Center for the History of Print and Digital Culture
School of Library and Information Studies
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Annual Lecture
Monday, April 23
12-1 p.m.
SLIS Commons, 4207 Helen C. White Hall
Wayne Wiegand, Professor Emeritus, Florida State University
Sarah Wadsworth, Associate Professor of English, Marquette University
Right Here I See My Own Books: A Women's Building Library at the World's Columbian Exposition
On May 1, 1893, the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago opened its gates to an expectant public eager to experience firsthand its architectural beauty, technological marvels, and vast array of cultural treasures gathered from all over the world. Among the most popular of the fair’s attractions was the Woman’s Building, a monumental exhibit hall filled with the products of women’s labor—including more than 8,000 volumes of writing by women. Right Here I See My Own Books examines the progress, content, and significance of this historic first effort to assemble a comprehensive library of women’s texts.