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Category: Heritage Months, Holidays, and Today in History

Tattered red cover with gold lettering Raisin Center Cook Book

A 1904 Vegetarian Thanksgiving Dinner

Posted by: Jennifer Harbster

By all that is sacred in our hopes for the human race, I conjure those who love happiness and truth to give a fair trial to the vegetable system- Percy Bysshe Shelley. When I asked our culinary specialist, Alison Kelly, for advice for a Thanksgiving blog post she eagerly shared with me The Vegetarian Thanksgiving …

Silver stylized owl with radiant circles around its head, surrounded by a gold frame

Saving Energy: The Fall Back Position

Posted by: Jennifer Harbster

Today’s post is from science reference librarian  Margaret Clifton.  She is also the author of Stars in his Eyes and Sun Spots this Summer.  She has created the  LC Science Tracer Bullet on Time , which will be helpful to those who are interested in horology (art and science of measuring time). Daylight Saving Time (DST) in this country ends this year (2011) …

photograph of a sculpted bronze relief of Quetzalcoatl

Quetzalcoatl

Posted by: Jennifer Harbster

Artist Lee Lawrie’s figures on the Adams Building bronze doors provide us with an opportunity to highlight important mythical and heroic figures that helped promote the written word. For Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month we highlighted the figure of Brahma. It seems only fitting that for Hispanic Heritage Month we feature the bronze image of the …

Silver stylized owl with radiant circles around its head, surrounded by a gold frame

Observing Hispanic Heritage Month

Posted by: Jennifer Harbster

Did you know that the food and the word chocolate (choolatl/ xocolātl) originated from Mesoamerica (part of Mexico and Central America)? The Aztecs and the Mayans were some of the first people to consume chocolate, mostly in beverage form, for medicinal and religious purposes. In fact, many foods we consume today, like avocados, chilies, corn, …

Silver stylized owl with radiant circles around its head, surrounded by a gold frame

Civil War Aeronautics

Posted by: Jennifer Harbster

Will Lieut. Gen. Scott please see Professor Lowe once more about his balloon? This quote comes from a note that President Lincoln wrote to General Scott on July 25, 1861. Thaddeus Sobieski Coulincourt Lowe (Prof. T.S.C. Lowe) was an expert balloonist and would become the Chief Aeronaut for the United States Government during the Civil …