The above quote is from Jim Tatman—Class of 1966. Read the full memory below:

I attended Brown from 1962 to ’66 and honestly can’t remember the library I used before “The Rock” opened, but I do remember watching it arise from the lower perimeter of the campus as it was then and the towering cranes used in its construction hovering over the building site. When it was completed, it was the most startlingly modern edifice on the campus at the time, but its bold design and soaring presence, with its pillars of granite and walls of glass, insisted that no one dare challenge its architectural propriety as it faced the original and oldest buildings at Brown. I thought it was a masterpiece and loved going there to study, to read, and to meet friends and classmates.

The above quote is from Lorelei Mitchell—Class of 1982. Read the full memory below:

I remember being in my twenties and spending many peaceful hours in the stacks working on my dissertation in the German Department. It was always quiet in the Rock, an oasis of serenity in an otherwise busy world. I borrowed many texts on interlibrary loan which greatly assisted me in my research on 19th century German drama.

The above quote is from Liz Steinberg Lange—Class of 1988. Read the full memory below:

Hanging on the A level (I think that’s what we called it) where everyone went to socialize and smoke—the Rock was definitely not really about studying.

The above quote is from Elisabeth Elkind—Class of 1978. Read the full memory below:

I remember some wonderful big black chairs that I think were on a lower level and faced the back windows looking out over downtown Providence and amazing sunsets. I remember enormous quantities of brilliant forsythia beside the front steps.

I had a job filing cards at the Rock, which led to a job filing cards at another library when I graduated, which led to promotions up the library assistant ladder, library school, and a career as an archivist/cataloger. It all started at the Rock!

On a less positive note, I was flashed by a creepy older man when sitting alone at a carrel in the stacks writing a paper.

The above quote is from Jason Neelis—Class of 1990. Read the full memory below:

In my last year at Brown, my circuit was sleep-cafeteria-Rock-cafeteria-Rock-sleep. At the Rock, I studied Greek and Sanskrit at vacant carrels on the basement floors, cataloged Sanskrit manuscripts from microfilms for Prof. David Pingree, and worked at the circulation and reserves desks.

The following Rock memory was submitted anonymously by a graduate of the class of 1981:

Sitting in a graduate student’s desk as a freshman, I was amazed by the books in the carrell and also afraid that I was going to get kicked out.

The above quote is from Katie Hisert—Class of 1996. Read the full memory below:

When I was a student in the mid 90s, one of the most coveted library spots on campus was in the absolute quiet reading room in the basement of the Rock. Because the Rock is perched on the edge of the hill, the absolute quiet reading room had a full wall of windows overlooking downtown Providence, despite being in the basement. And the room had the most glorious, soft, cushy arm chairs placed at intervals facing OUT of the windows, backs to the room. These chairs were the most wonderful place to read. And more often than not, the most wonderful place to sleep.

The above quote is from James Fletcher—Class of 2005. Read the full memory below:

When I was a freshman in 2001, I got my first job at the Rock. I will never forget hiding in the stacks of microfilm to study my freshman course work. It was my perfect bubble.

The above quote is from Christoph Schmidt—Class of 1982. Read the full memory below:

As one of the few honors concentrators in Comparative Literature, I was given a carrel in the bowels of Level B. If there was ever a desk situated for minimal distractions, it was along that cinder block wall two floors below the main entrance door.

There were two positive attributes that kept the location bearable enough for me to keep returning and writing my thesis. First was that all the literature stacks were at hand. Second was that the three other thesis writers in Comp. Lit. were also banished to the same area. Hearing about their work was a great motivator to mine.

I suspect those ratty carrels are long gone.

The above quote is from Alan Randaccio—Class of 1986. Read the full memory below:

I remember a great deal of studying at the Rock, but the first thing that comes to mind are the sticks that held the newspapers. I can picture John Franzosa reading the Boston Globe or the Providence Journal. I’m not sure which.