Last days for fabulous Yale Library exhibit

[Bill Cross]

Was up in New Haven this week and stopped at Yale University's Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library, where I stumbled upon a WONDERFUL exhibit called "No Man Can Hinder Me": Black Troops in the Union Armies During the American Civil War. The exhibit has some absolutely marvelous things, including period photos of soldiers, booklets, documents and letters (including Frederick Douglass). The jewel in the crown of the exhibit is a writing kit and pen used by Lincoln to sign The Emancipation Proclaimation. I just stood there for a few moments stunned at the majesty and importance of that object and the thought of the man who'd used it to set in motion the freedom of African-Americans. Not everyday you can lay eyes on something that monumental.

Amazingly, the 52 page exhibit catalog is free and contains both a marvelous overview of the history, as well as photos and a detailed bibliography.

Unfortunately the exhibit closes at the end of the month. The Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library is located in New Haven, CT next to Grove Street. It's free and also has one of the surviving examples of the Gutenberg Bible on permanent display (the reason for my visit to the library in the first place). One really splendid feature of the library is its walls are made of a special semi-translucent Vermont marble with light and dark streaks that literally glows when viewed from within on sunny days. The library is a fine thing seen on its own, and is considered state-of-the-art for the preservation of old books and precious manuscripts.

[gdarrell]

Re: Last days for fabulous Yale Library exhibit

Bill,

Thanks for this "heads-up", I'll try to make the trip next week. It's a shame that I missed seeing this in some source or another closer to home, a back-yard event as it were ... I live in central Conn.

[Bill Cross]

Re: Last days for fabulous Yale Library exhibit

George,

I've been reading the exhibit booklet (which amazingly is free though it looks like something that would cost $10), and although heavy-handed with guilt and grinding details about white hostility to blacks instead of the positives that came out of service, it's still worthwhile to take home with you. Lots and lots of photos of everyday Colored Troops NCOs and other enlisted men in fantastic clarity. Looking for details about uniforms? Look no further.

I'm still blown away almost a week later by seeing one of the pens used to sign the Emancipation Proclamation. Wow! :)