Special Collections has a large number of these pamphlets in both the Augustiniana and Joseph McGarrity Collections. One pamphlet digitized this week is a particularly excellent printed example of early American history and highlights an individual of significant import to the early republic: Charles Carroll of Carrollton.

Charles Carroll was the only Catholic signer of the Declaration of Independence, and eventually became the last living signer. Indeed in current popular culture, Charles Carroll, lives on still - as depicted in the blockbuster movie National Treasure. Here in the recently digitized Eulogy on Charles Carroll of Carrolton delivered before the Academus Society of Mt. St. Mary’s College, December 20th, 1832 , Reverend John McCaffrey provides a brief overview of this revolutionary forefather and political titan.

Another rare title digitized this week that has connection to Villanova is a sermon preached in the Church of St. Augustine, in Philadelphia, on the 31st of May, 1829, at a solemn, religious thanksgiving to Almighty God for the emancipation of the Catholics of Great Britain and Ireland by the Reverend John Hughes. This sermon was preached at the original St. Augustine’s Church which was later burned to the ground in the nativist anti-catholic riots of 1844. The destruction of St. Augustine’s precipitated the relocation to the safer climes of rural Villanova.

The survival of so many nearly lost treasures can only be ensured by the continued preservation of the original item and by the creation of additional copies; one form these additional copies can take involves the digitization of the original source document according to a set of standards that enables creation of a facsimile edition. The added benefit to digitization over the alternatives such as microfilming, is to enable immediate access and availability to a world of scholars and researchers via the web.

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The count of items in the entire Digital Library is updated as each item is added to the collection and is viewable.

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Thanks goes to everyone on the Digital Library Team who helped make this display an eye-catching success.

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Containing over 2,100 discreet items the Sherman-Thackara Collection is largely composed of correspondence containing many letters from Eleanor to her father, General William Tecumseh Sherman, frequently referring to public events and personalities. Another feature of the correspondence that calls for special attention is the local color and references to many individuals, events, and institutions of Philadelphia and the Main Line in the 1880’s and 1890’s. A unique part of the collection is A. M. Thackara’s correspondence, photographs, and memorabilia relating to his years at Annapolis up until his marriage. Here can be found an unusual first-hand picture of Naval life after the U.S. Civil War.

While the transcriptions have not yet been made available, final editing has been completed on a growing pool of letters and documents, so starting in this Blue Electrode post we will be making selected transcriptions available. Here is a part of the transcription from a letter from A.M. Thackara to his father Benjamin Thackara, April 12, 1866, from the ship the U.S. “Constitution”:

Dear-Pop,
As I have some spare time I thought I would write you again. Frank Biruey has returned from Philadelphia. He says he saw you while he was there and he brought me some paper and stamps, for which accept my thanks. It was what I wanted as I was entirely out. We went to an entertainment Friday Evening given by a party of midshipmen. It consisted of a pantomime, called “The Magic Trumpet” and an afterpiece called “The Mummy” it was very good. The magical feats were performed very well. We play ball a great deal now. Every afternoon after exercise

[p.2]

we go out and practise. We have very nice grounds over by the Hospital. We are going to play the return match, next Saturday with the 3rd classmen. I suppose they will beat us this time. I am in the First Section in “Math”. I went up this last week. I tell you it is a big thing to be there. There is a photographer coming from Philadelphia to take photographs of the Midm. He has a place in the yard built for him and I suppose he will be here in a few days. From what I can hear it is Gutekunst. I know it is him I now. I suppose You will want me get some taken. We are getting along all right here now, the even numbered crews sleep on board the Santeo. They commenced last Evening the fellows are all around me

[p.3]

sulking about leave and different things. I tell you it is very nice. During recreation hours I enjoy myself almost as well as home. Al sends his best wishes and hopes you will have a splendid time on your Journey. The Winnepec left here Yesterday for Boston, she is going there to refit for the cruises. I see by last night’s paper that the Senate has passed the Civil rights bill over the veto of the President. We have to make hammock clews and splice ropes and make grummels It leaves us a great deal, we have to make a certain amount every week. The unsatisfactory list just came, I am not on it, in fact I have not been since I have been here. I hardly expected to get up in Math. This

[p.4]

week I wish you would come down and see me before you go across the water. We will soon begin to talk about examinations as it commences next month.
I must close now,

Give my love to Mother, Julia Herarlee
From You Affec. Son,
A. M. Thackara

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Check out the piece at:

http://newsletter.library.villanova.edu/231

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The first Irish manuscript digitized, Miscellaneous verse; prayers, contains a variety of epic Irish poetry including some translated into English by the scribe and a variety of prayers and transcribed oral tales.

In order to preserve the order and placement of the digital text in relation to the original, we digitize all materials as they are viewed — i.e. from the same perspective and from the front of a bound work to the back. For this manuscript, text was written both horizontally and vertically in relation to binding, as well as being flipped and written from the rear cover. There are a set of tools on the viewing page that enable a reader rotate the image and pan to the left and right - to access this click on the up/down/left/right arrow icon. This will make reading easier. Please also note that we scan in at a very high dot-per-inch resolution (600 dpi); this creates a very large image so you may need to give the network some time to respond when viewing or rotating the larger images depending on your local connection speed.

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The count of items in the entire Digital Library is updated as each item is added to the collection and is viewable.

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Check out the piece at:

http://newsletter.library.villanova.edu/220

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The nature of ephemera is that it is often not preserved because it is seen as replaceable. Ephemera include a large variety of material types often representing physical manifestations of communications of a commercial speech or other non-privileged physical formats. Ephemera items include: telegrams, receipts, tickets, calling cards, programs, advertisements, menus, broadsheets, postcards, and invitations. These items when found in libraries and archives are usually rare or unique items, often personalized with marginalia from the collector, and individually and collectively can provide great value to Biographers, Sociologists, Economist and Social Historians. The Sherman-Thackara collection in Villanova’s Digital Library provides access to some very illuminating examples of ephemera. Digital libraries have not in the main embraced the digitization of these format types largely concentrating instead on photograph, book, journal, and newspaper formats largely because these are the formats that are most privileged, and traditionally collected formats, in academic and public information institutions. In this issue of the Blue Electrode we will look at two examples, other examples are available for browsing in the collection, of one type of more common ephemera: the Telegram.

This telegram from A. M. Thackara, Sherman’s son-in-law, by the American Rapid Telegraph Company, sent to General Sherman on the occasion of his 61st birthday shows that the cultural practice of sending a brief message of celebration on a birthday when friends or relations were not physically present was already well a established practice in the America of the 1880’s.

Another telegram this also to General Sherman by the Western Union Telegraph Company gives a health update on an ill loved one and announces the death of child and the transportation of his remains: a grim counterpoint to the above joyous birthday greeting, demonstrating that the telegraph brought both news of weal and woe to the individual household. What a short step it now seems to a post-9/11 world, where watching wars as they happen has become a commonplace.

The telegraph service called the “Victorian-era Internet” served to provide individuals nearly instantaneous, albeit mediated by the telegraph company staff, communication to even small and rural population centers. Truly a communication media of the age, the last telegram was delivered by Western Union in February 2006.

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This article appeared in a different form in Compass at:
http://newsletter.library.villanova.edu/180

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