Carrollians are Coming to Hornbake Library!

Visit Hornbake Library this Friday and Saturday for a series of talks from the Lewis Carroll Society of North America discussing all things Lewis Carroll and Alice in Wonderland! The society has a diverse membership of collectors, scholars, Carroll enthusiasts, and Alice fans alike. See below for the two day schedule. Talks are free and open to the public.

While you are in here, be sure to visit the Alice 150 Years and Counting…The Legacy of Lewis Caroll exhibit, currently on display in the Maryland Room exhibit gallery in the 1st floor lobby.

Alice in Punch-Land

Sir John Tenniel (self portrait), 1889.

Sir John Tenniel (1820-1914) was already a well known artist when Lewis Carroll approached him in 1864 to illustrate his upcoming book, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Although he would later become celebrated for his iconic Alice illustrations, at the time, Tenniel was highly regarded for his work in Punch, a British weekly magazine devoted to political commentary, satire, and humor.

Tenniel worked as an painter and illustrator before becoming a political cartoonist for Punch in 1850. He contributed over 2,000 cartoons for the magazine over the next 50 years. His work covered domestic and international affairs with biting wit. Tenniel was knighted by Queen Victoria in 1893 for his artistic achievements. He officially retired in 1901.

Organizing for Power and Workers’ Rights in the Twenty-First Century Symposium

On April 14, 2016, University Libraries’ Special Collections in Labor History & Workplace Studies will co-sponsor a symposium exploring workers and organizing in the twenty-first century. This event is open and free to the public. All are welcome to attend!

Attacks on the freedom to organize in the last several decades have created new challenges for working people. New creative approaches have consequently emerged in sectors across the economy such as in domestic care, fast food, big box merchandising, etc. This symposium seeks to examine all those areas while also placing them within the context of a rapidly globalizing environment.

Elizabeth Shuler, Secretary-Treasurer of the AFL-CIO, will present the keynote address. Panelists include Eileen Boris, Teresa Casertano, Lane Windham, Elly Kugler, Nelson Lichtenstein, and Fekkak Mamdouh.

Afterwards, all are invited to join a reception in Hornbake Library, where attendees can enjoy light hors d’oeuvres and view items from UMD’s labor history collections as well as from the Gordon W. Prange Collection of Occupation-era Japanese print publications.

See a full schedule and more information, and join us on April 14^th!

Alice Goes to the Movies!

Almost everyone has seen Disney’s famous 1951 film adaptation of Alice in Wonderland, and fans of Johnny Depp are sure to have seen him starring as the Mad Hatter in Tim Burton’s 2010 adaptation. But did you know that since 1903, over 35 films and television programs have reinterpreted Alice?

Hornbake Library is excited to announce a three-part film series- Alice Goes to the Movies. Don’t miss this rare opportunity to see early Alice films and learn about how they were saved from the passage of time. David H. Schaefer, longtime Lewis Carroll collector and Alice film expert, will be sharing some of the highlights of his Alice film collection and discussing the process of restoring and digitizing them.

The Lewis Carroll Society of North America is Coming to Hornbake!

A one-of-a-kind event is coming to Special Collections and University Archives and all are invited to attend! The Lewis Carroll Society of North America will be holding their Spring Meeting in April, with a series of talks taking place here at Hornbake library on April 15th and 16th.

This will be a rare opportunity to meet several of the illustrators featured in our exhibit Alice 150 and Counting…Selections from the Collection of Clare and August Imholtz, as well as the collectors themselves. Hear about how George Walker, Oleg Lipchenko, and Tatiana Ianovskaia and other artists bring Lewis Carroll’s story to life, then discover their Alice illustrations as you tour the exhibit. Listen to an Alice song by Eva Salins or a dramatic reading of “Jabberwocky” and “The Walrus and the Carpenter”. Speakers will discuss all things Lewis Carroll and Alice in Wonderland during the two day conference, including topics like photography, Disney, fashion, psychology, and much more. Lectures will take place in Hornbake Library on the afternoon of Friday, April 15 and throughout the day on Saturday, April 16.

Radio Preservation Task Force Conference Coming to Hornbake Library

On February 26 and 27, the Library of Congress’s Radio Preservation Task Force will host its first conference on the subjects of historical media archives, and the organization of educational and preservation initiatives on a national scale . Friday’s activities will take place downtown at the Library of Congress, and Saturday’s will be held at Hornbake Library North.

Speakers will include numerous UMD librarians, faculty from various campus divisions, and several iSchool alum, as well as prominent archivists and scholars from throughout the United States. Highlights include panels and workshops on how archives can deal with audio materials, discussions about using digital tools to save our radio heritage, panels on how radio materials document race and gender throughout American history, and a workshop featuring three NEH representatives on how to find funding for archival projects.

Registration is free and open to the public, and can be completed by sending an e-mail to Kevin Palermo at kevinpalermo@gwmail.gwu.edu.

More information is available at the conference website.

Looking Back at 2015…

2016 is right around the corner, the perfect time to reminisce on all the happenings that shaped Special Collections and University Archives in 2015!

We’ve posted stories on our talented staff, as well as exhibits and events, like Alice 150, Halloween in Hornbake, and the Frederick Douglass statue dedication. We’ve also shared updates on our various collections, including the archives of the AFL-CIO.

Take a look at the top 5 blog posts of 2015:

Looking forward to Maryland Day 2013?

We’re getting ready for the Hornbake Library activities planned for Saturday, April 27, 2013. Do you remember the activities from last year? If not, here’s the blog post from Hornbake Library on Maryland Day 2012.

UnMasc: Maryland Day Is Here!

April 28th, 2012 by Student

It’s the day we’ve all been waiting for–Maryland Day 2012! Come on down to Hornbake Library and join us for a day of activities and programs for people of all ages. We’ll see you soon!

11:00 a.m. We’re off to a great start, and even have a crowd gathering at the REAL Testudo, our mascot from 1933.

11:45 a.m.  Things are really starting to pick up here in Hornbake. You can create your own postcard at our coloring station, learn how to knit your own Testudo, and create an international terrapin!

12:15 p.m. Fear the Turtle! (and come on down to make your own international terrapin)

1:50 p.m. The Broadcasting Archives is celebrating its 40th birthday!

2:15 p.m. We’ve got some fantastic new postcards AND the littlest terrapin of them all here at Hornbake Library!

3:40 p.m. Things are starting to wind down, but there’s still a bit of time left to come to Hornbake and learn how to knit your own turtle or create an international terrapin!

4:08 p.m. Goodbye to Maryland Day 2012! We’ll see you all next year!

International Women’s Day Display

Each month, the Special Collections displays rare, unique items from our collection that resonate with present-day events. On March 1st through March 31, 2013, visit the Maryland Room on the 1st floor of Hornbake Library and delve deeper into women’s history. We’ll also provide online tools, resources, and information about our displays and women’s history every Wednesday and Sunday this month.

Our display honors International Women’s Day on March 8th.

About the display

“Working Women”

March 1-March 17

Script writer Mona Kent and her radio character Portia highlight the challenges facing working women in the 1940s and 1950s, including the social expectation of self-sacrifice in women, and the struggle of a writer to portray women who didn’t fit that code.

Defining “Normal”

March 17-March 31

Dr. Brown, author of “The Single Girl,” claims that the abnormal woman must “re-channel her existence via adjustment, sublimation, or a return to the normal, in order to find real happiness.” How do women define normal? Clearly, not all of us have identical goals, lifestyles, and beliefs. This month, we celebrate the complex diversity of women and each individual’s right to find her personal definition of “real happiness.”

Visit the website for more information about International Women’s Day 2013 and resources for continuing the momentum toward equality.