Brown University Library News

The Brown University Library celebrates Josiah S. Carberry every Friday the 13th. Consider leaving your loose change in a Brown jug (AKA “cracked pot”) to benefit the Josiah Carberry Fund. The jugs are out on each Friday the 13th in the Rock and SciLi.

Want to know more about Carberry and the Fund? Click here for more info.

Known to show up unannounced in unlikely places, Carberry has been seen but never verified on campus. Will you spot the elusive man himself? If you do, try to capture him with a photo and share on Twitter or Instagram with #JosiahCarberry.

To share on Facebook, friend Josiah Carberry and tag him in the photo.

Happy Josiah Carberry Day, Happy Friday the 13th, and happy hunting for Carberry!

An exhibit featuring Lincoln stamps and covers and First Day Covers is on display in the Anne S. K. Brown Military Collection Gallery at the John Hay Library. The exhibit will be available for viewing now through Wednesday, May 27, 2015.

The Lincoln Covers
In the world of philately, an envelope is referred to as a “cover.” This collection features covers that are adorned with patriotic art, all addressed to President Abraham Lincoln at the beginning of the American Civil War. Many patriotic covers, adorned with rousing images of the American union such as that shown above, were set aside and preserved by John Hay, Brown Class of 1859, who was one of two private secretaries who attended President Lincoln during this time. As each piece of mail sent in a patriotic cover arrived at the White House, Hay would open it and pass the contents on to President Lincoln, retaining the cover as a souvenir. In 1958, John Hay Whitney, a descendent of John Hay, donated these to the Brown University Library.

Lincoln Stamps and First Day Covers
Within a year after his death, the United States Post Office began issuing stamps honoring President Lincoln. Several of the earliest stamps issued by the USPO are on display as well as some First Day Covers, like those pictured below, featuring Lincoln. A First Day Cover is an envelope bearing a stamp which has been canceled on the day the stamp was issued.

The Brown University Library is home to several stamp collections, including the Knight Collection, the Peltz and Morriss Collections of Special Delivery stamps, the George S. Champlin Memorial Stamp Collection of international issues, and the Robert T. Galkin Collection of First Day Covers.

Click here for more information about Special Collections at Brown, including the stamp collections.

Dates: March 12 – May 27, 2015
Time: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday
Location: Anne S.K. Brown Military Gallery, Third Floor, Room 303, John Hay Library, 20 Prospect Street, Providence

The John Hay Library is pleased to host the Unicorn Found: Science, Literature, and the Arts exhibit, on display in the lobby cases and Willis Reading Room cases from March 11 – July 31, 2015. The exhibit features unicorn-related artifacts, objects, images, and text from the specialized collections of the Brown University Library, the Fleet Library at RISD, the RISD Museum, the Providence Athenaeum, the Providence Public Library, and the John Carter Brown Library.

Members of the public can visit the exhibit at the Hay Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

There is also an online exhibit, which can be viewed here.

Part of the larger Unicorns in Residence: Providence initiative, the exhibit is a fun and educational exploration of the unicorn from ancient to modern times. The exhibit artifacts trace the history of how unicorns have been represented and explore the myth and manifestation of the mysterious creature within different historical and cultural contexts. The exhibit also features the transforming imagery of the unicorn, from initial investigations into its existence to modern design motifs.

Date: March 11 – July 31, 2015
Time: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday
Location: Lobby and Willis Reading Room Cases, John Hay Library, 20 Prospect Street, Providence