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Posted by: Michael North
The Library owns many groundbreaking books from medicine’s past, some of them illustrated with images that make us glad we live in the 21st century. Topics range from anatomy and herbals to childbirth and Native American medical knowledge.
Posted in: 15th Century, 16th Century, 17th Century, 19th Century, Botanicals, History of Science, History of the Book, Illustrated Book, Medicine, Uncategorized
Posted by: Mark Manivong
Thomas Merton (1915-1968) was an American Trappist monk, poet, writer, theologian, mystic, social activist, scholar of comparative religion, and pioneer of interfaith dialogue who wrote more than 50 books throughout his 27-year writing career. He is arguably one of the most influential and widely read Catholic authors of the 20th century. In 2025, the Rare Book and Special Collections Division acquired a Thomas Merton Collection comprising 143 items and containing first editions, uncorrected proofs, artwork, manuscripts, recordings, and portraits of this fascinating figure. This blog post includes a short biography of Merton and showcases some of the materials in this new collection.
Posted in: 20th Century, Literature, Poetry, Religion, Uncategorized
Posted by: Patrick Hastings
As a young man, Isaiah Thomas printed and published a Boston newspaper that stoked the fires of Revolution. After the war, Thomas enjoyed a consequential career in printing, illustrating, publishing, papermaking, bookselling, collecting, and historical writing.
Posted in: 18th Century, 19th Century, America 250, American History, Children's Literature, Education History, Famous Printers, Illustrated Book, Publishing, Uncategorized
![Williams, Jonathan. Ruff, David, Metal-engraver. Garbage litters the iron face of the sun's child. Jargon 1. [Jonathan Williams], [San Francisco], 1951](https://blogs.loc.gov/bibliomania/files/2025/07/mm-jargon-001-01a.jpg)
Posted by: Mark Manivong
The Jargon Society released its first publication numbered Jargon 1 in 1951, “Garbage Litters the Iron Face of the Sun’s Child,” a folded pamphlet with poetry by Jonathan Williams and an etching by David Ruff. Founded that same year by Williams and Ruff, the Jargon Society would go on to publish 115 titles, mostly by up-and-coming writers and photographers.
Posted in: 20th Century, Appalachia, Contemporary Book Arts, LGBTQIA+, Poetry, Publishing, Uncategorized
Posted by: Patrick Hastings
Because the game of baseball emerged and developed concurrent to the rise of cheap, mass-produced reading material, the Library has many printed artifacts from the mid-1800s that document the evolution and popularization of America's favorite pastime.
Posted in: 19th Century, Sports and Games, Uncategorized
Posted by: Patrick Hastings
One hundred years ago, on April 10, 1925, F. Scott Fitzgerald celebrated the publication of what he considered to be his greatest work of literature, The Great Gatsby. He had high hopes for the novel’s success in both sales and critical reception. “It will sell about 80,000 copies,” he supposed, “but I may be wrong.” In fact, he was wrong twice.
Posted in: 20th Century, Education Outreach, Literature, Uncategorized