The College of Wooster Libraries’ Blog

“The Dating Game and The Rules Regarding Public Displays of Affection: A Selection of American Etiquette Books” is currently on display in Special Collections, The College of Wooster Libraries. The exhibit emphasizes American attitudes toward courting from the 19th century to the present. The manuals provide guidelines for proper introductions, hand-holding, and the first kiss. “Experts” advise young girls to never flirt and to never discuss previous boyfriends, especially if they happen to be in the same fraternity as the current suitor. Advice is offered on various situations, including sex in college, meeting the mother, and office romances.

Most of the titles represented in the exhibit are a part of The Josephine Long Wishart Collection: Mother, Home and Heaven–a monograph collection of popular advice literature. The collection demonstrates how self-improvement advice has been redefined to meet the needs of popular culture. The books, approximately 800 titles, were collected by Harrison Hayford over a period of several years. In 1990, his wife, Josephine Wishart Hayford (Class of 1937), donated the bulk of the collection in honor of her mother, Josephine Long Wishart, wife of President Charles F. Wishart. The Wishart family played a significant role in the college’s history for the better part of this century.

The exhibit is available for viewing Monday – Friday 8 a.m. - 5 p.m., January 8 –March 9, 2007. Special arrangements can be made to view additional works from our collections. For more information, contac Denise Monbarren (ext. 2527) or Elaine Smith Snyder (ext. 2155).

Thanks to the generosity of the campus, the Libraries were able to collect 59 books to donate to People to People Ministries for the Christmas Toy Distribution program. The staff of the Libraries thank you for your continued support of this project.

The Iraq Study Group Report is now available at the United States Institute of Peace web site. The USIP is the organization that facilitated the work of the Iraq Study Group.

The Council of Independent Colleges has released an architecture and landscape database of independent college and university campuses.  “This project presents information about significant buildings, landscapes, campus plans and heritage sites of American higher education…”  Include in the database are some entries from The College of Wooster.

For the ninth year in a row, The College of Wooster Libraries invites our patrons and friends to join them in donating NEW teen or children’s books, which will be delivered to People to People Ministries for needy families. People to People staff report they are especially in need of books for teens this year, although all children’s books are welcomed. Books may be dropped off at the Gault or Andrews Libraries’ circulation desks anytime the libraries are open, beginning November 14 and concluding December 7. Library hours are listed on our web site. Patrons can then fill out a donor card/ornament to hang on our Giving Tree for each book donated, thus decorating the tree more with each book donated. The books will be delivered after December 7 to People to People Ministries. Many, many thanks ahead of time for all those who donate to this worthwile effort.

The exhibit “In Search of America: Selections from the McGregor Collection” is currently on display in Special Collections, The College of Wooster Libraries.

A native of Ohio, Tracy W. McGregor (1869-1936) spent a great portion of his life in philanthropic endeavors. In 1925, he and his wife, Katherine Whitney McGregor, created the McGregor Fund so that their wealth could be directed toward social service. Later in life, Mr. McGregor became quite interested in book collecting. Also, he was a great supporter of higher education and he wanted students to have the opportunity to handle and use rare materials. McGregor proposed a plan whereby he would select Americana for college libraries at $500 per institution. All colleges participating in the plan would provide a matching amount, allowing for a total of $1,000 for the purchase of primary source materials tied to early American history. The college’s McGregor Collection consists of 317 titles of rare and scare volumes of American history from discovery through the settlement of the Western frontier.

The current exhibit focuses on the early settlement of Ohio and Westward Expansion. Titles on display include: Letters and Sketches : With a Narrative of a Year’s Residence Among the Indian Tribes of the Rocky Mountains, Reminiscences of a Ranger, and A History of the Donner Party: A Tragedy of the Sierras.

Special arrangements can be made for classes or small groups to view more materials from our collection. These materials will be on display October 18 – December 15, 2006. For more information about the exhibit, contact Denise Monbarren at ext. 2527 or Elaine Smith Snyder at ext. 2155.

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