34 P itt magazine of theUniversityPittsburgh. Hamilton, Andrew Jackson, Daniel Webster, andHughHenryBrackenridge, thefounder and literaryfiguressuchasColonelHenry Bouquet, GeneralCornwallis, Alexander personal papers. Itwasn’t enough. Heharvested letters penned bypolitical, military, and Kittanning;the Allegheny River;andthecityofPittsburgh. , anEnglishlandspeculation company;FortsPitt, Duquesne, Shippen, collection containsboundvolumesofhisown notesandresearchonsuchtopicsasthe amassed ontheearlystoriesofunfoldingagrowingnationareunparalleled:His captives, oftenusingthelanguageof “red race” todescribetheirworld. What he the native American Indians, gatheringstoriesontheirrituals, histories ofwars, and Something I Library System’s SpecialCollectionsdepartment,where abound surprises manuscripts; andmore. Today, much ofhispersonal of theUniversity library ispart letters by written thenation’s first president, George Washington; rare religious own avid abouttheworld. curiosity Hecollectedmapsofemerging territories; in1815,Born William Darlington spentmostofhislifepursuing his Special Collections. of Department Library System’s the University of courtesy Photography DyerErvin byWritten He collected as if consumed by a fever. He gathered some of George Washington’s up ofthegreat Western frontier. Hewroteandpublished on produced hispassionforbooksthatdocumentedtheopening into awondrous search of the human soul. This magic democracy, and—ofcourse—history. about botany, geography, politics, naturalscience, religion, Washington. Here, thegeniallawyerindulgedhisvastcuriosity breezy estatenamedforaSenecaleaderandscouttoGeorge books, magazines, manuscripts, andmapsthatfilledthewallsat Guyasuta, his in thedistance, thegreenknollsofwhatisnowHighlandPark. saw theliliesofvalleyrunningfreeinfields, therolling AlleghenyRiverand, gaze outthethreelargebaywindows. Lookingsouth, throughtheverandadoors, he the sunny, oblongroom, thebrightestspaceinhismansewoods. Heturnedto n thesummerof1886, theelderlyattorney, leaningonhiswalkingstick, enteredinto For William Darlington, history was magic, animmersion But, inthislibrary, hisattentionsoonshiftedtotheforestofmorethan14,000

dated between 1837and1844. Indian America, ofNorth Tribes chief, isfrom ofthe theHistory lithograph ofJack-O-Pa, aChippewa c. 1886. Right: A hand-colored Above:Darlington, William .

Special Something

Special 35 35 Spring 2011 36 P itt magazine force during WWII. during force bombings by Hitler’s air astation ofLondonafter photos showing thedev- a collectionofvintage Right: An example from published in1865. work was first Edition. original The limited Sesquicentennial Wonderland Alice’s Adventures in in Lewis Carroll’s of theKingHearts the wood-engraving Top: An illustration of Performing Arts. Performing Benedum Centerfor Theater, now the ’s Stanley atperformance program ofthefirst inauguralCenter: The writer. native andnotedmystery Rinehart, aPittsburgh Roberts records ofMary many ofthepersonal Collections contains Top: Pitt’s Special from a H public life. documenting bothpersonalzealand recordings, ephemera, andmemorabilia and variousslides, microfilms, posters, photographs, 500,000theaterprograms, feet ofmanuscriptsandarchives, 13,000 than 52,000physicalvolumes, 560linear library system—areatreasureofmore are keptinseverallocationswithinthe burgh. Together, thecollections—which purchased fortheUniversityofPitts- als thatarebequeathedto, giftedto, or manuscripts, andone-of-a-kindmateri- is arepositoryforrarebooks, age-old across thenation, SpecialCollections Department. the librarysystem’s SpecialCollections Pittsburgh, whereitisacrownjewelin Collection—belongs totheUniversityof rial—The DarlingtonMemorialLibrary Cape tothepolarseas. old detailingvoyagesfromtheNorth ber oftravelbooksmorethan200years Pilgrims. Also inthecollection: A num- Bibles thatcrossedthewaterwith the GenevaBible, anditwasoneofthe John MiltonandDonneallread St. JamesBible. William Shakespeare, sacred textahalf-centuryolderthanthe Like manyofitscounterparts Today, thisraretroveofmate- a GenevaBible, a ballads. Heowned Spanish, andIrish erature, andEnglish, to includepoetry, lit- is passionspilledover lections andPreservation, asshesnapson Jeanann CroftHaas, headofSpecialCol - rather aliving, welcoming “open house.” agree thisspaceisanotmuseum but ians, historians, and preservationists, who stoked bytheattentivestaffof librar items. There iswarmth here, too. Itis the sacredinsafeguardingoffragile white-glove tenortothisplace, asenseof harmful light. All ofthecareaddsa against thedevilsofdust, humidity, and the SpecialCollectionsroom, protected served, rebound, orboxed, thenkeptin When possible, somematerialsarecon- tion isoftenthefirstruleofbusiness. Jerome thatdatesto1466, sopreserva- collection isaleaffromthelettersofSt. http://darlington.library.pitt.edu. for instance, canbevisitedat the Internet. The DarlingtonCollection, ing openaccesstotheirmysteriesvia the collectionsarebeingdigitized, offer visited foraccess. Now, though, manyof noncirculating and, traditionally, mustbe and uniquenature, thesecollectionsare plain-ol’ curious. Becauseoftheirrare welcomes bibliophiles, scholars, andthe built-in hush. A soothingamberglow offers aquietvisitors’hubwithgenteel, the thirdfloorofHillmanLibrary, the SpecialCollectionsRoom, locatedon at variousstorageandpreservationsites, “We wantthepublichere,” says One oftheoldestitemsinPitt Although thecollectionsarekept - - daughter andnoted mysterywriterMary and personalpapers ofPittsburghnative Brazilian literatureandthebiography rare editionsoftextsbyiconic authors, pamphlets onCooperativemovements, perature-controlled stacks:Poetry and precisely cataloguedamongthe tem- these collections, neatlytuckedawayand in thelogicofmath. time andrelativitytheory;theories in advancingquantummechanics;space, with othermodernthinkersinstrumental including correspondencetheyshared Hans ReichenbachandRudolfCarnap, papers ofinfluentialphilosopherslike and lecturenotesincludesthescholarly Philosophy. This storehouseofbooks note, too, arethe Archives ofScientific ing inafewUniversityproductions. Of brother ofGeneKelly(A&S’33), act- ’28), thesonofEastLibertyandolder theaters, andreelsofFredKelly(A&S tories anditemsfromPittsburgh’s local Lincoln’s assassination, dozensof his- atre playbillfromthenightofPresident including afacsimileoftheFord’s The- more than500,000theaterprograms, Theatre Collection. This collectionhas ports theFordE. andHarrietR. Curtis Hitler’s airforce. An endowmentsup- of Londonduring WWII bombingsby Photo Unionshowingthedevastation the Associated PressandtheGraphic evident in143photographicimagesfrom Stephen Foster. The atrocityofwaris of thegreat American musicmaestro Other charmsshineallaround a protectiveglovebeforeshowing a visitorDarlington’s fragilecol- lection oflettersfromGeorge Washington. “We wantclassesto come. We wantstudentstouse our stations. We workwithpro- fessors whocanbuildlectures around whatwehavehere. This is ateachingcollection.” here areendless. The massof lessons thatcanflowfrom materials onhandmeanders through theworldsofmusic, art, anddrama: The Fidelis Zitterbart Collection, given to theUniversityin1960, contains nearly1,500manu- man whowasacontemporary script compositionsfroma Of courseitis, andthe Ammon, gavetheUniversityall14,000 Darlington and EdithDarlington Darlington’s daughters, MaryO’Hara many otheritemsdo: They wereagift. D Library System, saysCroftHaas. used digitalcollectionsintheUniversity online, andisoneofthemostheavily book hasalsobeendigitized, isaccessible collection.the AudubonThe someone comesintothelibrarytoaccess finch. Everyday, multipletimesaday, dimples intheplumageofpurple necks ofthewildturkeysandsee It’s possibletocountthehairson their natural, oftenpredatorybehaviors. painted lifesize, depictedinthemidstof scientific accuracyandart. Thebirdsare The bookisbothanawesomedisplayof the birdsarereadytoflyoffpage. birds makethemflutterwithlife, asif turkeys, purplefinches, and432other ger pigeons(drawninPittsburgh), wild in themeticulousportraitsofpassen- been astounded. The authenticdetails bound volumesin1852, hemusthave brows paid$400forthefouroversized, serious lawyerwiththedarkarchofeye- own frenzywithbotany. And whenthe Gutenberg Bible. work thatrivalstheimportanceof est—and rarest—booksintheworld, a America, whichbecameoneofthelarg- frenzy forthecreationofTheBirds of The huntingandfishingtherefueledhis ley Forge. Hecalledtheplaceparadise. the woodsofPennsylvania, near Val - Haiti andspenttimeasayoungmanin of North America. Hewasbornin cataloguing andpaintingallthebirds self-taught naturalistwhodreamedof $10 million. Audubon wasadashing recently soldataSotheby’s auctionfor of America, anothercopyofwhich Birds Audubon 19th-centurymasterwork, The Darlington collection. It’s theJohnJames brighter thanthatrarestofgemsinthe texts asoldtheSpanishConquest. Serna andaschoolbookcollectionwith Spanish authorRamonGomezdela Roberts Rinehart. Firsteditionsofnoted room, protected againstthedevils ofdust, humidity, light. andharmful arematerials conserved, rebound, orboxed, thenkeptintheSpecialCollections dates to1466, sopreservation is often thefirstrule of business. Whenpossible, some One oftheoldestitemsinPittcollectionisaleaffrom theletters ofSt. Jerome that William Darlington, too, hadhis But, perhaps, nothingshines tions thesameway Pitt’s Special Collec- Guyasuta cameto entire libraryfrom book and, indeed, his arlington’s Audubon books. Beginning roughlytwodecades opened intosmaller alcovesstuffedwith grand room, wherearched doorways a wrought-irongate, into ared-carpeted dral ofLearning. Visitors walked through situated onthesixthfloorof Cathe- Library, acozy Victorian-era spaceonce located in The Darlington Memorial father’s collection, whichwasoriginally lion endowmenttomaintaintheir is namedafterhim. glassmaking business. O’Hara Township of Pittsburgh’s firstindustrialistswitha with Native Americans andbecameone an Army generalwhoestablishedtrade the granddaughterofJamesO’Hara, Mary CarsonO’HaraDarlington, herself family’s collections. Their motherwas anyone thevalueofpreservingtheir and perhapsunderstoodbetterthan history inearly Western in Pittsburgh, werepartofthefabric connected totwooftheoldestfamilies and asecondin1925. The daughters, beginning withaninitialgiftin1918 volumes oftheirfather’s collection, The daughtersalsogavea$1mil- expanding New Frontier. the fledglingnation whenitwasan the present, offeringaglimpseinto private andthepublic, the pastand insatiable curiosityaboutlife—the of a19th-centurygentlemanand his on, reflectingarich, variedportrait lington’s birth, hiscollectionlives as aprizedacquisition. tions department, whereitnowexists into theUniversity’s SpecialCollec- ago, aspectsofthecollectionmoved Nearly twocenturiesafterDar - ‘s is 100years old. vintage Japanese texts, graph, from asetof hand-painted photo- “Tokyo Beauty.” The judges inJapan asa was chosenby local Below:geisha This was assassinated. that President Lincoln gram from thenight Ford’spro Theatre- Left: A facsimileofthe Washington. U.S. President George funeral procession for which detailsthe1799 including thisarticle, Darlington’s library, an extensive of part broadsides were Far left: Newspaper 37 Spring 2011 38 P itt magazine once housed. lawyer’s collectionwas of Learning, where the remains intheCathedral William Darlington deskof original The and Snowy Owl. White Pelican, Fish Crow, Flamingo,Pink American the UnitedStates. BirdsThe in ofAmerica only fivecompletesetsof Audubon prints, oneof rare collectionofJohn Examples from thelibrary’s From left: of theUniversity ofPittsburgh, whenit in 1837. In time, hebecameatrustee local attorney, earning hislawcredentials arithmetic. Helaterapprenticed witha Greek andtookclassesinoratory and cost about$25, andhestudied Latinand lege. There, annualtuitionandexpenses to today’s Washington andJeffersonCol- linked toJeffersonCollege, aprecursor Jefferson Academy, apreparatoryschool beyond in Washington Countytoattend oak andwalnuttreesintothegreat he walkedfromPittsburghthroughthe ment. According toonelegend, in1833, gateway tothe West. the waysof , the planting andpioneerlife, particularlyin lington grewincreasinglyinterestedin their son’s curiosity, andtheyoungDar hardware store. Heandhiswifenurtured expanded histradeintoownershipofa nings asavillageof400homes, when burgh wasontherisefromitsbegin- James Madisonwaspresident, andPitts- 1711. At thetimeofDarlington’s birth, family whofirstcametoChester, Pa., in descended fromaCheshire, England, Education waskeytohisadvance- Darlington, bornin1815, was D fueled bycoal. copper industriesbeing from theglass, leather, and already dustedwithsoot town, asmokytriangle people livedintheriver early years, about5,000 streets. InDarlington’s and draysfilledthedirt crookedly builtstructures, hogs anddogsroamedpast ter who carpen- was a father ton’s arling- - the equivalentofabookacquiredevery and amassedmorethan14,000books, argued beforetheU.S. SupremeCourt, carpenter’s sonhadtraveledtheworld, by familyandhisbelovedbooks. The of 74. HewasatGuyasuta, surrounded the newsofday. often talkedofbooks, photography, or or Thackeray. Fortherestofhislife, he latest installmentsofanovelbyDickens City togreetshipmentsthatborethe five languages, traveledtoNew York wife, Mary, apublishedauthorwhoread Pennsylvania. was knownasthe Western Universityof U.S. President Roosevelt.Theodore 1907-1930. setcontainsaforwardThe by former Indian, published by Edward S. between Curtis American oftexts North onThe One ofaseries University Library System. one ofthemostheavily useddigitalcollectionsinthe has alsobeendigitized, isaccessibleonline, andis the library toaccessthe Audubon collection, which Every day, multiple timesaday, someonecomesinto Darlington diedin1889attheage When possible, Darlingtonandhis

of apageortheclickmousethanks distant pastcanbepresentwiththeflip . lifetime, oneofthelargestwest made thecollection, amassedoverhis nals, periodicals, andhistoricalmaterials stairs inhislibrary, histhicketofjour hallway nearhisbedroom. Butdown- valuable volumeshekeptupstairs, ina ers andnotedbookcollectors. Hismost of hiscorrespondencewithbooksell- into hisledgersandkeepingtheminutiae purchases, pressingscoresofreceipts he keptcarefuldocumentationofhis able life. Headoredbookssomuchthat other dayoverthecourseofhisremark- Today inthe21stcentury, eventhe history. the currentsof lives caughtin rhythms ofpast thumping, daily to thebreathing, tions—rare access Special Collec- true valueofall perhaps, the family.is, That the Darlington benefactors like of collectorsand to theforesight -