The Lincoln Park campus library, as well as Schmitt Academic Center (SAC), and classroom buildings Levan and O'Connell, will be closing at 6pm tonight, Friday May 29th due to FEST. [See the DePaul Activities Board Facebook event page for more info.]

Richardson Library will reopen at 10am on Saturday May 30. 

Best wishes to all as we enter the last two weeks of the Spring Quarter! 

We'd like to highlight just a few of the hundreds of new books that the library acquires each month. And why not start with controversy? Another country's, that is. Chantal Bouchard, a linguist at McGill University, tackles the loaded question of "Parisian French" versus so-called "French-Canadian patois" and the issues that have accompanied it for almost two centuries in Obsessed with Language: A Sociolinguistic History of Quebec (LPC 447.9714 B7524O).

Not ready to head that far north? How about Wisconsin? Chicago-Lake Geneva: A 100 Year Road Trip (LPC 917 C5329) retraces the route of a 1905 "photographic automobile map" complete with period advertisements and hand-drawn directional arrows. Thanks to the Chicago Map Society and the Newberry Library, we can see the original photographs paired with contemporary photos of the same spot; thanks to modern speed limits, it won't take you the recommended six hours to arrive.

Road trips mean summer, and summer means baseball—but not for everyone. In Stolen Bases: Why American Girls Don’t Play Baseball (LPC 796.357082 R5812S), University of Nevada-Reno professor of political science Jennifer Ring explores the intersection of gender, colonialism, and big business in our national pastime.

If you want to take a swing at any of our new books, look for the New Titles link in the catalog or check out the displays at the Lincoln Park or Loop Libraries.

Memorial Day is much more than a three-day weekend that marks the beginning of summer. To many people – especially the nation's thousands of combat veterans – this is a day to honor the memory of those who died in service to their country. To read more about this national holiday and its history stretching back to the Civil War, click here.

All DePaul Libraries will maintain normal hours on Saturday and Sunday; Only the Lincoln Park Campus Library will be open on Monday from 10:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m.  

There's still time to cast a vote for your favorite submission to this year's student video contest, This is DePaul. Students have already submitted an impressive selection of short videos depicting the DePaul student experience, and the entries can all be viewed and voted on from the YouTube movie gallery.

According to contest guidelines, all submissions had to feature at least one aspect of academics at DePaul, so it's no surprise that you'll see shots of the library in so many of these videos! Submissions also needed to feature elements of student life and Vincentian mission and at least one iconic Chicago landmark.

After online voting closes on May 25th, a panel of judges will choose three winners and award $4000 dollars in prize money. An additional award, the Audience Choice, will also go to the entry with the highest YouTube rating. So check out some of the fine work submitted to this contest and cast your vote soon!:

http://www.youtube.com/groups_videos?name=thisisdepaul

Fifth in a series highlighting DePaul’s campus and how it has changed through the years.

DePaul University did not start out life with this name; instead, it was founded as Saint Vincent’s College in 1898. When the current Saint Vincent DePaul Church was built at the corner of Webster and Sheffield in 1895, the old Saint Vincent’s Church, originally built in 1875 and located at the corner of Webster Ave. and Osgood St. (now Kenmore Ave.), was converted into a classroom space for the soon-to-be incorporated Saint Vincent’s College. This building, along with a five acre plot of land called, “Father Smith’s Farm,” after the Vincentian who founded the parish, made up the original campus. The students and Vincentians used this land to play baseball between and after classes. And while the title “College” implies a certain type and age of student body, Saint Vincent’s College actually served a mixture of secondary (high school) and collegiate students. 

Father Byrne was the first president of Saint Vincent’s College, and his grandiose plans for the future led to a building boom (and associated debt) which included the College Theater and the Lyceum, built in 1907. These new buildings along with an accompanying rise in educational programs (including a school of engineering and a pre-med program) led to the rechartering of Saint Vincent’s College as DePaul University on December 24th, 1907. Unfortunately, the Saint Vincent’s College building did not survive to see the day; it was razed in 1906 in order to make way for a “bigger and better” building- what is now Byrne Hall.

Have you been bitten by the writing bug? If so, make the most of your summer and take part in DePaul's Summer Writing Conference, brought to you by DePaul's Continuing Education Department, the English Department, and the Chicago Public Library. The Summer Writing Conference runs July 17 - 19, and features lectures by esteemed writers, craft classes taught by some of the country's best writers and panel discussions on literary and practical topics during this new three-day conference. Participants will also enjoy the opportunity to take the podium and read from their own work. Registration is now open on DePaul's Continuing and Professional Education website

The idea of setting aside one day each year to honor mothers was the suggestion of Anna Jarvis of Philadelphia.  On May 12, 1907 Anne held a memorial service for her late mother in Grafton, West Virginia.  She asked those in attendance to wear white carnations to celebrate her mother.  The observance sparked a trend across the nation and within 5 years nearly every state participated in the May celebration.  On May 9, 1914 President Woodrow Wilson declared Mother's Day a national holiday.  

Mother's Day is now celebrated in the United States on the 2nd Sunday in May.  Popular convention suggests wearing pink and red carnations to pay tribute to living mothers and a white carnation in rememberance of a mother who has died.

"Mother's Day." Entry 1236. Holidays, Festivals, and Celebrations of the World Dictionary. 2nd ed. 1997. 211.

"Mother's Day." The Folklore of American Holidays. 2nd ed. 1991. 280-281.

 

The Victorian Age in England saw an increased demand for print and pictures to accompany a growing literacy and increase of book publication.  The current exhibition in Special Collections and Archives highlights our growing collection of Victorian materials here at DePaul.

Victorian publishing merged the work of authors with artists in countless ways.  Authors like Charles Dickens used illustrations to define the plot and characters of their novels.  The artists for those novels depicted scenes in vivid detail to call the reader’s attention to minute aspects of the story.  But books dealing with all subjects were also illustrated, both through woodcuts and engravings. Those illustrations enhanced the understanding of the reading public about the expanding role of science, technology, and sociological study that blossomed during Victorian England.  

From amateur artist-scientists illustrating the worlds seen through a microscope, to travelers depicting the world they saw, illustrations provided a visual means to understand and amplify the text. The world was captured for readers who would never dissect a caterpillar or travel to India.  Illustrations also provided a way for the publishing industry to market and sell their books to new audiences, such as those riding another major invention of Victorian times, the railroad.  The illustrations communicated information about new inventions such as the velocipede, a Victorian version of today’s bicycle.

Illustrations in serious literature diminished by the end of the 19th Century, but  found new life in children’s books, magazines, and cheap popular fiction; eventually making their way into the 20th century as comic books, graphic novels, and fine press illustrated editions.

Department of Special Collections and Archives, 314 Richardson Library, Open Monday through Friday, 9 am to 5 pm.  http://library.depaul.edu/Collections/SpecialCollectionArchives.aspx

Starting next week, Chicago's Farmers Markets bring more than 70 vendors selling fresh fruits, vegetables, plants and flowers to over 20 neighborhoods throughout the City of Chicago. Markets are held Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday around the city.

DePaul students, faculty and staff are lucky to have several farmer’s markets within walking distance of the Loop and Lincoln Park campuses!

Federal Plaza (in front of the post office at Adams and Dearborn)
Tuesdays, 7 am - 3 pm
Season begins Tuesday, May 12 and runs until October 27, 2009

Daley Plaza, 50 W. Washington
Thursdays, 7 am - 3 pm
Season begins Thursday May 14, 2009 and runs until Oct 15, 2009

Lincoln Park Farmers Market
Lincoln Park High School Parking Lot
Armitage Ave. & Orchard St.
Saturdays, 7 am - 2 pm
Season begins May 16, 2009 and runs until  October  31, 2009

Green City Market
Lincoln Park
1799 N. Clark St.
Saturdays, 7 am - 1 pm
Season begins May 16, 2009 and runs until October 31, 2009

More information is available at:
http://www.chicagofarmersmarkets.us/