Minutes of the May 13, 2005 Government Publications Librarians of New England meeting, Bates College, Lewiston, Maine
Present: Connie Reik….Tufts
Simone Henderson….Bates
Ginny Hopcroft….Bowdoin
Kathy Berry…..Boston College
Bette L. Siegel…..State Library
of Massachusetts
Gail Fithian…..Boston Public
Library
The meeting adjourned at 10 am in Pettingill Hall on the campus of Bates College.
Our speaker was Marcus Bruce, professor of religion who spoke on his research on the American Negro Exhibit at the 1900 Paris Exposition. Professor Bates used a few of the US Congressional Serial Set volumes extensively in his research. Professor Bruce prepared a paper for a meeting of the American Academy of Religion and is now in the process of researching this topic for a book.
Professor Bruce was inspired to research the American Negro Exhibit after seeing a photograph of W.E.B. DuBois at the Paris Exposition. Along with Thomas Calloway, an official in the War Department who was named Special Agent for the exhibit, DuBois collected art, photographs, books, and other materials to be assembled for the American Negro Exhibit. This exhibit was sent to Paris for the purpose of highlighting the progress, history, and “present conditions” of African Americans since Reconstruction.
Many of the photographs of the Paris Exposition are contained in two of Calloway’s reports, which were published as Senate documents in serial set volume numbers 4057 and 4059. Professor Bruce expressed appreciation to the documents librarians at Bates, who alerted him to the existence of these documents. Bruce discovered that there is textual as well as visual documentation of the Exposition in the serial set which is not published anywhere, even in France. Some of the photographs contained in these volumes include a panoramic view of the Seine, as well as many pictures of the buildings at the Exposition. Since these buildings were destroyed after the Exposition ended, the serial set photographs are an invaluable source for scholars, who can see what the buildings looked like both inside and out. Also included in Calloway’s reports were very detailed records of the American exhibits at the Exposition (held in a building named the American Pavilion), including a list of the names of twenty-two African-Americans who were guests at a banquet in the American Pavilion at the Exposition. Just four years after Plessy v. Ferguson this banquet was truly extraordinary at a time when segregation efforts were being redoubled within the United States.
Professor Bruce treated us to a slide show of some of the serial set photographs, as well as others he has come across in the course of his research. His talk was one of the most interesting programs presented to GPLNE.
Following Professor Bruce’s presentation, the rest of the meeting included a short discussion of the spring Depository Council meeting held in April.
Treasurer's report…..March
31, 2005
Submitted by Donna P.
Koepp
Nonprofit Savings
Account Balance (12/31/04)….$298.55
CD Certificate (18
month term Matures 1/8/06)….$1,030.10
Total
Assets…………………………………………$1, 328.65
Business meeting……minutes of last meeting as
distributed by email were accepted and approved
Treasurer's report was accepted
Nominating committee report: John Fobert, incoming chair
Vice-Chair….not filled
Secretary…..not filled
Donna P. Koepp, treasurer
Discussion of Incorporating/NELA, etc……need for a fixed address; be part of GODORT. Etc. Decisions about organization were deferred until the fall meeting.
Minutes taken by Gail Fithian and Bette Siegel