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Happy 40th Anniversary to Back To The Future! TheSci-fi adventure film was released on this day in 1985. Items related to time travel in our collection include an 1895 edition of The Time Machine by H.G. Wells. The book popularized the idea of time travel and the term "time machine". Proving the idea of time travel transcends...time, from this century we also have Time Travel and Warp Drives by Allen Everett and Thomas Roman, which delves into scientific understanding of time and space. The book was published by the University of Chicago Press in 2012.

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Natalie Nitsch, a newly minted graduate of the Divinity School's MA program, has been a Rare Books Assistant for the past year. In honor of her last day, she wrote about one of her favorites from our collections: MS 120, a 13th-century manuscript containing Petrus Comestor's Historia Scholastica (and plenty of evidence of use by centuries of former owners). Congratulations, Natalie!

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Many scholars of medieval manuscripts are drawn to their field because of the ability of old books to, as it were, make eye contact with a person from across the centuries. Of course, manuscripts are neither animate (though I wonder about the life of the deer and livestock who gave up their skins for their binding and pages, and the wasp larvae that once inhabited the oak galls used in ink) nor conscious (though I always say goodbye to a manuscript when I reshelve it for the last time). Nevertheless they reward careful looking uncannily well, in a way that I have come to conceive of as meeting and holding the gaze of modern viewers. Of the materials I have written descriptions of over the past year of my employment---130 codex manuscripts and the hundred-odd piece Wandel Collection of Manuscript Fragment---UC’s MS 120 held my gaze the longest and looked back the hardest.

By way of its less recent history, MS 120 was written in the 12th or early 13th century in Germany. It contains an imperfect copy of the 12th-century Historia Scholastica by Petrus Comestor (whose name, delightfully, translates to Peter the Eater), a Biblical paraphrase that enjoyed huge popularity in the medieval period. MS 120 resided at either the Benedictine priory of St. Jakobsberg near Mainz or the Premonstratensian monastery at Steinfeld, both in modern-day Germany, until the desecularization of many German religious houses in the early 19th century. It was then acquired by the 18th-century German theologian Leander van Ess, and subsequently owned by the famed English book collector and ‘vellomaniac’ Thomas Phillipps, Baronet, in 1824. After the dispersal of Phillipps’ collection, it made its way to Ricketts.

By way of its recent history, MS 120 was given to the University of Chicago just before Christmas in 1924 by Coella Lindsay Ricketts (almost as delightful a name as Peter the Eater), a self-described “scribe, illuminator, and binder” who, among other occupations, produced the parchment diplomas issued by the U of C for the first several decades of its existence. MS 120 apparently looked back at Ricketts, just as it looked back at me: in Ricketts’ presentation letter to then-University president Ernest D. Burton, he writes, “Here is an old manuscript on vellum that has been knocking around this world for seven hundred years or more, and thinking that is long enough, I want it to find a permanent home where it will be welcome and appreciated and enjoy companionship.” I imagine he said a fond goodbye to MS 120 before sending it across the city, presumably by courier.

The reason MS 120 held my eye for so long is not necessarily its copious annotations, though it does appear to have been continuously annotated by monks from its creation to the 18th century, when it was acquired by Ess. (Frankly, copious annotations are cool, but a bit of a pain for a person writing a description of a manuscript. They are 1. not often written legibly and 2. not usually particularly revealing.) Its erased 13th century musical notation on four-line staves (ff. 46r-47r, f. 106r) is similarly eye-catching, but must be left for some future researcher to decipher; they are illegible even using the usual imaging methods that help scholars to read faint text. Two relatively minor and unimportant details were, instead, what stared me down.

First, there is a drawing of a woman on the right margin of f. 44r. It was done with a sharp instrument that had no pigmentation, so it is nearly impossible to see unless you hold the parchment at the right angle---imagine the impressions that are left on the next page of a notepad if you press hard with your pencil. (These kinds of annotations, not uncommon in parchment manuscripts, are often called “scratch” or “fingernail” glosses, because they can also be done with a fingernail.) The woman doesn’t seem to have anything in particular to do with the text that accompanies her, a commentary on the First Commandment, “you shall have no other gods before me”. It’s impossible to know which German monk drew her, or why, or who she is intended to represent; she has no identifiable attributes, and the art quality is not that of a master (her eyes bulge). She is fascinating to me mainly because of her invisibility and anonymity. I flipped past this page several times without noticing her, and the fact that I did eventually---I believe I selected the text on this page to check against an edition of the Historia Scholastica totally by chance---felt like MS 120 rewarding me for my diligence. I wondered how many of MS 120’s former owners had noticed this woman, and whether they had any more of an idea than I did about what she was doing there.

The second detail is even less arresting than a marginal drawing, but felt even more like a direct intervention from MS 120. A previous library assistant had noted that a break in the text at one spot in the manuscript, between the pages labelled f. 121 and f. 122---essentially, that some text was missing. After some comparison with an online edition of the Historia Scholastica, I discovered that there was, indeed, about a page’s worth of text missing. I recorded it in my very-21st century description (in an Excel spreadsheet, in accordance with modern descriptive cataloging standards) in the following terms: “Text is complete except for the contents of one folio following f. 121. Text ends at Migne P.L. Vol 198 col. 1366D ‘qua terminata iterum dedica[tione]’ and picks back up at 1369C ‘[sacrifi]cia et frequenta’.” Giving the page a final once-over, I noticed a small note at the bottom of the page (f. 121v), in a medieval hand: “Hic deficit 1 folio”, or, “Here, one page is missing.” Someone who lived at least a half a millennium ago had noted concisely and exactly what I needed to know, not knowing that the simple fact of a missing page would ever need to be recorded in such detail as I recorded it, nor that anyone would need to fiddle around with a digital edition of the text to figure out how much text the manuscript was missing. It was as simple as “here, one page is missing”, all along.

Medieval manuscripts, perhaps more than any other artifact of the past, are indelibly, undeniably human. That should be enough to hold our attention, and our collective gazes.

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Today is National Typewriter Day, but everyday is International Typewriter Day in Special Collections! Meet our newest addition:

This Greek-alphabet Olympia typewriter is one of several interesting items donated to Special Collections by Professor Walter Kaegi. Professor Kaegi (1937-2022) was a scholar of the late antique Mediterranean who taught in the Department of History at the University of Chicago for over 50 years. Acclaimed for his erudition and demanding precision, Kaegi was an admired faculty member credited with mentoring three generations of historians.

A polyglot and prolific researcher, Professor Kaegi was an expert in Byzantine Greek who made frequent use of this typewriter in his work. He was also famous for his travels, having visited every former province of the Roman Empire. His typewriter is part of the newly accessioned Walter Kaegi Collection which has now found a home in Special Collections.

Also featured are a Hebrew alphabet typewriter, a German alphabet typewriter, and oh yes, an English alphabet typewriter.

(calling Tom Hanks)

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Today we remember those who died while serving in the armed forces. First celebrated in the years following the American Civil War, Memorial Day became an official holiday in 1971.

This lithograph and sheet music represent only one piece of Memorial Day history. The history of Memorial Day, previously known as Decoration Day, can be traced back to Charleston, SC in 1865. In mid-1864, Confederate forces had converted a Charleston race track into a prison, to hold between 6,000 and 10,000 Union captives who had been evacuated from Georgia prisons. The captives suffered harsh conditions including starvation, disease, and the indignity of being paraded into town, where some Black Charlestonians would sneak pieces of bread to the captives, at risk of being punished for doing so. At least 257 Union soldiers died during their imprisonment there.  

In autumn, under a worsening yellow fever outbreak, Confederate officials relocated the prison to Florence, SC, leaving behind the Union dead in unmarked graves.  Black Charlestonians worked to build a proper burial ground at the race course, and reconsecrate the soldiers’ graves. They then organized a memorial event held on May 1, 1865. An estimated 10,000 people attended the event which included processions, singing, speeches, and laying of flowers. 

Learn more about the role of Black Charlestonians in the founding of Memorial Day in David W. Blight’s book “Race and Reunion: The Civil War in American Memory” and “Denmark Vesey’s garden: slavery and memory in the cradle of the Confederacy,” by Kytle and Roberts.

This TIME magazine article includes images of the race track and the burial ground from the Library of Congress. The event was covered by the “Charleston Daily Courier” on May 2, 1865 and by the “New York Tribune” on May 13, 1865. 

While we are unaware of any primary sources within our Special Collections that document this event, we still wish to acknowledge and share this piece of American history that is continually ignored or erased.  

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We are excited to announce that we are hiring Archives and Manuscripts Accession Assistants for the summer and academic year. Accessions Assistants work with new collections and prepare them to be open for research. This role offers an opportunity for graduate students to apply research skills and learn archival best practices.

This is a student position open to graduate students at the University of Chicago. Apply via the link in our LinkTree.

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DYK that Ida B. Wells was a self-taught Shakespearean? These selected entries from her diary indicate her interest in memorizing Lady Macbeth's soliloquy to recite at a performance, attending a literary meeting discussing Macbeth, and seeing Edwin Booth "the greatest living actor" (and brother of presidential assassin John Wilkes Booth) in productions of Hamlet and Othello.

To see the full digitized diary, click here.

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Carter G. Woodson (AB’07, AM’08), the Father of Negro History

Carter G. Woodson (AB’07, AM’08), the Father of Negro History, founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (1915), the Journal of Negro History (1916), and The Associated Publishers, Inc. (1921), and published the Negro History Bulletin (1937).  He championed the idea and formation of Negro History Week (inaugurated in 1926) that, in 1976, ultimately became Black History Month. Woodson’s life and work continues to inspire many students and scholars of African and African Diaspora Studies. This year marks the 150th anniversary of his birth.

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Correspondence in the George J. Stigler papers

The series arrangement in the Stigler papers for Correspondence are divided into two sub-series: Alphabetical and Chronological. This ordering is consistent with the original order of the collection, the way in which it was arranged and used by Professor George Stigler and his office and research staff. In total, the correspondence series is composed of 48 boxes (24 linear feet), and include memos, postcards, greeting cards, notes, telegrams, facsimiles, printed emails, and, of course, letters (both handwritten and typed). Some of the Stigler correspondence files explore the discovery, genealogy, history, and advancement of thought, theory, and praxis in economics.

A rather unexpected letter is included. It is written from within the confines of the State Correctional Institution at Huntingdon in Pennsylvania, from an inmate named Sunni Ali Ber (Frank Reynolds Harwell Sr.). He requested a conference poster from the History of Economics Society and an “old or worn or used or slightly abused or messed up” copy of Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations. The shortest letter in the collection was from Alan G. Hirsh writing, simply, “I quit.” There is also the interesting case of the Nobel Prize in Economics and the responses it generated in the form of congratulatory letters, greeting cards, telegrams, invites, postcards, and such. Most interestingly among them were several letters from people in Indiana, New York, Uruguay, Switzerland, and Germany, inquiring of Stigler’s genealogy. Is it possible that we’re related, they asked. He could not affirm that they were related but noted that “My father, Joseph Stigler, was born in the small town of Lengenfeld, south east of Nuremberg, on March 24, 1978.” Further, “I have received several letters from different families in southern Germany but with no clear evidence of relatedness.” Adding, “I am sorry that I didn’t learn or remember, more family history."

There are many other interesting letters in the collection. Many of them will be quite useful to researchers and other library patrons.

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It's a busy day for Waldo: researching, working, helping patrons, and meeting with the Dean of Spooky Sciences!

HappyHalloween from the Special Collections Department of Waldo Sightings!

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“A Memento from 1913”

One hundred eleven years ago, The Women’s Trade Union League of Chicago hosted the “Hallowe’en Dancing Party.” Somehow a ticket from the event made its way to Claire Friedland, former Research Associate at the Center for Study of Economics and the State (now named in honor of George Stigler), perhaps while she was preparing for a conference presentation for the “Women in Early Economics” session for the Midwest Economics Association.

In 2015, it appears, as she gathered remaining material to deliver to SCRC as addenda to previous accessions acquired in the 1990s, she added that ticket, enclosed in an envelope labeled “A Memento from 1913.”

This finding moves the historical timeline of the George J. Stigler Papers back to 1913; however, originally, it was dated in the 1930s.

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The Students for Violent Non-Action (SVNA) installed The Dean of Spooky Sciences as a prank in The Harper Memorial Library Reading Room, aka, The Arley D. Cathey Learning Center, or, to more accurately reflect the true nature of the room as they saw it: NERD HELL, or, The 10th Circle of Hell). The SVNA wanted to warn students that they “should abandon all hope of ever attaining a 4.0 by graduation.”

Today the Dean warns students about the consequences of bringing food, beverages, and ink into Special Collections. Bwa-ha-ha!

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Forest of Leaders: Talents and Impacts of UChicago's Korean International Students

For over a century, Korean students have traveled to the University of Chicago to study. During an era of hardships and political instability, unfortunately, many were unable to finish their courses of study.

In 1945, imperial Japanese occupation ended in Korea and, in 1950, the Korean War broke out. Political and societal disorder continued for years, and amidst upheaval, Chey Jong-hyon, founder and former Chairman of SK Group, traveled to the US and earned an MA in Economics from UChicago. After graduation, in 1961, he returned to Korea and contributed greatly to the growth of several commercial industries. Today, the late SK Chairman is widely recognized as an innovator who changed the course of Korea’s economic development, and importantly, through his philanthropy, also enabled generations of Korean students to complete advanced degrees.

Based on his belief that young and talented individuals determine Korea’s future, Chey Jong-hyon established the Korea Foundation for Advanced Studies (KFAS) to support the educational pursuits of Korea’s top students. At present, KFAS has awarded over 4,000 scholarships, growing Chey Jong-hyon’s hundred-year vision to cultivate a forest of leaders.

This exhibition, celebrating KFAS’ 50th anniversary, follows the footprints left by talented Korean students at UChicago and highlights some of the lasting impacts they have made in various professional and academic fields.

KFAS, SK Group, and the SK Heritage Museum lent photographs, periodicals, books, awards, and medals for this exhibit.

This exhibition is cosponsored by the University of Chicago Library and the Korea Foundation for Advanced Studies.

Exhibit on view in our gallery through December 13th. Click here for the English web exhibit, and here for the Korean web exhibit.

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On this day in 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his I Have a Dream speech at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The Johnson Publishing Company produced this book of photographs from the march, and included the texts of the speech as well as the lyrics to “We Shall Overcome”. 

Our copy of this book is in the W. Alvin Pitcher Papers. Pitcher was a  professor, minister, community and social justice activist, who worked with Operation Breadbasket (an arm of Martin Luther King’s Southern Christian Leadership Conference) in the 1960s and 1970s, helping to found a cooperative house in Woodlawn that is still in existence today, and participating in a variety of community development groups into the 1990s.

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Happy Birthday to philanthropist and businessman, Julius Rosenwald, born on this day in 1862!

Rosenwald is best known for leading Sears, Roebuck, and Company; for his generous giving through the Rosenwald Fund which supported African American education through the establishment of "Rosenwald schools" in rural communities and African American scholars and artists through a fellowship program; and for his founding of Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry (which he humbly declined to have named for himself). Want to learn more? Check out this 2015 documentary!

Rosenwald also has many UChicago connections! He was a Trustee of the University from 1912 to 1932, and he donated funds to build many campus buildings and launch the Medical School.

We proudly preserve and provide access to Julius Rosenwald's personal papers, as well as the papers of his father Samuel Rosenwald, and his grandson Peter Ascoli. We invite you to visit our reading room to take a deep dive into the collections!

Images:

Julius Rosenwald at the Shelburne Hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey, undated. University of Chicago Photographic Archive, apf1-07307.

Julius Rosenwald (left) and Booker T. Washington (right), educator and political leader at Tuskegee Institute, 22 February 1915. University of Chicago Photographic Archive, apf1-07303.

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Major Thank Yous to the Black Metropolis Research Consortium Archie Motley Archival Intern Chanelle Davis for putting together our newest web exhibit, Degrees of Distinction: Eva Overton Lewis and Julian Herman Lewis, MD, PhD at The University of Chicago and Beyond. Here is Chanelle in action!

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James Baldwin at 100: Archival Encounters at UChicago’s SCRC

Born August 2, 1924, in Harlem, New York, James Arthur Baldwin rose from the harsh conditions there to become a major figure in American literary arts, a key voice for African American civil rights and social justice, and a tireless witness and advocate for humanity. His life, ideas, and works have had a significant impact on many. His fiction and essays made real the human condition and shamed those who failed the test of time and love, critical themes found at the heart of most of his work. Today marks the 100th anniversary of his birth.

An interesting history of events found in the  Student Government Records, with James Baldwin at the heart of it. A single folder concerning a little-known incident with Baldwin’s novel, Another Country. Students organized to intervene in the dispute over the removal of the novel from a required reading list at Wright Junior College.

Interestingly, in the end, the novel remained on the list, an option was made for students who did not want to read the book, a new instructor was assigned to the course for the next term, and the previous instructor who assigned the book was given a two-month vacation. There was also mention in the news reports that depending on how this issue was resolved, the college could have lost its accreditation.

Other collections at SCRC that contain archival materials created by or composed about James Baldwin: Campus Publications, Chicago Review Records, David Ray Papers, International Association for Cultural Freedom Records, Layle Silbert Papers, and Robert W. Spike Papers.

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Celebrate Women Astronomers Day with the Yerkes Observatory Records at SCRC! Check out the alt text for the names of the women in this photo from 1921, and learn more at Capturing the Stars.