Children’s Book Week started in 1919 is the longest national literacy initiative in the country. In 1913, Franklin K. Matthiews who was the librarian of the Boy Scouts of America, began traveling the U.S. to promote higher standards in children’s books. He proposed creating Children’s Book Week, which would be supported by publishers, book vendors and librarians. In 1916, Matthiews with the help of Publishers Weekly and American Library Association sponsored a Good Book Week along with the Boy Scouts of America. In 1944, Children’s Book Council was formed, and they took over creating Children’s Book Week.
This years theme is “Reading is a Superpower,” which coincidentally is similar to the Dover Public Library’s summer reading theme, “Superhero Super Reader.” The Children’s Department will celebrate book week by giving away a book a day plus free stickers, bookmarks, coloring sheets and crafts.
Come visit to celebrate National Children’s Book Week!
Spring is here (except for the snow on April 20th), and summer is just around the corner! Just like everyone else, I am anxious to be outdoors to enjoy the fresh air. With this in mind, I have tried to invite speakers to get us out of our long hibernation. Some guests speakers have told us about interesting places in or near Tuscarawas County. Other speakers have guided us through activities that we can do with friends and family.
In March, Dale Tschantz talked about the history of Camp Tuscazoar and the hiking/biking trails we can enjoy any time of the year. Laura Watilo Blake presented a program called “The Return to America” in which she reminded us that beautiful and interesting things are literally in our backyard. Don’t fret that you missed those programs. We recorded them and you can access them on our handy archive page.
On April 29, Norm N. Nite will talk about his book The House that Rock Built. After hearing him speak, you might want to visit the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. It’s not that far away.
On May 13, Kim Jurkovic will present “The Building of the Canal in Dover,” which could inspire you to visit the lock just south of New Phila or walk along the river trail near Zoar until you see Lock 9.
On May 18, Tamara Benson and Anastasia Merritt will walk us through the process of how The Reeves Museum made history accessible to children through the writing and illustrating of The New Carriage, the book which introduces Jeeves the horse. The Museum will resume some activities this summer.
On June 23, Doug Lockart from the Lockhart Forge in Logan, Ohio will introduce us to the family-owned blacksmith shop where they make iron skillets and teach blacksmithing classes.
Deb and Scott Morrision, members of TCAPA (Tuscarawas County Area Photography Association) will inspire us to become better photographers as we enjoy the great outdoors this summer.
We are organizing an outdoor drum circle for late July or early August. I don’t know about you, but I haven’t done this before so this promises to be a unique experience.
You can always take a stroll through the Dover Park. You can try out the adult exercise equipment at the playground down by the ball diamonds. Or you can walk around the pond, stopping along the “Story Walk” to read the book displayed there, or sit on one of the benches to read in the sunshine. I didn’t mention the disc golf because I haven’t participated in that sport, but I have seen lots of people enjoying the course.
In this week’s blog, Technology Manager Jen Miller shares a poem inspired by the challenges we have faced during the pandemic. On the left, we have the perspective of the librarian. On the right, we have the perspective of the patron. In the middle are the shared words of the two voices.
We hope you enjoy this creative and unique poem from our very talented Jen Miller.
The Local History room is slowly taking shape as more and more archival items are coming from the J. E. Reeves Home to the Library. As we process these items, some research is done to confirm the connection to Dover and Tuscarawas County. The “Local Families” box of items proved to be a treasure trove of photos and stories. We will share an interesting one with you involving the Wagner family.
Dr. P. M Wagner was a local physician who lived with his wife, Henrietta, in the Reeves Heights area of Dover. He was born on a farm between Zoar and Sandyville on August 20, 1868. In his early years he taught school at Zoar and the surrounding area. He then graduated from the Ohio Medical University at Columbus and became Dover’s “foremost eye, ear, throat, and nose specialist.” He was on the school board and served one term in the Ohio Legislature. He came from a large family including two brothers who were also doctors—Dr. Ezra Wagner, a dentist in Dover, and Dr. J. E. Wagner of Mineral City. His other siblings were Fred, Christian, Adolph, Theophilus, and Regina.
On Thursday, July 23, 1914, Dr. Wagner’s wife received a cablegram that her husband had died while in Berlin, Germany, taking a special medical course. The newspaper article regarding the news states, “Every letter received by relatives in Dover stated that he was progressing nicely with his studies and enjoying his trip. His serious illness which terminated in his death was a shock” (The Daily Times, July 24, 1914).
Dr. Wagner had left for New York on May 30 and set sail on June 2. He went to Germany to take a six week course with a noted specialist and while there decided to extend it to twelve weeks. He died during an operation for gallstones when he did not recover from the anaesthetic.
This is where the story gets interesting. Dr. Wagner died on July 23. World War I was declared in Germany on July 31. Dr. Wagner’s body was given to the American consulate to be shipped home. It was sent to Bremen, Germany, where it was to be shipped on the Hamburg-American liner Koenigin Luise. When Germany declared war, this ship was ordered out as a mine layer and a British cruiser sunk her. No other ships were leaving Germany. Dr. Wagner’s brother made an appeal to the U. S. government for help to retrieve his brother’s body.
Through the diligent work of his brother, Dr. Wagner’s body was eventually located in Bremen by a United States Express Company employee. It was finally shipped home through Holland and arrived in Dover on the C&P train from Pittsburgh on October 3—over 2 months after his death in July. The family reported, “the body is in a wonderful state of preservation” and a funeral would be held at Grace Lutheran Church.
The final part of the story does not take place until 1920. Dr. E. S. Wagner had written to a cousin, Gustave Wagner, who lived in Stuttgart, Germany in 1914, for assistance when he was attempting to locate his brother’s body. Gustave was killed in France in 1917, but his father had held on to a letter he had written to his American cousin and only sent it along in 1920.
-Kim Jurkovic, Local History Librarian
Sources: The Daily Times July 24, 1914; August 6, 1914; October 5, 1914; February 9, 1920
Photo from the Dover Historical Society Archives collection. Dr. P. M. Wagner is #6.
“Metaethics is the study of moral thought and moral language. Rather than addressing questions about what practices are right or wrong – metaethics asks what morality actually is.”
This Book Will Make You Kinder – an Empathy Handbook by Henry James Garrett. The book asks two questions;
• Why are you kind at all?
• Why aren’t you kinder?
Henry James Garrett is an amazing cartoonist and writer with a background in metaethics. His book is insightful, especially at this time in history and current events. He speaks of moral kindness, illustrated by poignant cartoons.
“How can we be our best and kindest selves for the people around us and the society we need to build?”
This book is about empathy and the softening of hearts. It is a book about putting ourselves in other people’s shoes.
You + This Book = You, But Kinder
This author explores the limitations that we all have, but asks that we work toward being our best. This book is timely and insightful and hits a human truth that we need to address.
When you think of Historical Women in History, who comes to mind?
Marie Curie: a two time Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry and Psychics.
Elenanor Rossevelt: America’s First Lady for 12 years. Later, she served as U.S. delegate to the United Nations where she was instrumental in securing passage of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Malala Yousafzai: As a young girl, she defied the Taliban in Pakistan and demanded that girls be allowed to receive an education. She was shot in the head by a Taliban gunman in 2012 but survived. In 2014, she became the youngest person to receive the Nobel Peace Prize.
These women and endless others have helped pave a path for generations of women to come. Congress declared March of 1987 to become the first official Women’s History Month. Since then we have welcomed and celebrated women and all of their fine achievements that make us stand out above and beyond.
Here’s a short quiz!
1. The first African American to win an Academy Award was a woman. True or False?
2. The world’s first novel was written by a woman. True Or False?
3. What woman served as a “conductor” on the Underground Railroad, freeing hundreds of southern slaves and leading them to safety in the North? A $40,000 reward was offered for her capture.
Scroll down for the answers. No cheating!
True! Hattie McDaniel won a best supporting actress award for her role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind (1939)
True! Most scholars consider The Tale of Genji to be the world’s first novel. It was written c. 1010 CE by Murasaki Shikibu.
Harriett Tumbman
Now go on to find a woman and thank her for her strength in this world that is still an uphill battle for women’s rights.
This Spring, I have had the wonderful opportunity of working with professionals at the NASA Glenn Research Center to bring the Make it NASA: What Will it Take to Live on Mars? program to the Dover Middle School’s afterschool group, Study Plus.
As part of this program, (Learn more here!) we were able to speak to a young NASA engineer Thursday afternoon about careers in STEM professions and what it’s like working for NASA.
What is STEM? STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. I personally prefer STEAM, which adds Art to that mix.
STEM professions could be anything from doctors to engineers to architects.
Our NASA contact started us off by talking about her background and what she wanted to do when she grew up. Shockingly, our friend originally wanted to be a lawyer, but she soon found a love of mathematics that led her to a career in engineering.
Now she works with the Icing Research Tunnel, which simulates conditions where ice occurs on aircraft in order to test parts and develop ice protection systems.
Students got to ask all kinds of questions, from how astronauts get into the International Space Station to if there is any other planet like Earth in our galaxy and if we would ever colonize the moon.
We even talked about Minecraft. Turns out our engineer friend at NASA is a gamer.
This was a great opportunity and a really fun afternoon! I am so grateful to NASA Glenn for their outreach to schools and libraries as well as their flexibility and kindness. A very special thanks to them and to Dover Middle School for making this great connection happen!
Stay tuned to hear how the rest of the Make it NASA: What Will it Take to Live on Mars? project goes!
