Arrangements were made for me to have a tour of the 2nd floor to see where my ancestor, William Frederick Poole would have worked. My tour was given by the archivist who was wonderful, and guided me around and showed me several things, especially things that would have been there between 1856-1869. It was fun putting myself back in that time era. Unfortunately, photography wasn't allowed, but just imagine "a wide array of newspapers and artwork, too, with paintings by Gilbert Stuart and John Singer Sargent and sculptures by Augustus Saint-Gaudens and Houdon." Lots of sitting rooms, 500 newspapers and periodicals, lovely rugs, children's Library, and peace and quiet.Wikipedia has a lot of information about the Library, pictures, and mention of my ancestor. The photo on the cover of the book was taken a year before William F. Poole began as head librarian.
My Poole lineage began in Massachusetts in 1632, but my father was born in Evanston, Illinois. And, Evanston was also the death location of William Frederick Poole. Not until I began doing genealogy did I learn of their early Massachusetts roots, and that was a wonderful surprise.
4 comments:
What a wonderful story. And you got visit with a tour. Really neat!
Thanks for sharing with us today.
;-)
Thank you Dr. Bill, it was quite a thrill. Don't know why I waited so long to do it, but I will go back.
Barbara, I was looking forward to this post! How wonderful that you went to this lecture, and I hope you've read this book. I'm going to look for a copy, because I have an tiny link to the Athenaeum in my family tree, too, but not as interesting as your family association.
Thank you Heather for the comment. I got the book through Amazon, Bill West and I tried to locate it around here, but had no luck. I know you will enjoy it, but it doesn't go beyond 1855.
Post a Comment