Alden Library will celebrate its 200-year history with its Founder’s Day Symposium on Tuesday afternoon.
The event will feature three speakers with ties to the founding of Ohio University’s library from 1:30 to 4:00 p.m. in the fourth floor lounge of Alden library.
Andrea Wulf, David Holben and Lauren Cohen start the beginning of Alden’s bicentennial festivities with speeches on botany, gardening and eating locally in the early 19th century, the time of Alden’s opening.
The event was put together with the help of several students, said Kelly Broughton, assistant dean for Research & Education Services within Alden.
“In addition to Lauren and her fellow students who produced the documentary, we have students working on the promotion with both news items and graphic design, the photography, and the display,” Broughton said.
The symposium, titled “Founding Gardeners: The Revolutionary Generation, Nature, and the Shaping of the American Nation,” will feature keynote speaker Andrea Wulf. She is presenting her aptly titled book,
Founding Gardeners: The Revolutionary Generation, Nature, and the Shaping of the American Nation.
The book was released in 2011 to critical acclaim and featured on the
New York Times
Best Seller List.
“This illustrated talk looks at the lives of the founding fathers and how their attitude to plants, gardens, nature and agriculture shaped the American nation,” Broughton said.
In addition to Wulf’s presentation, the symposium will also feature David H. Holben, a professor of nutrition at OU.
Holben is also a registered dietitian nutritionist as well as a commissioned officer in the United States Army Reserves Medical Specialist Corps.
Holben will highlight his course taught here called, “Thomas Jefferson: Gardener and Gastronome,” which has been called one of the weirdest courses by
Athens News
.
His presentation will discuss both Thomas Jefferson and gardening. He will also talk about how the course is taught and facilitated.
In addition to the two professionals, there will also be a presentation by Lauren Cohen, a senior studying applied nutrition.
Cohen will show a documentary that she produced with other students examining the benefits of eating locally-grown foods and discuss the historical perspectives surrounding eating these foods, specifically in this region.
University Catering will also offer desserts and refreshments relating to the past era, such as macaroons, bread pudding, and hot chocolate.
Additionally, there will be a display on the fourth floor of Alden that features items from the collections of Thomas Jefferson and Manasseh Cutler.
@w_gibbs
