Penmanship Collection.

These Moleskine® Large Cahier notebooks are 5″ x 8.25″ with 80 acid-free pages and are packaged in sets of two — one in black with ruled paper, and one in craft with blank paper.  Graphic artist April Francia, a University of Scranton sophomore double majoring in Political Science and Philosophy, created the notebook covers and decorative paper bands (as well as the Zaner-Bloser Collection logo) by manipulating digitized images of ornamental penmanship in Adobe Illustrator.

(Updated November 15, 2012 with off-campus ordering information)