It's common knowledge that Thomas Jefferson penned the Declaration of Independence, but did you realize he was also the first American to record a recipe for ice cream? Jefferson's recipe was for vanilla ice cream and he, sadly, did not name it Declaration of Deliciousness (which would be a perfect name if Ben & Jerry's decided to make a tribute flavor!). Precursors to ice cream, often ice mixed w... [more]

As if the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant's (ISIL; also referred to as IS, ISIS, and Daesh) actions weren't troubling enough, last week the US Department of State reported on the irrevocable damage the terror organization continues to wreak on cultural artifacts in Iraq and Syria. The destruction goes beyond wartime collateral damage– ISIL is celebrating their destruction of religious monum... [more]

To mark the 75th Anniversary of 1939, we've asked some ABAA members to discuss publications from that momentous year. Marc Selvaggio, whose specialties include World's Fairs and International Expositions, takes us down memory lane as he examines the publications of the 1939 World's Fairs held in New York and San Francisco. On September 23rd, 1938, a group of men in dark suits gathered around a con... [more]

Exciting news for all my fellow fans of the Dead and historical musicology! San José State University has announced an upcoming conference and symposium on the Grateful Dead, taking place November 5-8. So Many Roads: The World in the Grateful Dead, A Conference & Symposium "represents the culmination of five decades of academic work on the Grateful Dead phenomenon, and demonstrates how scholarly ... [more]

Forrest Media, a Canadian graphic design and media production company, put together a nice animated short on the history of typography. [more]

Last month I bought three pamphlets about a murder that took place in Salem, Massachusetts in 1830. It was a sensational affair in its day, a victory for prosecutor Daniel Webster, and an interesting sidelight in the history of American jurisprudence. But that was not why I bought the pamphlets. In 1829 William Low of Salem was sent to Canton to manage the affairs of Russell & Co. the great Americ... [more]

The Atlantic recently featured a post on tintype photography and a short video about Harry Taylor, a modern professional photographer who uses the technique in his own work. I found the process interesting and the images striking, so I wanted to share a little of the history, and the video, with you. Tintype photography developed as an alternative to daguerreotypes and ambrotypes. The process was ... [more]

The Bodleian Library at the University of Oxford has just undergone a $122 million renovation and is christening its new gallery with an exciting exhibition of the library's most precious holdings. Treasures of the Bodleian is an especially interesting exhibit because of its interactive nature. Curator Stephen Hebron asked each staff member of the library to choose their favorite, 'unmissable' ite... [more]