Current:Home > FinanceExtremely overdue book returned to Massachusetts library 119 years later-LoTradeCoin
Extremely overdue book returned to Massachusetts library 119 years later
View Date:2024-12-23 21:55:49
On Feb. 14, 1904, someone curious about the emerging possibilities of a key force of nature checked out James Clerk Maxwell's "An Elementary Treatise on Electricity" from the New Bedford Free Public Library.
It would take 119 years and the sharp eyes of a librarian in West Virginia before the scientific text finally found its way back to the Massachusetts library.
The discovery occurred when Stewart Plein, the curator of rare books at West Virginia University Libraries, was sorting through a recent donation of books.
Plein found the treatise and noticed it had been part of the collection at the New Bedford library and, critically, had not been stamped "Withdrawn," indicating that while extremely overdue, the book had not been discarded.
Plein contacted Jodi Goodman, the special collections librarian in New Bedford, to alert her to the find.
"This came back in extremely good condition," New Bedford Public Library Director Olivia Melo said Friday. "Someone obviously kept this on a nice bookshelf because it was in such good shape and probably got passed down in the family."
The treatise was first published in 1881, two years after Maxwell's death in 1879, although the cranberry-colored copy now back at the New Bedford library is not considered a rare edition of the work, Melo said.
The library occasionally receives books as much as 10 or 15 years overdue, but nothing anywhere close to a century or more, she said.
The treatise was published at a time when the world was still growing to understand the possibilities of electricity. In 1880, Thomas Edison received a historic patent embodying the principles of his incandescent lamp.
When the book was last in New Bedford, the nation was preparing for its second modern World Series, incumbent Republican President Theodore Roosevelt was on track to win another term, Wilbur and Orville Wright had conducted their first airplane flight just a year before and New York City was celebrating its first subway line.
The discovery and return of the book is a testament to the durability of the printed word, especially in a time of computerization and instant access to unfathomable amounts of information, Melo said.
"The value of the printed book is it's not digital, it's not going to disappear. Just holding it, you get the sense of someone having this book 120 years ago and reading it, and here it is in my hands," she said. "It is still going to be here a hundred years from now. The printed book is always going to be valuable."
The New Bedford library has a 5-cent-per-day late fee. At that rate, someone returning a book overdue by 119 years would face a hefty fee of more than $2,100. The good news is the library's late fee limit maxes out at $2.
Another lesson of the find, according to Melo? It's never too late to return a library book.
- In:
- West Virginia
- New Bedford
- Entertainment
veryGood! (55973)
Related
- Amazon launches an online discount storefront to better compete with Shein and Temu
- Packers fans tell Simone Biles how to survive Green Bay's cold weather
- FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried convicted of stealing billions from customers and investors
- South Dakota governor asks state Supreme Court about conflict of interest after lawmaker resigns
- Georgia House Republicans stick with leadership team for the next two years
- A former Utah county clerk is accused of shredding and mishandling 2020 and 2022 ballots
- Federal appeals court upholds Illinois semiautomatic weapons ban
- Robert De Niro's girlfriend Tiffany Chen, ex-assistant take witness stand
- Mike Tomlin's widely questioned QB switch to Russell Wilson has quieted Steelers' critics
- Kate Spade Flash Deal: Get This $459 Shearling Tote for Just $137
Ranking
- The USDA is testing raw milk for the avian flu. Is raw milk safe?
- NASA spacecraft discovers tiny moon around asteroid during close flyby
- Winds from Storm Ciarán whip up a wildfire in eastern Spain as 850 people are evacuated
- 3 expert tips to fall back for daylight saving time 2023 without getting seasonal affective disorder
- Agents search home of ex-lieutenant facing scrutiny as police probe leak of school shooting evidence
- Justice Department ends probe into police beating of man during traffic stop in Florida
- Former D.C. police chief Cathy Lanier focuses on it all as NFL's head of security
- Man drives through gate at Oconee Nuclear Station, police searching for suspect
Recommendation
-
Will Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul end in KO? Boxers handle question differently
-
Cats use nearly 300 unique facial expressions to communicate, new study shows
-
Officials identify two workers — one killed, one still missing — after Kentucky coal plant collapse
-
Al Pacino Will Pay Girlfriend Noor Alfallah $30,000 a Month in Child Support
-
Is Kyle Richards Finally Ready to File for Divorce From Mauricio Umansky? She Says...
-
These Are the Early Black Friday 2023 Sales Worth Shopping Right Now
-
The FDA proposes banning a food additive that's been used for a century
-
Biden administration awards $653 million in grants for 41 projects to upgrade ports