“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

Glimpses of Black Women’s Work

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Although women’s work is often invisible or overlooked, our mini-exhibition Glimpses of Black Women’s Work, curated by Krystal Appiah, uncovers the working lives of a few 19th-century black women. The section Laboring for a Living examines…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

Library Company Events Online

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If you were not able to attend our 2013 spring events in person, you can find podcasts and exhibitions on our website!   The mini exhibition on view through February, The Emancipation Proclamation: One Step Toward Freedom, is now accessible…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

Philadelphia on Stone Wins Newman Award

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The Library Company’s Philadelphia on Stone: Commercial Lithography in Philadelphia, 1828-1878, published in 2012, received the Ewell L. Newman Book Award at the May annual meeting of the American Historical Print Collectors Society. This…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

19th-Century Views of Philadelphia Now in World Digital Library

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The Library Company has contributed the collection of graphic materials digitized for the recent Philadelphia on Stone lithography history project to the World Digital Library (WDL). This rich collection showcases 19th-century Philadelphia…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

John Van Horne to Step Down in 2014

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Library Company Director John Van Horne has announced that he will retire in May 2014 after almost thirty years at the helm. When he took over leadership of the Library Company of Philadelphia in 1985, special collections libraries operated…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

Made for a Day, Yesterday—Historical Ephemera at the Library Company

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Remnants of Everyday Life: Historical Ephemera in the Workplace, Street, and Home, on display through December 13, 2013, showcases the Library Company’s unique collections of early American ephemera which range from small fragments…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

2013 Juneteenth Freedom Seminar

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On June 19th, 1865—two-and-a-half years after President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation was issued—Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas, with news that the war had ended and that the enslaved were now free. The anniversary…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

Rare Book Expert Michael Suarez to Speak at 2013 Annual Dinner

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Dr. Michael Suarez, Director of the University of Virginia’s Rare Book School, will be this year’s Annual Dinner speaker on Tuesday, November 19. A preeminent scholar on the history of the book and eighteenth-century literature, he co-edited…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

Announcing the Mellon Scholars in Early African American History

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This June, the Library Company will launch its Mellon Scholars Program, a four-year initiative designed to strengthen the field of Early African American History by promoting scholarship in this area and helping to diversify the ranks of academic…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

Going Beyond the Reading Room

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Our blog has become one of the best places to learn about what goes on behind-the-scenes at the Library Company. Started in 2009, our staff members share their latest curatorial discoveries and research interests. This March, Chief of…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

Meet Louise Beardwood

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While the Library Company depends on financial support from individuals, foundations, and other sources to maintain our standards as one of the country’s preeminent research libraries, a dedicated corps of volunteers makes equally valuable…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

Announcing the 2013-2014 Post-Doctoral Fellows

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The Library Company is pleased to announce the recipients of National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and Program in Early American Economy and Society (PEAES) Post-Doctoral Fellowships for 2013-2014. Each of the fellows will spend a semester…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

Strategic Planning at the Library Company

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You might wonder what is left to plan for a 282-year-old organization already recognized as being among a handful of the world’s very best research institutions. But, of course, as ways of doing research change and evolve—and as technology…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

PIFA Comes to the Library Company for Visual Resources

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This spring, the Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (PIFA) will bring together more than 150 partners in the arts for a month-long celebration of the city’s cultural life. With a “time machine” as the inspiration and a general…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

A Crowd of Railroad Fans for Froio Talk

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Almost 100 people attended Understanding the Pennsylvania Railroad: Contemporary Photographs in Response to the Historic Works of William H. Rau on March 7. Speaker Michael Froio is an artist and professor in Drexel University’s photography…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

LCP Conservator Publishes Landmark Essay on Papier-Mâché Bindings

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Little scholarly attention was given to papier-mâché bindings before Chief of Conservation Jennifer Rosner began researching the topic in May 2011. Largely through generous donations from Michael Zinman, the Library Company has amassed arguably…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

Walk the History of Abolition with the Library Company and Lokadot

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The Library Company has unveiled an audio walking tour featuring 15 important sites in the history of the Abolition movement in Philadelphia. Our partnership with Philadelphia-based start-up Lokadot, which offers free, crowd-sourced audio content…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

Domestic Scenes of Famous Men

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  In the years directly after the Civil War, with wartime animosities still fresh in the nation’s consciousness, prints depicting famous men with their families and stressing harmonious domestic life enjoyed a particular vogue.…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

75 Years at the Library Company!

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We are widely known for the long tenures of our personnel, but this month three members of the senior staff are celebrating particularly noteworthy anniversaries. Librarian James Green will celebrate 30 years at the Library Company on the 22nd…
“Inlaid Papier-mache” on The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for 1851. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1851.(Gift of Michael Zinman.)

PBS’s “Abolitionists” Draws on LCP Expertise and Collections

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To coincide with the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation, on January 8 PBS aired the first segment of its three-part miniseries "The Abolitionists," which chronicles the development of the movement from the 1820s to 1865 and…