Major Learned Society Archive Comes to Drew
The Drew Library has become the home for the archives of the Society of Biblical Literature. SBL is the preeminent academy in North America for the critical investigation of the Bible. Founded in 1880, it is one of the oldest learned societies in the world, as well as a founding member of the American Council of Learned Societies. Its annual meeting, a joint venture with the American Academy of Religion, is the largest gathering of biblical scholars from around the world.
The archives arrived in January and all 181 cartons have been unpacked. The materials now stretch across 100 shelves in the Archives Center. All of the publications of the SBL since its inception can be found there as well as the founding documents, administrative files, editorial and correspondence files for the publications, and the files of the annual meeting program units. All the material should be available for use by Drew students and faculty, as well as the public, by early fall. A finding aid will be placed on the Library and SBL web pages later in the year. Dr. Maxine Beach, Dean of the Theology School stated, "I am proud that Drew's rich tradition in archives has enabled this distinctive collection to come to our campus. As a biblical scholar, I am excited about how this treasure trove of primary source material will enrich the research options of our theological and graduate programs."
A hallmark of the SBL is its extensive publication program. It includes works for specialists, generalists, and all those interested in biblical and religious studies in print and online formats. Its venerable journal, The Journal of Biblical Literature, provides broad coverage of every aspect of biblical studies and is considered a flagship journal for the field. Its younger sibling, Semeia, is an experimental serial devoted to the exploration of new and emergent areas and methods of biblical criticism.
The monographic publications of the SBL include major reference works, commentaries, text editions and translations, scholarly monographs, collections of essays, doctoral dissertations, and tools for teaching and research. All of this material will be available in the archive.
The Director of the Drew University Library, Dr. Andrew Scrimgeour, is the founding archivist of the SBL and was instrumental in bringing the archive to Drew. He tends to glow when talking about this new arrival:
"Drew is an ideal home for these papers and publications given our state-of-the-art center for archives, programs in the biblical fields, and the ease with which scholars and doctoral students can reach our campus."
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Book Arts, Cartoon Art and Graphic Satire Represented in New Special Collections
by Linda E. Connors
Associate Librarian
Last winter, James Fraser, retiring director of the Friendship Library at Fairleigh-Dickinson University, approached the Drew Library about accepting three valuable collections for which his library could no longer provide appropriate care. These collections have now come to Drew and will be processed over the next year.
Each of the collections is relevant to the academic programs at Drew, and, in fact, use of the collections at FDU by Drew students and faculty increased during the 1990s. The George Fraser Black witchcraft collection, although small, contains a few choice items, notably two editions of the celebrated Malleus Maleficarum, the Latin edition (Frankfurt, 1580) and the first English translation published in 1928 in a limited edition with introduction, bibliography, and notes by Montague Summers.
Drew University's Book History Program benefits directly from the Loyd Haberly collection on the book arts.
The collection was established with the gift of Haberly's own books on printing history and the private press movement. Haberly, former Fairleigh Dickinson University dean and professor of English, was also, for a time, director of the Gregynog Press in Wales. Subsequent gifts and purchases from gift funds enlarged the collection to some one thousand volumes. In addition, Haberly donated copies of his own publications: books of poetry written, printed and bound by him. The collection includes many examples of fine press books as well as works on typography, binding, and illustration. Haberly's Stansbury hand press, one of the few of its style to have survived, was also given to Fairleigh Dickinson and remains in the Orangérie of the Florham-Madison Campus Library.
The Harry A. Chesler Collection of Cartoon Art and Graphic Satire, incorporating the Richard S. Wormser Collection of Graphic Satire, has a strong emphasis on English and continental European graphic satire. The manuscript and original art of the Chesler collection will not be coming to Drew. The book collection, particularly strong in 19th and 20th century studies and compendia, is significant in its own right. The range of content can be seen in such titles as: Lima's Historia da Caricatura no Brasil, 4 vols. (Rio de Janeiro, 1963); Lachen Links, Das Republikanische Witzblatt (Berlin, 1924-1927); Georg Gross (Moscow, 1931), and a complete file of Siné Massacre (Paris, 1962-1963). A number of works portray different occupations and groups, especially Jews. The collection is an important resource for the researcher, as well as the student of cultural history. The collections will retain the names of the original donors and will be available for use following cleaning, processing, and necessary restoration by the Library's conservator.
The transfer of collections from donors to libraries or from library to library rarely happens without the assistance of unpaid volunteers, often in the form of the offspring of the librarian in question. A special "thank you" is owed to Marty Connors, who donated his days off, his truck, and his strong back to bringing these important resources to the campus. The University's collections and programs are immeasurably strengthened by the addition of these materials.
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THE DIRECTOR'S CORNER:An Historic Decision |
What should qualify as a landmark achievement in a university library? The addition of the millionth volume? The gift of a Gutenberg Bible? A major, new endowment? The addition of a new wing? The retirement of the card catalog (Nicholson Baker notwithstanding)? A surge in technological capability? All of these are worthy candidates, of course, and are to be coveted, but they are not the watershed event that recently unfolded in the Drew Library.
Last month, quietly and without fanfare, the Drew Library faculty voted to change the fundamental character of the catalog. It will begin to catalog web sites. In so doing, it parts company with the revered philosophy that has governed the nature of library catalogs since the nineteenth century and points the catalog into uncharted waters. Heretofore, the main purpose of the library catalog was to describe resources that were owned by the institution. All catalogs -- whether card, book, or online -- shared this fundamental raison d'être. That perspective is now being radically transformed at Drew.
The Library will now provide full catalog records in the online Drew catalog for selected public web sites. For several years a modest number of highly regarded web sites have been identified on the Drew Library home page as being particularly useful to researchers in specific areas. They were not, however, included in the catalog, which meant that students and faculty would not discover them as part of their research in the catalog. That will now change. Bibliographic records, rich with key words, should enable library users to more easily discover appropriate web sites during routine probings of the online catalog.
To sample these new records, search for "American studies web" in the catalog. Note that in addition to valuable descriptive information, there is a hot link to its URL. Hundreds of these records will be added to the catalog during the course of the summer and programmatically thereafter. Faculty are urged to recommend sites that should be included.
While this change signals an historic shift in the purview of our online catalog, it is not a departure from the fundamental responsibility of the Drew University Library--which is to enable students and faculty to quickly identify pertinent scholarship amidst the welter of informational possibilities. I am delighted to be part of a community that is willing to experiment thoughtfully, even in the sacrosanct precinct of the catalog.
Andrew D. Scrimgeour
Recent Gifts to the University Library
The Library acknowledges a generous gift from James McClintock in memory of his wife, Gladys McClintock. The donation supports the purchase of books in Psychology.
Johannes Morsink gave a much appreciated gift to the book fund following the Friends of the Library benefit dinner.
Barbara Parker donated a collection of art books which significantly enhance the Library's resources for study in Art History.
A generous donation was received from Lucille Becker for the book endowment fund.
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Professor Johannes Morsink (center) was honored with the 2000 Bela Kornitzer Award, in recognition of his book, The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Drafting and Intent (University of Pennsylvania Press, 1999). President Kean looks on as Library Director, Andrew Scrimgeour, presents the award at the Friends of the Library dinner February 10. |
Library Continues to Add Books Funded by Huff Gift
The William Robert Huff Collection in the Drew University Library continues to grow. As of April 6, 2001, 1,906 titles have been purchased, received, and cataloged. Some 500 additional titles are on order or in process. This generous gift supports acquisitions in biology, economics, mathematics, and psychology. Through this gift, the Library has been able to add significant and important works to support student research projects.
The gift has been vitally important in building collections to support environmental science, a new interdisciplinary major in the College. Environmental science is a rapidly growing field, with a large volume of publishing in a variety of disciplines. This additional funding has allowed the Library to make significant selections in biology, economics, and public policy to support this academic program.
Other academic disciplines have also benefitted from Mr. Huff's generosity. In psychology, recent acquisitions have focused on leadership and on the psychology of the other--how certain groups are perceived as "other" and the effects on society of this behavior. New acquisitions in biology have emphasized environment and ecology as well as adding depth to the more traditional areas. The collections in economics have been strengthened by works on environmental politics and policy, corporate environmentalism, work and welfare reform, economic development, and aspects of globalization.
Mathematics continues to add titles to support work in mathematics and computer science.
William Huff's ongoing generosity ensures that the Library will continue to provide students with research materials which support their work and enrich their experience at Drew.
-- Linda E. Connors
Gala Evening: Dinner Celebrates Authors, Reading, and Libraries
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Dr. Epsey Farrell, Friends Board member, with Director of the Library, Dr. Andrew D. Scrimgeour, Dr. George L. Shinn, and Dr. Lynn Harris Heft, President of the Friends Board. |
Friends Board member, Mrs. Bard Thompson, enjoys the evening following a year of planning the event. |
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Dr. Freeman Dyson, of the Institute for Advanced Study, guest speaker for the biennial Friends' dinner in February, shares a light moment with Drew President, the Honorable Thomas H. Kean. President of the Friends of the Library, Dr. Lynn Harris Heft, looks on with Lewis D. Andrews, Jr., Chairman of the Drew University Board of Trustees. Mr. Andrews served as Honorary Dinner Chair. |
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Trustees, Mrs. Jeanne T. Zenker (center) and Dr. Shirley Sugarman...with husband Dr. Morton Rosenberg and professor Thomas Magnell |
Endow-A-Book Contributors
A warm "thank you" is extended to all who contributed to the Endow-A-Book Fund, including those who attended the Friends of the Library Benefit Dinner, and so generously responded to the Friends' fundraising effort.
Special thanks go to:
Mr. Donald and Dr. Lynn Harris Heft
Mr. and Mrs. Spencer Scott Marsh III
Eleanor W. Rawitz
Mrs. and Mrs. Nelson Schaenen, Jr.
Mrs. Bard Thompson
Mrs. Jeanne Tucker Zenker
Mr. and Mrs. Paul A. Becker
Mrs. and Mrs. Leonard Block
Dr. Barbara Morris Caspersen
Dr. David and Joan Massey
Dalys Oxnam Jaecker
Mr. and Mrs. S. Lawrence Prendergast
Ralph and Christa Ocker
Dr. Edna Ranck
Drs. Morton Rosenberg and Shirley Sugerman
Spring Exhibits
Currently in the Lobby: A Matter of Balance: Photographs by Photographer Robert Terlizzi, C'76, May 8- June 30.
Recent Exhibits: Recovery: A Photo Essay, April 9 through 16, was jointly sponsored by Madison photographer Kathleen Dempsey and the Deidre O'Brien Child Advocacy Center of Morristown.
In their own words...the effects of school violence in America, April 17 - 30, presented by Students Against Violence Everywhere (S.A.V.E) documenting a cross-country trip of seven Drew students to study the effects of school violence in America.
About Visions
VISIONS
NEWSLETTER OF THE DREW UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
Dr. Andrew D. Scrimgeour, Director
Drew University Library, Madison, NJ 07940
(973) 408-3322 ascrimge@drew.edu
EDITOR: Anna S. Magnell
PHOTOGRAPHS: Chris Pedota, Drew University Archives
THIS ON-LINE EDITION: Anne L. Noss
A complete online archive of past issues of Visions
can be viewed at:https://uknow.drew.edu/confluence/display/Library/Visions+Library+Newsletter+Archive
VISIONS is a semi-annual publication.
© Drew University Library