Rare Book News & Events at Library of Congress

The British and American Founding of Parliamentary Science, 1774 – 1801by Peter J. Aschenbrenner February 6, 2020 at 3:00Lessing J. Rosenwald Room

In this presentation, Mr. Aschenbrenner will introduce the audience to Thomas Jefferson, parliamentary scientist and scholar of British parliamentary history.  In 1776 – on behalf of his fellow Americans – the principal author of the Declaration of Independence made explicit Americans’ right to ‘alter or abolish’ unrepresentative government. Beginning in 1797 Jefferson began composing Manual of Parliamentary Practice for the Use of the Senate. The Manual’s immediate purpose was to enable the United States Senate to fulfill its potential as a parliamentary assembly in a nation which embraced the goal of representative government. This presentation will discuss questions such as: What were the hurdles that Jefferson faced in composing his Manual? What were the most important works he overlooked in his research? What was the connection between his Manual (published 27 February 1801) and his Inaugural Address (delivered 4 March 1801)?

Peter J. Aschenbrenner received his doctorate (Juris Doctor) from the School of Law, University of California Berkeley. He served for 16 years as a judge in Alaska during his 39 years practicing law in that state. He has recently published British and American Foundings of Parliamentary Science 1774–1801 (Abingdon-on-Thames, 2017). He regularly contributes to Public Law (Sweet and Maxwell, London) on the decisions of the United States Supreme Court.

Rare and Unique works on Ichthyology from 1500-1900 at the Library of Congressby Andrew GaudioFebruary 27, 2020 at 3:00
Lessing J. Rosenwald Room

In this talk, Mr. Gaudio will explore The Fishes of North America (1898), a periodical acquired by the Science, Business, and Technology Division at the Library of Congress, and placed in the custody of the Rare Books and Special Collections Division. This talk will focus primarily on the editor and publisher of The Fishes of North America, William Harris, who sought to create a publication that brought together ichthyology and angling. This talk will explore how Harris hired an artist to accompany him throughout his fishing adventures. It will also discuss the process by which images of fish moved from canvas, to print, and, eventually, into a periodical with Harris’ accompanying text.

Andrew Gaudio is a reference librarian and collection specialist for classics, the middle ages and linguistics in the Main Reading Room at the Library of Congress.  He received his Master of Arts in Medieval Studies from the University of Connecticut in 2012 and his Masters in Library Science from Simmons College in 2013. Gaudio has several publications of important Latin translations, including the first Latin grammar of Vietnamese from 1561 (Journal of Vietnamese Studies, vol. 14, no. 3, 2019, and several articles on in the first poem about New England, entitled Nov-Anglia, 1625. (Notes and Queries, vol. 66, no. 4, Dec. 2019 and vol. 66, no. 1, March. 2019)

As always, talks are held in the Rosenwald Room (LJ 205) on the second floor of the Jefferson Building. If you have any questions, feel free contact us at 202-707-3402.

Please request ADA accommodations five business days in advance at 7-6362 or ADA@loc.gov.

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