Providence Public Library Celebrates Providence’s 375th, Announces Programs

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Thursday, May 12, 2011

GoLocalProv Features Team

What better way to celebrate Providence's 375th than in the rooms of one of its great historic institutions?

The Providence Public Library will present a series of exhibits and lectures beginning Thursday, May 19 and continuing through October as part of Celebrate Providence 375 Years. The schedule of exhibits and guest lecturers includes:  

Thursday, May 19: The City that Roger Built: Images of Providence Architecture

Rhode Island architectural historian Mack Woodward will open his exhibit, which includes materials from the Library's Rhode Island Collection (including this image of the Arcade, right), on Thursday with an opening reception and lecture. In addition to an extensive career with the Rhode Island Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission, Woodward has been nationally recognized by awards from the American Association for State and Local History and the Society of Architectual Historians.

Barnard Room, 3rd floor. Opening reception- 6:30 pm, Lecture- 7pm. Exhibit will run through mid-July. 

Thursday, July 21: Saving (Type)Face: Printer and Booksellers of Providence

Colonial printing expert Phoebe S. Bean and Providence Public Library Special Collections Librarian Jordan Goffin will open their exhibit with a reception and lecture on the birth of the Providence book trade, tracing the path of an 18th-century book from the print shop to the home of an interested reader. The exhibit includes materials from the Library's Daniel Berkeley Updike History of Printing Collection.

Barnard Room, 3rd floor. Opening reception- 6:30 pm, Lecture- 7pm. Exhibit will run through mid-August.  

Thursday, August 18: Sidney S. RIder of Providence- Bookman

Bibliophile and independent scholar Russel J. DeSimone will open his exhibit, which includes materials from the Library's Daniel Berkeley Updike History of Printing Collection, with a reception and lecture about the life and works of Sidney S. Rider, perhaps Rhode Island's best-known 19th century bookseller. A Rhode Island native, defense industry retiree, and retired adjunct professor at URI, DeSimone will discuss Rider's work as an author, publisher, historian, and collector  as well as the work he did to counter corrupt politicians and corporate monopolies that threatened the Providence public.

Barnard Room, 3rd floor. Opening reception- 6:30 pm, Lecture- 7pm. Exhibit will run through mid-September.  

Saturday, September 17: Size Matters: The Corliss Steam Engine and the Industrial Ingenuity of Providence

Deputy Director of the Rhode Island Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission Richard Greenwood, Ph.D., will discuss Providence's history as "The Beehive of Industry." The exhibit will include materials from various Library collections including historic photographs of the Corliss Steam Engine from the Rhode Island Collection.

Barnard Room, 3rd floor. Opening reception- 2 pm, Lecture- 2:30 pm. Exhibit will run through October. 

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