The Donner Party (a tragic April anniversary)

Posted on April 2, 2009 by Barbara

In April 1846 the Donner and Reed families left Springfield IL for California. They split off from a larger wagon train to follow a so-called shortcut, but that and other difficulties cost them valuable time. When they finally reached the Sierra Nevada Mountains at the end of October they were trapped on the eastern side by heavy snows and food supplies were quickly depleted. A small group set out to get help, but along the way some died and were cannibalized. Seven of this group reached safety on the western side of the mountains in mid-January 1847. Californian relief parties sent to rescue the rest of the Donner Party found that some of the survivors had begun to eat their dead too. The last survivor of the Donner Party arrived at Sutter’s Fort on April 29, 1847. Of the original 87 pioneers, 39 died.

Ordeal by Hunger coverWagons West coverInterested in this bit of history? Search the Library Catalog to find titles such as Ordeal by hunger; the story of the Donner Party (3rd-fl. Main Collection, F868 .N5S7x 1960), Unfortunate emigrants: narratives of the Donner Party (NetLibrary ebook), and Wagons west: the epic story of America’s overland trails (3rd-floor Main Collection, F593 .M475 2002).

Online resources include the brochure of the Donner Memorial State Park and a couple of digitized diaries of Donner Party members:

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Knowing How We Got Here

Posted on April 1, 2009 by Barbara

This week I read Leonard Pitts‘ column in the Janesville Gazette “You can’t understand world unless you know how it was,” in which he laments that many people do not know basic history, and thus cannot put our world today into proper context and fully understand where we are as a society.

The impetus for his column was the passing of historian Dr. John Hope Franklin, who wrote many books on the history of African Americans, including From slavery to freedom, which is “regarded as the seminal text in African-American studies.” The Library has copies of From slavery to freedom, including the original 1947 edition and the 6th (1988) edition (3rd-floor Main Collection, E185 .F825 1988).

Mirror to America coverPitts goes on to suggest additional reading, all of which are titles available in the Library’s 3rd-floor Main Collection:

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Big Read: To Kill a Mockingbird

Posted on March 31, 2009 by Barbara

UWW & surrounding communities are taking part in “The Big Read” featuring the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird. Events are scheduled throughout April at sites such as local libraries and museums, and in the UWW’s Young Auditorium. See the blog http://youngauditorium.wordpress.com/

To Kill a Mockingbird DVD coverAndersen Library has the Oscar and Golden Globe-winning movie (2nd-floor Browsing DVD, Feature Film Collection) and will show it on the 2nd floor on April 1st. The novel is available in Andersen Library’s 3rd-floor Main Collection (PS3562 .E353 T6).
Free copies of a reader’s guide, bookmarks, and an audio guide CD will be distributed starting April 1st. Andersen Library also is raffling off 5 free t-shirts — drop off your name and contact info at the Circulation Desk for the drawing.

Image of portion of NYT articleMore information about author Harper Lee, along with an analysis of her novel, is available via the MagillOnLiterature database, and there are many other relevant resources in the Library, such as an early review in the New York Times (July 13, 1960, p.33) available from the ProQuest Historical Newspapers database. Please ask a librarian for assistance in finding additional information.

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New Stuff Tuesday – March 31

Posted on March 31, 2009 by Susan

The Global Achievement Gap

The Global Achievement Gap:
Why Even Our Best Schools Don’t Teach the New Survival Skills Our Children Need – and What We Can Do About It
By Tony Wagner
LB1607.5 .W34 2008
New Book Island, 2nd floor

Are students in the U.S. graduating from high school with the skills and problem solving abilities to compete in a global economy? In this book, Tony Wagner outlines his concerns with the way children are being educated in U.S. schools today and how educators, parents, and employers can work to improve the education system.

Wagner was a high school teacher, principal, university president, and now is co-director of the Change Leadership Group at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Wagner believes that education has changed little in 50 years, and that students graduating from most American schools lack the “Seven Survival Skills for the twenty-first century.” Wagner provides suggestions for improving student assessment, how teacher and administrator preparation programs can be made more effective, and why student motivation is such an important component in improving education.

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