In this Book
- Right Here I See My Own Books: The Woman's Building Library at the World's Columbian Exposition
- Book
- 2012
- Published by: University of Massachusetts Press
summary
On May 1, 1893, the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago opened its gates to an expectant public eager to experience firsthand its architectural beauty, technological marvels, and vast array of cultural treasures gathered from all over the world. Among the most popular of the fair’s attractions was the Woman’s Building, a monumental exhibit hall filled with the products of women’s labor—including more than 8,000 volumes of writing by women. Right Here I See My Own Books examines the progress, content, and significance of this historic first effort to assemble a comprehensive library of women’s texts.
By weaving together the behind-the-scenes story of the library’s formation and the stories between the covers of books on display, Wadsworth and Wiegand firmly situate the Woman’s Building Library within the historical context of the 1890s. Interdisciplinary in approach, their book demonstrates how this landmark collection helped consolidate and institutionalize women’s writing in conjunction with the burgeoning women’s movement and the professionalization of librarianship in late nineteenth-century America.
Americans in this period debated a wide range of topics, including women’s rights, gender identity, racial politics, nationalism, regionalism, imperialism, and modernity. These debates permeated the cultural climate of the Columbian Exposition. Wadsworth and Wiegand’s book illuminates the range and complexity of American women’s responses to these issues within a public sphere to which the Woman’s Building provided unprecedented access.
Table of Contents
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- Acknowledgments
- pp. xv-xvii
- Introduction
- pp. 1-7
- Chapter 1. By Invitation Only
- pp. 8-26
- Chapter 3. Empire Building
- pp. 66-97
- Chapter 4. Grand Opening
- pp. 98-117
- Chapter 6. Ghosts and Shadows
- pp. 150-180
- Chapter 7. “I Will Write for the People”
- pp. 181-201
- Abbreviations
- p. 215
Additional Information
ISBN
9781613761915
Related ISBN(s)
9781558499270
MARC Record
OCLC
794700816
Pages
288
Launched on MUSE
2012-04-16
Language
English
Open Access
No