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home Resources and Services, Special Collections and Archives Reader Request: The Magic of MERLIN

Reader Request: The Magic of MERLIN

By Kelli Hansen   Posted in Resources and Services Special Collections and Archives
Posted on

Last week we posted the first in an occasional reader request series, focusing on what you want to see from the University of Missouri Libraries Special Collections.  This week, I'm going to show you exactly how to find what you're looking for using our catalog, the Missouri Education and Research Libraries Information Network.  Or, you know, MERLIN.

Since you are interested in Special Collections, we're going to do an advanced search.  Starting from the main MERLIN screen, click on the Advanced tab.

On the Advanced Search page, enter your keywords at the top.  You can use the dropdown menu to search within Author, Title, or Subject (Table of Contents and Notes are not advised for Special Collections materials).  Or you can leave it open to search all available fields.

Scroll down to Add Limits.  Under Specific Library Location, choose MU Ellis Special Coll.

You can use additional limits such as language or year of publication.  Because Special Collections holdings include lots of microfilms (about 8 million titles, in fact), it's useful to limit by Material Type.

Hold down the CTRL key to make multiple selections. 

  • Looking for books, pamphlets, journals, etc.?  Limit to Books and Journals/Newspapers.
  • Posters – limit to Images
  • Maps – limit to Maps
  • If you ARE looking for microfilm/fiche, limit to Microforms

​But Wait! Not Everything is in MERLIN!

That's true; not everything is in MERLIN.  That's where the Special Collections website comes in.  It contains collection descriptions and finding aids that can also help you track down the resources you need.  A finding aid contains a detailed description of a collection and its organization.  It doesn't have an inventory of particular items (usually), but it will lead you to the right places to look.  Here's a complete list of collection descriptions and finding aids on the Special Collections site.

Now you're all set to search!  Have fun, and let us know via Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, or email if you find anything you want to see!

home Resources and Services, Special Collections and Archives Reader Request: Quackenbos’ English Grammar

Reader Request: Quackenbos’ English Grammar

By Kelli Hansen   Posted in Resources and Services Special Collections and Archives
Posted on

Thanks to a conversation with our friend Coffee and Donatus (Twitter, Tumblr) we're kicking off a new occasional series featuring the materials you want to see from our collections.  This week's request fits in perfectly with our back-to-school theme this week.  It's An English Grammar by George Quackenbos (New York, 1862), from the Historic Textbook Collection.  

@MUSpecColl It's hard to choose, but how about your first edition of Quackenbos' An English Grammar? http://t.co/0G7RZGgL7O

— Coffee & Donatus (@CoffeeDonatus) August 14, 2014

 

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Quackenbos was born in New York in 1826 and became a well-known educator and author of textbooks.  When he died in 1881, his obituary in the New York Times stated,

"There are few English-speaking schools in the United States where the name of Quackenbos is not familiar, for during his studious and busy life the deceased published a great many series of text-books of elementary histories, grammars, arithmetics, rhetoric, and natural philosophy.  His later publications were regarded as occupying the very first rank among educational text-books. …  He was an enthusiast in educational matters, and it was the aim of his life to simplify and improve the prevailing methods of instruction." (New York Times 26 Jul 1881, pg. 5)

An English Grammar is a thorough introduction, starting with a chapter entitled "Letter, Syllables, Words, Sentences" and ending with chapters on rhetoric and prosody.  This particular volume once belonged to William Hudson of Hiram, Ohio, who signed his name on the flyleaf.  He may also have added the date in pencil: Oct. 11th, 1865.  Interesting to us, the book also includes advertisements on the front and back endpapers, which give an idea of the other textbooks in use at the time.

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Reading through the textbook, my favorite was the section on interjections.  Next time you need to express wonder, exultation, or weariness, why not try some of these?  

  • "Hoity-toity! Look at all those students studying in the library!"
  • "Heyday! I found an empty study carrel in the west stacks!"  
  • "The library's open until 2am, but heigh-ho! I'm going back to my dorm to sleep."

Try on some rhetorical gestures while you're at it, and you'll really be communicating old school.  

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As we mentioned on Twitter, we think of our blogs/social media as an extension of the reading room.  Here's a link to the MERLIN catalog.  What will you request?