James Van Allen and the Discovery of the Radiation Belts
February 1 – April 8
After months of being closed for renovations the new state of the art gallery in the University of Iowa Main Library is now open. Stop by and take a look at the exhibition, including the story of the discovery of the radiation belts, and the tale of how the earliest data recorded from space was recovered, digitized, and made available for scientists and scholars.
Friday, February 5 marks the 100th anniversary of Dada, the avant-garde literary and artistic movement that started in the neutral city of Zurich in the midst of World War I. On February 5, 1916, a group of exiled artists and writers opened the Cabaret Voltaire, an eclectic performance space in the heart of the student quarter. That first night’s program included poetry readings in German and Romanian, cabaret songs, classical piano music, a balalaika orchestra, and an exhibit of abstract art. By April, the name Dada had been chosen for the movement that grew from the Cabaret’s activities. The Cabaret Voltaire lasted for 165 days, but Dada spread beyond its walls to other venues in Zurich, then to Berlin, Paris, Cologne, Amsterdam, and New York, among other places. The influence of Dada on modern art and culture is immense. Dada centennial celebrations have begun around the world. Our own International Dada Archive houses the world’s most comprehensive repository of Dada documentation. To avoid upstaging the celebrations in Zurich, Bucharest, and elsewhere in Europe, the Dada Archive and Special Collections will launch our own centennial events next year, beginning with a major exhibition in the Libraries’ new gallery in spring 2017.
Shown here is the cover of the 1916 journal Cabaret Voltaire, one of the gems of our collection. Weekly “Dadagrams” have been posted on the Special Collections Instagram site for the past year.
Wednesday, February 10th at 7PM in the Special Collections Reading Room.
Heather Wacha will be talking about a single Medieval manuscript leaf from Special Collections, Msc 542 xMMs.Pr1 and her process identifying it. She will present her findings about this text in the 13th century manuscript edition, 16th century early printed editions, as well as early 20th century history when Otto Ege broke the manuscript apart, and the early 21st century when digital technologies allow us to start to put it back together again.
Jonas Hunt was first corporal and first sergeant of the Iowa 18th Volunteer Regiment, Company B. His grandson, Leland Hunt, has gifted this collection to the University of Iowa.
From notes from his great-great granddaughter we have this history: “Jonas Hunt was born August 7, 1837. On August 6, 1862 Jonas joined the Eighteenth Regiment Volunteer Infantry. Jonas took part in several battles in southern Missouri and Arkansas before being mustered out the first part of August 1865. They [meaning he and his wife Emeline Twombley] apparently built a log cabin in Lacelle, IA (no longer a town) near Osceola and raised nine children. “
The collection consists of a canteen, a certificate, a roster, a family bible, a military record, and a company sick book. This last item, the sick book, is fairly unique to this collection. It is a record of every illness in the company and where the person was serving during his sickness. It is divided into columns as follows: Name, rank, sick in quarters, in hospital, and duty.
New Acquisition Updates from Margaret Gamm
The Glenwood Resource Center in Glenwood, Iowa, was previously named the Iowa Institution for Feeble-Minded Children. This album from around 1910 documents that earlier time period. In some of the first photos, several women show off their Winter attire on a January day declared to be 24 below. Brr! While the creator of the album focused on the teachers at the Institution, the students make many appearances as well.
Event Recap
Photo: Stephen Smith. Photo by Marvin Gatch. Papers of Stephen Lynn Smith (RG 02.0009.032)
University archivist David McCartney gave a presentation about the Historical Iowa Civil Rights Network at St. Ambrose University in Davenport on Thursday, 1/18/2016. HICRN is a project of archivists, librarians, historians, and former civil rights workers from across the state to document the civil rights movement, both at home and elsewhere. David co-founded HICRN in 2012 and, to date, 12 institutions have participated.
Archive Journal, Notes+Queries, “Methods to Use Digital Resources to Teach Primary Sources”: http://goo.gl/wcJuF7
Upcoming Events
The U.Iowa History of Medicine Society and the Iowa Women’s Archives
invite you to hear:
Injections, Itches, and Institutions:
The Experience of Rural Medicine in Iowa, 1910-1950
Jennifer Gunn
History of Medicine Endowed Professor
Director of the Institute for Advanced Study
University of Minnesota
Thursday, January 28, 2016, 5:30-6:30
Medical Education Research Facility (MERF) 2117
Free and Open to the Public
Event Recap
Iowa Women’s Archives staff participated in a Mock Caucus event with other staff from the UI Libraries on Wednesday, January 20, 2016. A mock caucus is a non-partisan educational event to teach about the caucus process and what to expect. Vitalina Nova, Preservation Projects Librarian, led an educational and bilingual guide to caucus.
The event was held at the Center for Worker Justice in Iowa City and was co-sponsored by LULAC and the Center.
New Acquisitions
Update from Acquisitions & Collections Management Librarian Margaret Gamm
These books arrived this week as part of a donation from Nicholas Meyer. His gift, which will be added to his previous gifts to Special Collections, included translations of his works in several languages, as well as Star Trek books and movies and some other fascinating items. The books are about to head over to our cataloging department, where the real language skills live. Kudos to our multi-talented catalogers, and to our generous donor!
Sign Up for Spring Semester Class Sessions
Update from Instruction Librarian Amy Chen
Special Collections librarians can support any aspect of class planning for teaching with rare books and primary source materials.
We had a record-breaking 2015, so sign up early or else our rooms and librarians may already be booked for popular times. Find our classrequest form here.
Special Collections librarians can support any aspect of class planning for teaching with rare books and primary source materials.
We had a record-breaking 2015, so sign up early or else our rooms and librarians may already be booked for popular times. Find our classrequest form here.
New Acquisitions
Update from Acquisitions & Collections Management Librarian Margaret Gamm
Pick Yourself Up From off the Ground by Cuba. One of a kind artist’s book with acrylic graffiti paintings, 2014.
From the University Archives
Update from University Archivist David McCartney
A video paging through a 100+ year old scrapbook from a woman from the class of 1915 who attended the very first Homecoming football game.
Staff Awards
Special Collections Instruction Librarian Amy Chen was selected to be featured as a “Bright Young Librarian” by Fine Books & Collections Magazine. Read the feature here.
From the Web and Social Media
In Case You Missed It: A Compilation of Recent Links & Posts
Blog post reporting on a research trip to Special Collections: Marbled Paper Connections by Emily Pazar. See it here.
Article about the Brinton early film collection: 100 Years Later, New Audiences Discover Legendary Outsider. See it here.
Center for the Book/Special Collections commercial that we filmed last August is finished and will air on the Big Ten Network. Article: here Video below:
Exhibitions
“The Humanity in History”
January 8th-March 1st, 2016
Kelly Grogg, graduate student in the School of Library and Information Science and Special Collections senior Olson Graduate Assistant, has completed her capstone exhibition. It is on display now in the cases outside Special Collections on the 3rd floor.
“Every person featured in this exhibit has contributed to make the world a better place. They may not have ever reached the level of recognition they deserved, but despite their humble beginnings and oncoming obstacles, they contributed to the world in a way that cannot be measured in a ‘neatly packaged, sanitized parable’. These are the people who create history.” – Kelly Grogg
Special Collections Instruction Librarian Amy Hildreth Chen was selected to be featured as a “Bright Young Librarian” by Fine Books & Collections Magazine. Please join us in congratulating her on this recognition from the wider community.
By Tim Shipe, Curator, International Dada Archive, and Arts & Literature Liaison
We are pleased to announce the publication of issue no. 20 of our journal Dada/Surrealism, a special number entitled From Dada to Infra-noir: Dada, Surrealism, and Romania.”http://ir.uiowa.edu/dadasur/vol20/iss1/.
Co-edited by Monique Yaari of the Pennsylvania State University and Timothy Shipe of the University of Iowa, our thematic issue includes eighteen articles by scholars and critics from North America, Europe, and Israel, as well as a selection of primary documents newly translated into English and a substantial bibliography. From Dada to Infra-Noir is the first essay collection in English on the subject of Romanian Dada and surrealism in literature and the visual arts, both within Romania and in the (largely francophone) diaspora.
Dada/Surrealism is the peer-reviewed, free and open-access journal of the Association for the Study of Dada and Surrealism, and is published by the International Dada Archive, Special Collections, University of Iowa Libraries.
Profuse thanks are due to Wendy Robertson for her expertise, patience, and hard work in bringing this project to fruition.
It has only been a few months into my new position as Department Liaison, and one of my major job duties is to supervise the student employees. I did not anticipate that the hardest part of this new job would be watching wonderful students graduate and leave the department.
This Fall 2015 semester, two outstanding students graduated: Zoë Webb and Mallory Price. Both students will be sorely missed, and I think I can speak for the entire department when I say, they will be hard to replace!
Zoë and Mallory reading graduation cards from the Special Collections staff.
Zoë Webb graduated this semester from the University of Iowa School of Art and Art History with a degree in Art, and finalized her undergraduate career with a BFA show titled “Don’t Stray From the Path”. Zoë’s show featured a room not only filled with her original artwork, including some impressive metal works, but it also included artistically placed trees and leaves to give the viewer the sense of walking through an ethereal forest inhabited by faeries.
Zoë began her Special Collections journey in January 2012, where she has completed a wide variety of projects in the department. She’s made spine labels, processed books, including hundreds of science-fiction paperbacks, and helped with some major shifting projects in her many years here. I will definitely miss her shared love of fandom, expert artistic skills, and knack for finding amazing things on accident.
Zoë in front of her art show.
A piece from Zoë’s show.
Mallory began working in the Special Collections department in May 2014, and during her time here has been our primary front desk student. Along with assisting patrons with numerous questions, ranging from helping them to use the scanner, to detailed research questions, Mallory has proved herself to be a huge asset in all things reference! I will miss her expertise in helping others, her positive attitude, and friendly smile!Mallory Price graduated this semester from the University of Iowa School of Music with a Bachelor’s degree in Music, with a focus on Music Therapy. An outstanding violin player, Mallory finalized her undergraduate career with a Senior Recital, playing music from Beethoven, Fritz Kreisler, and Dvořák.
Mallory playing at her Violin recital.
Mallory excited to be finished!
On behalf of the entire Special Collections and University Archives Department, we wish Zoë and Mallory the best of luck in the future!
Preservation Projects Librarian, Vitalina Nova, wrote a blog post about the League of United Latino American Citizens Council 10, both their past records and their current projects for the Iowa Women’s Archives blog.
Image on the left from LULAC Council 10 Records, IWA0733
2016 Rose Bowl a chance to make new memories: UI archivist recalls Iowa’s five previous visits to Pasadena. This month’s Old Gold column by University Archivist David McCartney was posted this week.
This 1959 Rose Bowl decal was sold by Iowa Book and Supply and donated to the university by 1976 alumnus Vernon Lustick, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Notes from the Special Collections Classroom
This week’s news from Amy Chen, Instruction Librarian
Counting up some totals at the end of the semester, Special Collections (not including the Iowa Women’s Archives) taught 119 class sessions total in the Fall 2015 Semester:
4 in August
34 in September
39 in October
28 in November
14 in December
New Acquisitions
Arrival Notifications from Margaret Gamm,
Acquisitions & Collections Management Librarian
The Descent of Mount Gadam is a new acquisition for our Charlotte Smith miniature book collection. Amos Paul Kennedy published the book in 1993 under the imprint of his Jubilee Press, which was later renamed the Jubalee Press. The text is an adaptation of a folktale of the Mensa Bet-Abrehe people of northern Ethiopia.
