This Day Flashback: What's New is Old

This summer, due to construction, the Athens-Clarke County Library's Summer Reading Performance Series will be having their programs at the Clarke Central High School auditorium.  

The weekly performances at Clarke Central reminded us of a story This Day in Athens featured in 2010 about a similar concert program for children hosted by the volunteer members of the Athens Library Association in February, 1915. At the time, Athens Library Association was a group of volunteers with donated books in a donated room in the Southern Mutual Building downtown. 

While they had Saturday morning storytimes for children in the corner of their library room, to host a larger, fuller concert program, the library volunteers used the auditorium at Athens High School on Wednesday afternoons. (Summer programs would be held outdoors, as the auditorium would be too warm.) The most popular books in the children's collection at the time were Beatrix Potter's tales, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Just So Stories, and The Little Princess.

The 2012 Athens-Clarke County Library programs programs will be held in the Clarke Central auditorium on Thursday mornings at 10:30am.  They will feature local storytellers, ventriloquists, puppeteers, music, stories, sing-alongs, poetry, and dancing.  The first program is this Wednesday, May 24th, hosted by the Children's Area staff.

To learn about each week's show, as well as other Summer Reading programs offered by the Athens-Clarke County Library Children's Area, go to the Dream Big--READ! 2012 Summer Reading Program website or pick up a purple flyer at the library.

Learn More:

• This Day in Athens, 27 February 1915: "The Pleasure and Privilege of a Story Hour."
• Dream Big--READ! 2012 Summer Reading Program at the Athens-Clarke County Library web page.
• Dream Big--READ! 2012 Summer Reading Program at the Athens-Clarke County Library brochure. (pdf)
• Athens-Clarke County Library Children's Area web page.
• Athens Historic Newspaper Archive collection in the Digital Library of Georgia.
• The Story of the Athens Public Library by Susan Frances Barrow Tate in the Heritage collection.
• Books by Beatrix Potter in the children's fiction collection.
• The Little Princess by Frances Hodges Burnett in the children's fiction collection.
• Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling in the children's fiction and young adult collections.
• Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll in the children's fiction collection.

9 November 1948: U. S. Post Office Issues Moina Michael Stamp in Athens

On this day in 1948, at 8 o'clock in the morning, the Moina Michael poppy stamp went on sale in Athens, Georgia. Collectors lined up at the windows of the post office hours before they opened, and a parade featuring legion organizations, both University and high school R.O.T.C. and marching bands, and "a number of tanks" led to a ceremony at the Fine Arts Building on the University of Georgia campus. The presentation included speeches by many government officials, and a message sent by President Harry S Truman.

Miss Michael was lauded as "a great American woman, able educator, and valiant crusader who has contributed to veterans of this country and other countries. Her name will always be gratefully remembered by the people of this nation."

The 3-cent stamp, now seven times as valuable, was issued two days before Armistice Day (now known as Veterans Day or Remembrance Day) because it was on November 9th, 1918, that Miss Michael came up with the idea to use the poppy as a symbol of remembrance for fallen soldiers.

In 1918, Miss Michael had taken a leave of absence from her educational work in Athens to volunteer with the YWCA Overseas War Workers training headquarters at Columbia University in New York. On November 9th, the YMCA was hosting the 25th Conference of Overseas Secretaries in New York. During a moment of downtime during the conference, she read the poem now known as In Flanders Field by Canadian Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae in a copy of Ladies Home Journal. She was inspired by the poem to write a response, titled We Shall Keep the Faith.

Later that day, a group of men from the conference brought Miss Michael a check for $10.00, in appreciation of the effort she'd made, at her own expense, to "make a home-like Hostess House of their headquarters." She replied that she would use the money to buy red poppies, "I shall always wear red poppies--poppies of Flanders Fields!" Miss Michael showed the men the McCrae poem, as well as the one she had just written. The men took both poems with them back into their meeting while Miss Michael went in search of cloth poppies, finally finding 25 of them at Wanamaker's department store. She returned to the hall to find men gathered around her desk, asking for poppies to wear in their lapels. It was then Moina Michael had the idea of using cloth poppy sales to raise money for the widows and orphans left behind by fallen soldiers.

A year later, while teaching a class of disabled veterans at the University of Georgia, Miss Michael came to realize that many soldiers who returned from the war needed assistance as well. She campaigned to have the poppy not just a memorial flower, but one of remembrance for all veterans who served their countries. The flower was adopted by veterans groups from around the world in the early 1920s, and before long, Moina Michael was internationally known as "The Poppy Lady." By the time of her death in 1944, nearly $200 million had been raised for disabled vets by the sale of poppies in the United States alone.

Poppies are still made by disabled veterans and sold for Veterans Day and Remembrance Day, in the United States, Canada, Great Britain, New Zealand, and Australia. You can also make your own to wear this Veterans Day, Thursday, November 11th.

Learn More:

• The Miracle Flower: The Story of the Flanders Fields Memorial Poppy by Moina Belle Michael in the Heritage and general collections.
• In Flanders Fields by Norman Jorgensen in the children's collection.
• Athens Banner-Herald, Oct. 1948 - Jan. 1949 on Microfilm in the Heritage collection.
• Prominent Women of Georgia, edited by James B. Nevin in the Heritage collection.
• Dictionary of Georgia Biography, Volume 2, edited by Kenneth Coleman and Charles Stephen Gurr in the Heritage collection.
• The Complete Illustrated Guide to Stamp Collecting by James A. Mackay in the general collection.
• Great Poets of WWI: Poetry from the Great War, edited by Jon Stallworthy in the general collection.
• A Pictorial History of the World War I Years by Edward Jablonski in the general collection.
• The Great War by Correlli Barnett in the general collection.
• The Mammoth Book of War Diaries and Letters: Life on the Battlefield in the Words of the Ordinary Soldier, 1775-1991 by Jon E. Lewis in the general collection.
• Moina Michael biography on The Great War, 1914-1918 website.
• In Flanders Fields Museum website.

Cafe au Libris is Friday, November 12th

On this day, we want to tell you about the guest authors who will be in attendance at this year's Cafe au Libris here at the Athens-Clarke County Library.

The evening starts at 7pm, and brings you two hours of local authors, desserts and coffee, local musicians, and books. There will be a silent auction of collectable books, and the entire program is sponsored by our fantastic Friends of the Athens-Clarke County Library.

• Allan Armitage, the author of 13 books about perennials, annuals, cut flowers, and his latest, Vines and Climbers. He runs the Trial Gardens at UGA, which are open to the public and the first of their kind in the United States. The results of the research in the Trial Gardens has created the Athens Select brand of plants, which have been chosen by Professor Armitage for their ability to withstand the heat and humidity of Southern gardens.
• Donny Bailey Seagraves,  an author of fiction and nonfiction. After years of writing for newspapers such as the Chicago Tribune, Ms. Seagraves had her first novel published in 2009, Gone from These Woods. Aimed at a middle school-aged audience, but offering questions about forgiveness for all ages, it tells the story of an accident that changes the life of the 11-year-old protagonist, Daniel. 
• Jeffrey Stepakoff is a former television and movie writer who has returned to his Southern home to write fiction. He teaches dramatic writing at Kennesaw State University, and published his first novel, Fireworks over Toccoa, in March, 2010. A love story set in Toccoa, Georgia in the aftermath of World War II, Mr. Stepakoff's first novel has received rave reviews from other authors such as Joanne Harris and Dorothea Benton Frank.
• Grady Thrasher is the author of the popular and delightful Tim & Sally series of children's books. A retired attorney, in his second career as a children's author, Mr. Thrasher has taken Tim & Sally into the garden to sow vegetables, on a beach adventure, and given them a year in poems.
• Susan Rebecca White has published two novels, South Bound in early 2009, and A Soft Place to Land in April of this year and called "smart, funny, moving, and wise" by author Kathryn Stockett. Ms. White lives in Atlanta, and teaches creative writing at Emory University.

 Cafe au Libris is always a great night, and we hope to see you here next Friday!

16 August 1907: Altioria Society Announces Year of Programs

On this day in 1907, one of two literary societies of the State Normal School, the Altioria Society, published their year of programs in the Athens Banner:

September 7.

Introductory talk on the English novel, by Miss Harrison.
Music by Altioria Orchestra and Chorus.
Altioria welcomes to new members.

September 21.
Subject: David Copperfield (Dickens).
Scenes from David Copperfield.
Music by Altioria Orchestra.

October 5.
Subject: Tale of Two Cities (Dickens).
Story by Miss Parrish.
Music by Altioria Orchestra.

October 19.
Subject: Pickwick Papers (Dickens).
The humor of Pickwick, by Mr. Earnest.
Dramatization of Pickwick Papers.
Music by Altioria Chorus and Orchestra.

November 2.
Subject: Dickens Evening.
Life and character of Charles Dickens.
Dickens's [sic] place in literature.
Dickens as an educational reformer, by Mr. Smith.
A Dickens procession.
Debate: Resolved, That Dickens is a cartcacturist [sic] rather than a great potrayer [sic] of character.
Music by Altioria Chorus.

November 16.
Subject: "The Talisman" [sic] (Scott).
Story.
Tableaux.
Music by Altioria Orchestra.

December 7.
Subject: Ivanhoe (Scott).
Scenes from Ivanhoe.
Discussion of Richard Coeur de Lion.
Music by Altioria Chorus.

December 21.
Subject: Kenilworth (Scott).
Music by Altioria Orchesta.

January 4.
Subject: Lady of the Lake (Scott).
"Lady of the Lake" country, by Mr. Branson; illustrated by stereopticon views.
Music by Altioria Orchestra.

January 18.
Subject: Scott Evening.
Character sketch of Sir Walter Scott.
A Scottish social.
Debate: Resolved, That Scott's day is past.

February 1.
Subject: Mill on the Floss (Eliot).
Scene from Mill on the Floss.
Music by Altioria Orchestra.

February 15.
Subject: Romola (Eliot).
Story by Miss Parrish.
Music by ALtioria Orchestra.

March 7.
Subject: Silas Marner (Eliot).
Scenes from Silas Marner.
Music by Altioria Orchestra.

March 21.
Subject: Eliot Evening.
Eliot's life and literary standing.
Debate: Resolved, That George Eliot's ethics interfere with her stories.

April 4.
Subject: The Newcomes (Thackeray).
Story, told in parts.
Tableaux.
Music by Altoria Orchestra.

April 18.
Subject: Vanity Fair (Thackeray).
Scenes from Vanity Fair.
Music by Altioria Orchestra.

May 2.
Subject: Henry Esmond (Thackeray).
Scenes from Henry Esmond.
Music by Altioria Chorus.

May 16.
Subject: Thackeray Evening.
Discussion of Thackeray's life and works.
Debat:[sic] Resolved, That Thakeray was a cynic.
Music by Altioria Orchestra.

The Alitoria Literary Society was started in 1906. They chose an owl as their symbol and "Excelsior" as their motto. Their club colors were blue and black. Part of each meeting included time for informal socializing over refreshments.

Learn More:

• History of the State Normal School by E. S. Sell in the Heritage and general collections.
• Athens Banner, Mar. 1906 - Aug. 1907 on Microfilm in the Heritage collection.
• The Oxford Illustrated History of English Literature by Pat Rogers in the general collection.
• A History of English Literature by Alastair Fowler in the general collection.
  
• David Copperfield (2006) in the DVD collection.
• Charles Dickens edited by Harold Bloom in the general collection.
• Charles Dickens by Michael Slater in the biography collection.
• Ivanhoe (1952) in the DVD collection.
• Sir Walter Scott by John Lauber in the general collection.
  
• The Laird of Abbotsford: A View of Sir Walter Scott by A. N. Wilson in the biography collection.
• The Mill on the Floss: A Natural History by Rosemary Ashton in the general collection.
• The Real Life of Mary Ann Evans: George Eliot, Her Letters and Fiction by Rosemarie Bodenheimer in the biography collection.
  
• George Eliot, Voice of a Century by Frederick Robert Karl in the biography collection.
• Vanity Fair (2005) in the DVD collection.
  
• William Makepeace Thackeray edited by Harold Bloom in the general collection.
• Thackeray: The Life of a Literary Man by D. J. Taylor in the biography collection.

11 February 1927: Carl Sandburg Speaks in Athens

On this day in 1927, poet and biographer Carl Sandburg spoke at the University of Georgia Chapel on "American Miscellany." In his talk, he discussed the nature of art, read from his poetry collections, told a few Rootabaga Tales, and discussed the Senate friendship between Abraham Lincoln and Alexander Stephens of Georgia. Coincidentally, February 11, 1927 was Stephens' 115th birthday.

Sandburg had recently published the first of his Lincoln biographies, the two-volume Abraham Lincoln: The Prairie Years, and was working on his 1928 poetry collection Good Morning, America. Among the poems he read to the assembled were How Much?, Prayers of Steel, Shenandoah, Wilderness, Chicago Poet, and Night Stuff.

At the time, Sandburg was in the process of compiling and editing The American Songbag, and had brought along his guitar to play some folk songs and spirituals for his audience, including one about the boll weevil, which had devastated Georgia cotton production over the previous decade.

The next week, The Red & Black student newspaper cited Sandburg's talk at the school as evidence of "new life in the University." Noting that "on last Friday morning the Chapel was packed" and "for over an hour he held his audience." The paper urged fellow students to "show their appreciation of these things by continuing to attend the different programs and being quiet and courteous while the speaker...endeavors to explain his part in interpreting American thoughts and aims."


Learn More:

• Athens Banner-Herald, Nov. 1926 - Mar. 1927 on Microfilm in the Heritage collection.
• The American Songbag by Carl Sandburg in the general collection.
• Rootabaga Stories by Carl Sandburg in the Children's collection.
• Historias del Pais de Rutabaga by Carl Sandburg (translated by Alonso Carnicer McDermott) in the Spanish Language Children's collection.
• Abraham Lincoln: The Prairie Years by Carl Sandburg in the general collection.
• Selected Poems by Carl Sandburg in the general collection.
• Sandburg Out Loud by Carl Sandburg in the CD collection.
• The Sandburg Connemara Collection at the Rare Book & Manuscript Library at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
• The Red & Black Archives at the Digital Library of Georgia.