Library Notes

Tucked away on the shelves of Missouri State University Libraries Special Collections and Archives are three historical gems relating to the early history of the Ozarks. These books, written by Henry Rowe Schoolcraft, allow us to step back in time 200 years to the early exploration of Southern Missouri and Northern Arkansas. In 1819 the beautiful Ozark Mountains and surrounding area were largely unexplored wilderness, acquired in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. Today, 2019, we celebrate the bicentennial of Henry…

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Archives Specialist Jeffrey Lawson has found his niche in organizing the archives of Springfield Little Theatre (SLT).

On Friday, October 4, 2019, the Board of the Johnson Library & Museum (JLM), located in Osceola, Missouri, held its annual meeting in Springfield. MSU Dean of Library Services Tom Peters is a member of the JLM Board.  The Board discussed several matters of interest, including the Thomas M. Johnson Symposium that will be held on Thursday and Friday, November 7 and 8, 2019. The Thursday sessions will be held in Duane G. Meyer Library on the Springfield campus of…

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In January of 1957 Crossroads TV Productions of Springfield, Missouri, the same company that already had been producing the weekly live television broadcast of the Ozark Jubilee over ABC-TV, created a pilot program for a proposed country-themed game show. They called it “Pig in a Poke.” Contestants answered questions to earn various cuts of pork, including slabs of bacon and bone-in hams. If any contestant won the whole hog, they won the grand prize.  Smiley Burnett was the host, George…

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Three members of the Missouri State University Library Science faculty — Jessica Bennett, Grace Jackson-Brown, and Tracy Stout — presented at the second annual Celebrating First-Generation Students Conference. Their presentation, titled “The Library and the First Generation Student: Convocation to Graduation and Beyond!”, was well received. The one-day conference was held on Friday, September 27, 2019 in Plaster Student Center on MSUs Springfield campus.  Attendees learned the foundations of information literacy, best practices, high impact learning strategies, and motivational needs…

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The Springfield-Greene County Library District and the Missouri State University Libraries collaborated to bring author Laura McHugh to Springfield on Monday, September 30, 2019 to discuss her most recent book, The Wolf Wants In.  Over 30 people attended McHugh’s talk, held at the Library Center on South Campbell Avenue.  Laura McHugh presented an engaging story of her journey from working as a computer programmer to a full-time fiction writer. She offered examples of how challenging it can be to balance…

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Today (Thursday, October 3, 2019) from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m. there will be a reception in Special Collections on the Third Level of Duane G. Meyer Library to celebrate and showcase the opening of a new exhibit, Art of the Native Cultures of the Americas. The event is free and open to all.  This educational exhibit is the culmination of the best student research from the 2018-2019 Citizenship and Service-Learning (CASL) integrated courses ART 385: Art of the Americas and ART 485: Art…

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From FY18 to FY19 the dollar value of gifts to the MSU Libraries increased 190% to a total of over $1.7 million.  The number of gifts also increased 14% to over 900 generous gifts.  These annual figures from the MSU Foundation do not include gifts for capital improvements.  Everyone at the MSU Libraries is very grateful to all the generous sources of funds and in-kind gifts. Your generosity and support helps the MSU Libraries to provide top-notch collections, services, and…

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