The academic research center for Monmouth College in Monmouth, Illinois.
Monday, March 18, 2013
Return to Regular Hours
Today, Hewes Library resumes regular hours. We hope everyone enjoyed their spring break!
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Irish-American Heritage Month: Stats from the Census
The US Census Bureau compiled a list of statistics in honor of Irish-American Heritage Month and St. Patrick's Day. From their press release:
34.5 million
Number of U.S. residents who claimed Irish ancestry in 2011. This number was more than seven times the population of Ireland itself (4.68 million). Irish was the nation's second most frequently reported ancestry, trailing only German.
Source: 2011 American Community Survey
7
Number of places in the United States named Shamrock, the floral emblem of Ireland. Mount Gay-Shamrock, W.Va., and Shamrock, Texas, were the most populous, with 1,585 and 1,929 residents, respectively. Shamrock Lakes, Ind., had 228 residents and Shamrock, Okla., 101. Three Shamrock Townships in Minnesota, Nebraska and Missouri had populations of 1,273, 301 and 40, respectively.
Source: 2010 Demographic Profile
In the month of St. Patrick's Day, the value of U.S. imports of beer made from malt increased, going from $288,073,597 in February 2012 to $374,076,005 in March 2012; in April of that same year the value of beer imports went back down to $334,769,134.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau: Foreign Trade Division USA Trade ® Online U.S. Import and Export Merchandise trade
$2.8 billion and $28.6 million
Value of beef and cabbage imported to the U.S. in 2011. Corned beef and cabbage is a traditional St. Patrick's Day dish.
Source: Foreign Trade Division
"Originally a religious holiday to honor St. Patrick, who introduced Christianity to Ireland in the fifth century, St. Patrick's Day has evolved into a celebration for all things Irish. The world's first St. Patrick's Day parade occurred on March 17, 1762, in New York City, featuring Irish soldiers serving in the English military. This parade became an annual event, with President Truman attending in 1948. Congress proclaimed March as Irish-American Heritage Month in 1995, and the president issues a proclamation commemorating the occasion each year."A few interesting statistics:
34.5 million
Number of U.S. residents who claimed Irish ancestry in 2011. This number was more than seven times the population of Ireland itself (4.68 million). Irish was the nation's second most frequently reported ancestry, trailing only German.
Source: 2011 American Community Survey
7
Number of places in the United States named Shamrock, the floral emblem of Ireland. Mount Gay-Shamrock, W.Va., and Shamrock, Texas, were the most populous, with 1,585 and 1,929 residents, respectively. Shamrock Lakes, Ind., had 228 residents and Shamrock, Okla., 101. Three Shamrock Townships in Minnesota, Nebraska and Missouri had populations of 1,273, 301 and 40, respectively.
Source: 2010 Demographic Profile
In the month of St. Patrick's Day, the value of U.S. imports of beer made from malt increased, going from $288,073,597 in February 2012 to $374,076,005 in March 2012; in April of that same year the value of beer imports went back down to $334,769,134.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau: Foreign Trade Division USA Trade ® Online U.S. Import and Export Merchandise trade
$2.8 billion and $28.6 million
Value of beef and cabbage imported to the U.S. in 2011. Corned beef and cabbage is a traditional St. Patrick's Day dish.
Source: Foreign Trade Division
Monday, March 11, 2013
Database of the Month: Women and Social Movements
Women and Social Movements in the United States
March is women’s history month and the database of the month is composed of resources that document women’s participation in various movements for social change throughout American history. A large proportion of the database contains current historical scholarship on the intersection between women’s movements and movements for social change published in the online journal “Women and social movements”. This database also contains some primary source material for more detailed research into topics relating to women’s involvement in social issues.
In addition to giving access to journal contents there is also some primary source material found in this database. A documents archive contains numerous documents on the activism of women such as Cornelia Bryce Pinchot and Elizabeth Glendower Evans, early 20th century activists for the improvement of the working conditions of women. The documents archive also contains an interpretation written by a current scholar describing the contents and significance of each collection of material.
There is also a documents library, containing many primary source documents. However, if you are looking for documents don’t use the browse documents, it is too tedious. If you are looking for information on a specific topic like the Meeting of Seneca Falls use the “browse bibliography” function and deselect all topics found at the top except “Women’s Rights Conventions” (1848-1866) This will get you to the relevant collection faster.
There are also various histories of women’s organizations such as the Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) and the League of Women Voters. These can be accessed by clicking on the “movements” tab found near the top of the page and either browsing or selecting the “search movements” tab and entering in the title of the movement in which you are interested. Each listing gives a helpful count of the number of primary source documents found on the organization in the database.
A very useful tool is the chronology. It is a timeline giving the year, the event and links to primary documents related to that event which can be found in the database. It also contains a number of graphs that can be limited by topic.
The database not only contains information on the usual topics associated with women’s history such as suffrage, labor and child rearing, it also contains some information on other historical movements like the anti-suffrage movement. This movement was against granting voting rights to women. (And, no, it was no just men that belonged to the movement) But there is not much information on the recent involvement of women in current organizations or movements such as the various pro-life groups.
WHEN SHOULD I USE THIS DATABASE: This database can be complex to use, and would not be the best choice if you are just beginning your research as it requires a number of clicks and searches to find the desired information. If you have decided upon a topic and looking for detailed information to fill in gaps in your research, this can be a very helpful database. If you are having trouble finding things, consult one of the reference librarians for assistance.
March is women’s history month and the database of the month is composed of resources that document women’s participation in various movements for social change throughout American history. A large proportion of the database contains current historical scholarship on the intersection between women’s movements and movements for social change published in the online journal “Women and social movements”. This database also contains some primary source material for more detailed research into topics relating to women’s involvement in social issues.
In addition to giving access to journal contents there is also some primary source material found in this database. A documents archive contains numerous documents on the activism of women such as Cornelia Bryce Pinchot and Elizabeth Glendower Evans, early 20th century activists for the improvement of the working conditions of women. The documents archive also contains an interpretation written by a current scholar describing the contents and significance of each collection of material.
There is also a documents library, containing many primary source documents. However, if you are looking for documents don’t use the browse documents, it is too tedious. If you are looking for information on a specific topic like the Meeting of Seneca Falls use the “browse bibliography” function and deselect all topics found at the top except “Women’s Rights Conventions” (1848-1866) This will get you to the relevant collection faster.
There are also various histories of women’s organizations such as the Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) and the League of Women Voters. These can be accessed by clicking on the “movements” tab found near the top of the page and either browsing or selecting the “search movements” tab and entering in the title of the movement in which you are interested. Each listing gives a helpful count of the number of primary source documents found on the organization in the database.
A very useful tool is the chronology. It is a timeline giving the year, the event and links to primary documents related to that event which can be found in the database. It also contains a number of graphs that can be limited by topic.
The database not only contains information on the usual topics associated with women’s history such as suffrage, labor and child rearing, it also contains some information on other historical movements like the anti-suffrage movement. This movement was against granting voting rights to women. (And, no, it was no just men that belonged to the movement) But there is not much information on the recent involvement of women in current organizations or movements such as the various pro-life groups.
WHEN SHOULD I USE THIS DATABASE: This database can be complex to use, and would not be the best choice if you are just beginning your research as it requires a number of clicks and searches to find the desired information. If you have decided upon a topic and looking for detailed information to fill in gaps in your research, this can be a very helpful database. If you are having trouble finding things, consult one of the reference librarians for assistance.
Access to library databases is limited to the current students, staff, and faculty of Monmouth College.
Friday, March 8, 2013
New Items at Hewes Library
New items are added to the Hewes Library Collection on a continual basis. Recent titles have included:
- Minaret by Lelia Aboulela
- Shakespeare: Staging the World by Jonathan Bates & Dora Thornton
- Introduction to Forensic Geoscience by Elisa Bergslien
- 1356: A Novel by Bernard Cornwll
- Napoleon: Life, Legacy and Image by Alan Forrest
- Wordsworth's Revisitings by Stephen Gill
- Fall of the House of Dixie by Bruce Levine
- Inventing Wine by Paul Lukacs
- New Geography of Jobs by Enrico Moretti
- Daddy Love by Joyce Carol Oates
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Spring Break Hours Start Friday
Hewes Library starts it's Spring Break hours on Friday. Through March 18, our schedule will be:
- Friday, March 8: 7:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
- Saturday - Sunday, March 9 - 10: Closed
- Monday - Friday, March 11 - 15: 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
- Saturday, March 16: Closed
- Sunday, March 17: 6:00 p.m. - midnight
- Monday, March 18: 7:30 a.m. - midnight
Monday, March 4, 2013
Treasures of the Collection: Calls, Sounds and Merchandise of the Peking Street Peddler
Treasures of the Collection: Calls, Sounds and Merchandise of the Peking Street Peddler
A most unusual book found in the Monmouth College Special Collections is the book “Calls, sounds and merchandise of the Peking street peddler.” This is an amazing little book in its form, contents and author’s history. Published in 1936 as part of an M.A. thesis, the book is bound in decorated fabric and paper and contains both colored drawings and tipped-in photographs. The author begins the book with a discussion of the Chinese language and attempts to depict the sounds made by Chinese street vendors in words, since at the time the book was written incorporating videos and sound on CD’s or DVD’s was not possible.
The book discusses the different types of street vendors found in Peking (Beijing) and describes not only the distinctive calls and sounds used by the vendors but also what type of items they sell, with full page illustrations of the vendor and the instrument he used to announce his presence in an area. The Chinese characters used to describe the type of ware sold by each are incorporated into the text. (See the top of the description of the toy peddler for an example). In addition, there are photos of actual vendors and their wares found in the book. The book is a wonderful snapshot in time of a culture and way of life long past, as street vendors of the type described in the book are not found in modern Beijing.
The author of this work, Samuel Victor Constant also had an interesting life and was neither an artist, anthropologist, nor cultural traveller, but was a career Army Officer. Born in New York in 1894, he attended Colombia University and then joined the military in 1917 probably when the United States entered World War I. His frequent passport applications show that he travelled most often to the Far East, going to China and Japan in 1920 and to China in 1923. He seems to have returned to the U.S. around 1936. He continued to serve through World War II and retired as a colonel. He died at the age of 95 in 1989 and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
In addition to pursuing his M.A. while in China, he also wrote a dictionary of Chinese military terms in 1927. This was probably with the real reason he went to China. He served as part of America’s engagement with the young Chinese Republic which was established in 1920. His time in China coincides with one of the prequels to World War II, the Japanese takeover of Manchuria in 1932. His departure in 1936 probably had to do with the growing tensions in the Far East as war broke out between China and Japan in 1937.
This version of the book is only held by 26 other libraries in the world and Monmouth College is the smallest academic library to have a copy of the first edition. So, if you want to hold part of an intriguing history in your hands, ask a librarian to obtain the book for you from Special Collections.
A most unusual book found in the Monmouth College Special Collections is the book “Calls, sounds and merchandise of the Peking street peddler.” This is an amazing little book in its form, contents and author’s history. Published in 1936 as part of an M.A. thesis, the book is bound in decorated fabric and paper and contains both colored drawings and tipped-in photographs. The author begins the book with a discussion of the Chinese language and attempts to depict the sounds made by Chinese street vendors in words, since at the time the book was written incorporating videos and sound on CD’s or DVD’s was not possible.
The book discusses the different types of street vendors found in Peking (Beijing) and describes not only the distinctive calls and sounds used by the vendors but also what type of items they sell, with full page illustrations of the vendor and the instrument he used to announce his presence in an area. The Chinese characters used to describe the type of ware sold by each are incorporated into the text. (See the top of the description of the toy peddler for an example). In addition, there are photos of actual vendors and their wares found in the book. The book is a wonderful snapshot in time of a culture and way of life long past, as street vendors of the type described in the book are not found in modern Beijing.
The author of this work, Samuel Victor Constant also had an interesting life and was neither an artist, anthropologist, nor cultural traveller, but was a career Army Officer. Born in New York in 1894, he attended Colombia University and then joined the military in 1917 probably when the United States entered World War I. His frequent passport applications show that he travelled most often to the Far East, going to China and Japan in 1920 and to China in 1923. He seems to have returned to the U.S. around 1936. He continued to serve through World War II and retired as a colonel. He died at the age of 95 in 1989 and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
In addition to pursuing his M.A. while in China, he also wrote a dictionary of Chinese military terms in 1927. This was probably with the real reason he went to China. He served as part of America’s engagement with the young Chinese Republic which was established in 1920. His time in China coincides with one of the prequels to World War II, the Japanese takeover of Manchuria in 1932. His departure in 1936 probably had to do with the growing tensions in the Far East as war broke out between China and Japan in 1937.
This version of the book is only held by 26 other libraries in the world and Monmouth College is the smallest academic library to have a copy of the first edition. So, if you want to hold part of an intriguing history in your hands, ask a librarian to obtain the book for you from Special Collections.
Friday, March 1, 2013
New ScotsRead Titles
The following titles arrived and were added to the ScotsRead Collection on the main floor:
- The Power Trip by Jackie Collins
- Firebrand by Gilliam Philip
- Fuse by Julianna Baggott
- Crossbones Yard by Kate Rhodes
- The Storyteller: A Novel by Jodi Picoult
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
From the MC Archives: The Dolphin Club
From the Monmouth College Archives:
Starting in the late 1940’s, early 1950’s, the Dolphin Club was a recreational participation group involved with women’s swimming. They specialized in synchronized swimming along with water “stunts”. This was a team the women tried out for in order to measure the variety of skill. The Dolphins put on performances, sometimes collaborating with the Orchesis, a modern dance organization at Monmouth College that had been around since 1950. Two of their performances were “Westward Ho!” in 1970, and “Splash In Color” in 1967. These photographs are from the production “Westward Ho!”
Starting in the late 1940’s, early 1950’s, the Dolphin Club was a recreational participation group involved with women’s swimming. They specialized in synchronized swimming along with water “stunts”. This was a team the women tried out for in order to measure the variety of skill. The Dolphins put on performances, sometimes collaborating with the Orchesis, a modern dance organization at Monmouth College that had been around since 1950. Two of their performances were “Westward Ho!” in 1970, and “Splash In Color” in 1967. These photographs are from the production “Westward Ho!”
Monday, February 25, 2013
Research Help at the Reference Desk
Are you struggling with a research paper? Are you unsure where to find scholarly journal articles on your topic? Stop by the Reference Desk or email the Reference staff to step up an appointment.
The Hewes Library librarians can help you locate scholarly articles for your paper, statistics for your speeches, and more! Librarians are available at the following times or by appointment:
- Monday - Thursday: 9am - noon, 1:30pm - 4:30pm, and 6pm-9pm
- Friday: 9am - noon and 1:30pm - 4:30pm
- Saturday: No librarians are available
- Sunday: 1:30pm - 4:30pm and 6:30pm-9pm
Friday, February 22, 2013
On the go? Access Hewes Library Mobile
Remember, mobile versions of the Hewes Library website and the Hewes Library blog are available for users!
When accessing either of these websites, mobile users will be automatically redirected to the mobile versions to continue browsing.
You can access the catalog, learn more about the research process, or find information about library services.
If you choose, you can return to the full version of the library's website at any time.
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