GALESBURG PUBLIC LIBRARY
Off the Shelf
Volume X Issue 8
Galesburg
Public Library
40 E. Simmons St.
Galesburg, IL 61401
(309) 343-6118
www.galesburglibrary.org
Hours of Operation
Monday - Thursday:
9:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Friday & Saturday:
9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Sunday:Closed on Sundays
from May 24 until
September 13
August 2009
Galesburg Library Carpet Project
The carpet in the Reference area of the library has served us well,
but the time has come to replace it, there are several hazardous
snags. New carpet is scheduled to be installed in early August.
Carpet will be replaced from the new paperback section and
magazine area to the Illinois Room and the stacks holding Large
Print, Biography and Oversized books. The entire process will
take about two weeks. Public access to the Internet, the copy
machine, magazines and genealogy materials will be extremely limited the
first two weeks in August. The Reference Desk will be upstairs with a limited
number of Internet computers and a copying machine. The fiction and non-fiction
sections and the Children’s Room and Circulation Desk will have normal access
and services. We ask that library patrons please plan accordingly. We will do our
best to assist you while the project is underway. We appreciate your patience until
the task is finished.
Ice Cream Social in September
Galesburg Public
Library Mission
Statement
To serve the community
as a general center of
information, and to
provide opportunity and
encouragement for people
to use its services and
materials to meet their
educational, personal,
professional, recreational
and cultural needs.
Join us for a free community ice cream social at the library on Sunday,
September 13 from 2:00-3:30 p.m. We will celebrate the resumption of Sunday
afternoon hours at the library after the summer break. Other activities will also
take place, such as a Children's Class Day offering a variety of classes where kids
can learn and have fun. Starting September 13, through May 23, Sunday hours will
be 1-5 p.m.
Illinois Numismatic Association Donation
Earlier this year the Illinois Numismatic Association chose forty-eight Illinois
libraries to receive several coin collecting-related books. Galesburg Public Library
was one of them. Some of the titles given to us are: A Guide Book of Lincoln Cents;
A Guide Book of United States Coins, 2009; History of the United States Mint and Its
Coinage and Encyclopedia of U. S. Gold Coins, 1795-1933. Some of the books are
located in the reference section for use only in the library. Others are located in the
non-fiction section, available for checking out. The library is grateful for this donation
and expansion of our collection.
OFF THE SHELF
PAGE 2
VOL UM E X ISS UE 8
Human Search Engine by Faith Burdick
What time of day did Lincoln deliver the Gettysburg address?
Answering this fairly straightforward request revealed a lot of interesting information. One commonly accepted
report indicated that on the trip there, Lincoln scribbled the address on the back of an envelope. Other stories
contradict this. Wayne Whipple’s Story Life of Lincoln, available in our library, states that Lincoln had “so much of
his address as he had written at Washington…” in his pocket. Both Whipple and Carl Sandburg talk about other people
looking at it and about Lincoln working on it the evening after he arrived.
Lincoln had received the invitation to attend the dedication of the Gettysburg cemetery along with all of the
senators, congressmen, northern governors and cabinet members. Originally he had not been asked to speak. Clark
Carr of Galesburg stated that it was thought he could not possibly have time to prepare a speech, given all his duties.
However, Lincoln felt it was very important that he speak on this momentous occasion. Gettysburg was the most awful
battle of the war, with a loss of 51,000 lives. He was eventually asked to deliver the dedication, but the main speaker
of the day was Edward Everett, famous for his orations and poetry and an ex-senator.
At 10:00 in the morning, Lincoln mounted his horse to go to the dedication ceremony. Then he proceeded to sit
around on horseback for at least another hour before the procession started moving. Around 11:15, they arrived at the
speaking platform. Everett had not yet arrived, so the bands played on. One source says he arrived at 11:30; a second
source said it was noon before he was there. Mr. Everett was having bladder problems that day, so it’s likely that this
had something to do with his lateness. He had prepared the kind of speech that most people at that time would have
felt was called for at such a serious event. It lasted two hours. So when Lincoln rose and gave his two minute speech
somewhere around 2 p.m., most people were apparently taken by surprise. Some eyewitness reports state that there
was no or only perfunctory applause, but Century Magazine, the New York Times and several other newspapers reported that there was “long continued applause.” It’s hard to know who’s right. At any rate, it was so short that the
photographer was unable to record the visual. Visual or not, this brief mid-afternoon speech has gone down in history
as one of the great ones.
Teen News
by Kari Smith, Young Adult Librarian
Teens, join us for Animanga Mania Afternoons! On Wednesday, August 26 from 3:30 - 4:30 p.m.,
we’ll be watching an anime series and hosting an open-draw session upstairs in the
Sanderson Room. You can even Cosplay if you want! No registration required; just show
up to watch & draw!
Hot New Titles in the YA Section
Stopped by the YA section lately? If not, you should check out the hot new
titles there! Among the new and notable:
Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen. When Auden comes to live
with her novelist dad, step-mom and new baby, she finds an unexpected ally
in Eli, her hottie neighbor, who teaches her how to find her balance on a
bike and in life.
I Love You, Beth Cooper by Larry Doyle. Like the movie released
this summer? Read the hilarious details of geeky Dennis Cooverman’s
adventures with Beth in this book.
Kamichama Karin Chu by Koge-Donbo. This shojo-style manga features
goddess Karin, whose magic ring gives her power to do anything, including attract dreamy Kazune. Or does it?
Children’s Room
Sunday, August 2 at 2 p.m.
Anyone who has participated in the summer reading program is invited to the Orpheum Theater for a free
movie with pop and popcorn for the children. Grand prizes will be awarded before the movie. The movie is
Ratatouille, © Disney-Pixar.
VOL UM E X ISS UE 8
OFF THE SHELF
Local History
PAGE 3
by Patty Mosher, Library Archives
On Tuesday, Oct. 16, 1935 Amelia Earhart, the famous woman pilot, came to Galesburg to speak about her
aviation adventures. In 1928 she was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic and solo from Honolulu to
Oakland, California, quite an achievement 70 years ago and very courageous by any standard. But the talk
among the men at the Hotel Custer that day was that she drove from Chicago to Galesburg all alone. The next
day she rose early, ate her breakfast alone, on a stool at the counter. She then drove, again all alone, to Decatur
to give another lecture about her adventures. Mr. Schimmel, manager of the Custer, said that “she is the bravest
women he ever saw and is afraid of nothing.”
Her arrival in Galesburg had the town all abuzz. Several articles were published in the Register-Mail
newspaper spreading the word that during her brief stopover in Galesburg she would be speaking at the Armory.
The lecture was open to the public. Advance tickets could be purchased at Anderson Wallpaper and Paints and
Jacobi Bros. and Mack. Her much-anticipated lecture that night, sponsored by the Galesburg Woman’s Club,
had no reserved seating. The doors opened at 7 p.m. All 1,000 seats were filled. A male quartet sang before Miss
Earhart’s talk. She was introduced by the Woman’s Club president, Mrs. Frank D. Ross. Her “modesty and
friendliness won the hearty approval of the audience.” She received a standing ovation when she reached the
podium, before she even spoke a word.
Using no notes, she described many of the colorful details of flying. She spoke of the thrill of flying above a
blanket of clouds at night over the Pacific, the stars seeming so close she felt could touch them if she put out her
hand. She also spoke of the fear of seeing ice building up on the wings of her plane over the Atlantic. Among
items taken on her flights were chocolate, malted milk tablets and tomato juice, which she opened with a single
punch of an ice pick to instantly insert a straw. She also told amusingly of being mistaken for an English
Channel swimmer, Lindbergh’s mother and even Eleanor Roosevelt. After her talk people came up to shake her
hand. Her time here in town seemed too short for many. The thought she wanted to leave with the audience was
that “Women should strive for goals outside what is platitudinously called their sphere.”
Besides her aviation achievements, she was the author of two books, vice president of the National Aeronautic Association, vice president of an airline and a receiver of the Distinguished Flying Cross.
Staff Summer Reads
The Galesburg Public Library Staff runs its own summer reading program concurrently with those for patrons.
Here are some recommendations:
Summer Pony by Jean Slaughter Doty - a delightful children’s novel
The Romantics by Galt Niederhoffer - a good, quick novel about class and relationships
Midwinter by Matthew Sturges - an above average derivative fantasy
Life, Liberty and Pursuit of Murder by Karen Swee - takes place in New Jersey right after the events of 1776
with a well-constructed plot and well-rounded characters
Odds & Ends
Radio Personalities
Resume Paper
Fiction Section Project
Listen to library staff
members talk about upcoming library programs
and events on WGIL1400 AM on Tuesday,
August 4 at 9:15 a.m.
and on WAIK-1590 AM
on Monday, August 24
at 8:15 a.m.
Resume paper is available at the
Reference Desk. The cost of the
paper and printing is 10 cents
per sheet, the same as for regular paper. Ask at the desk for
the paper to be loaded into the
printer. Matching envelopes are
also available for 20 cents each.
The reorganization of the hardback fiction
section at the library has been completed. All
hardback fiction titles are shelved together by
the authors’ last names. There is no longer a
special section for mystery, western or science
fiction/fantasy, but these books have special
spine labels to identify them. This new arrangement will allow space for the addition of new
titles in each of these genres as well as placing
all fiction titles by an author in one place.
Thank you for your patience while all these
books were being shifted around.
Galesburg Public Library
40 E. Simmons St.
Galesburg, IL 61401
Phone: (309) 343-6118
Fax: (309) 343-4877
www.galesburglibrary.org
Non-profit
U.S. Postage Paid
Permit 25
Galesburg, IL 61401
Return Service Requested
Monday - Thursday: 9:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Friday & Saturday: 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Sunday: Closed on Sundays from May 24
until September 13
Book Clubs:
The Tuesday Book Club will meet at 1:00 p.m. on Tuesday, August 11, at the home of club member
Melvin Siverly. We will discuss A Year Down Yonder, a lively look at life in central Illinois during the 1930s by
Richard Peck. Contact Jane at the Reference Desk for more information.
The Thursday Book Club will discuss Richard Peck’s A Long Way from Chicago at Kaldi’s Coffeehouse
on August 13 at 6:30 p.m. This satire on small-town etiquette set in downstate Illinois from 1929-1942 is funny,
poignant and thought-provoking.
Book club discussions are open to all, and newcomers are welcome. Copies of the books are available at
the library’s Circulation Desk about one month before discussion.
Movie Club:
The Movie of the Book Club will meet at Showplace 8 the evening of Tuesday, August 18, to see a new
movie with literary ties. If it is playing, we’ll see Julie & Julia, based on the book by Julie Powell; if not,
we’ll see another interesting movie. We’ll head to Perkins Restaurant afterwards for discussion.
Call the Reference Department at the library the week before for the exact title and time, or send an email to
[email protected] to be added to the movie club’s email distribution list. Newcomers always
welcome. (If you are new, look for our sign at the restaurant, or ask restaurant wait staff to help you find us.)