Celebrating Morris Cohen

On December 11, 2008, the Boston College Law Library hosted an event, "Celebrating Morris Cohen," to honor Morris Cohen - law librarian, scholar, mentor, and friend. Well-wishers joined us from as far as New York, Connecticut, Virginia and Canada! Speakers included Charles "Buzzy" Baron, Karen Beck, Mary Sarah Bilder, Daniel R. Coquillette, Sharon Hamby O'Connor, David Warrington, and Morris Cohen himself. View the program here (you will need the latest version of RealPlayer). The library purchased a special book for its rare book collection in Morris' honor: Giles Jacob, Every Man His Own Lawyer (New York, 1769). Here is an album of photos taken by Joe Breda, son of BC Law Library staff member Karen Breda. Thanks, Joe!

The Rare Book Room is Closed for the Holidays

The Rare Book Room will be closed from December 13 through the new year, to allow for cleaning and exhibit work. It will reopen in early or mid-January. Watch this space for an announcement of the date, and for news of our next exhibit. Happy Holidays!

Last Chance to View Current Exhibit!

Our current exhibit, "'A Little Library': The Private Law Library of Frank Williams Oliver," will close at 4 p.m. on Friday December 12. Please stop by to see it this week!

New Collection: John E. Wall Legal Papers : pertaining to the trial of Dr. Benjamin Spock and others

I just completed an Archives Internship at Boston College's John J. Burns Library, the repository for BC's archival and special collections materials - not including the material in our own Rare Book Room, of course!

Under the supervision of the terrific David Horn (Head, Archives & Manuscripts) and Amy Braitsch (Assistant University Archivist), I processed a fascinating collection of legal papers belonging to the late John E. Wall. You can read the finding aid here, and you can view the papers at the Burns Library; here is the catalog record.

In 1968, John E. Wall was an Assistant United States Attorney. He took part in prosecuting Dr. Benjamin Spock, the Rev. William Sloane Coffin, Jr., and three others for encouraging Vietnam War draft resisters. This collection of legal papers includes handwritten notes, correspondence, typescript documents, photographs, newspaper clippings, and transcripts of legal proceedings.

Rare Book Room opens and closes . . .

On December 8, the Rare Book Room will be closed in the morning for cleaning and a tour. It will open around 12:30 p.m. And on Thursday December 11, the room will close at around 2 p.m. to prepare for a reception. It will reopen at 9 a.m. the following morning.

As always, we regret any inconvenience to our visitors.

New Arrival: A Rare 18th-Century Boston Court Docket

Boston 18th Century Court Docket: Boston Court by Adjournment to 3 Dec. 1788. A rare survival of an 18th century Boston court docket. A number of cases are listed in this 11-page manuscript, as well as notes about them, possibly written by a judge or justice of the peace. We got this at the Boston Antiquarian Book Fair, a terrific place to view rare books, manuscripts, and art - and to meet and mingle with like-minded people. 

New Arrival: John Remsen's Manuscript Cash Book

The Law Library has just acquired a fascinating manuscript account book dating from the 1790s. John H. Remsen, a solicitor in New York City's Court of Chancery, kept daily accounts of the case transactions associated with his law practice in this 246-page account book. Remsen made loans to Aaron Burr and John Jay, and conducted transactions for James Roosevelt and many of the New York Dutch families. The account book provides a fascinating glimpse into New York in the 1790s, as well as the daily life of a working lawyer.
This manuscript complements an outstanding collection of early American legal and land use documents given to the library in 2003 by Robert E. Brooker III. This account book was purchased with funds donated by Mr. Brooker.

On View: "A Little Library" - The Private Law Library of Frank Williams Oliver

Please join us in the Daniel R. Coquillette Rare Book Room to view our newest exhibit: “A Little Library” – the Private Law Library of Frank Williams Oliver. Highlights include a magnificent German Bible from 1693; a book that once belonged to Clarence Darrow; a rare first edition of Webster’s Dictionary, dated 1828; . . . and Frank Oliver’s delightful bookplate, shown here. The exhibit will remain on view through early December 2008. View highlights and more here. 

Welcome!

Welcome to The Daniel R. Coquillette Rare Book Room Blog. I'm Karen Beck, Curator of Rare Books at the Boston College Law Library, home of the Daniel R. Coquillette Rare Book Room. Here you will find news and photos about events, exhibits, and recent acquisitions. Please visit often, virtually and - even better - in person. See you in the Rare Book Room!