Dickens Mania

Don't forget this weekend is the grand kick off to the Dickens in Lowell celebration. There's lots of fun stuff to do, including this evening's opening of the central exhibit at the Boot Gallery (behind Boardinghouse Park) . The opening runs from 5pm-7pm and will feature music food and speakers (or as Dickens might have put it—harmony, wittles, and orators).

Then come on by the Pollard tomorrow morning for Victorian Parlor games from 10am-11am. We'll be playing authentically Dickensian games such as Blindman's Bluff, Courtiers and Forefits as well as a take off of Pin the Tail on the Donkey called Pin the Raven on the Couch. Intrigued? We hope so.

Then tomorrow afternoon we'll be showing the film classic Oliver! at 1pm. So get ready to feel light again! Of course, there's lots more Dickens stuff going on all around the city full schedule here.

PLUS! Sunday evening, Masterpiece Theatre is serendipitously airing their latest and greatest production of "Great Expecations" featuring Gillian Anderson as Miss Havisham. It looks like this is going to be quite a production—and a great way to get into the story that's the subject of our Lowell Reads "Great Expectations" program coming this summer.

Friends Meeting Thursday 6PM

The Friends will be holding a meeting to discuss the 2012 book sale this Thursday the 29th from 6:00 to 7:00 PM in the Meeting Room of the Pollard Memorial Library. So come on by if you want more information or are willing to lend a hand. Bring a friend, meet some friends.

Exciting News for Genealogists

(The following article was written by the newest member of our reference department, Alison Zaya. Alison is an experienced and knowledgeable reference librarian who worked for a number of years at the Nashua Public Library. We're very happy to welcome her to the PML team! If you have questions or comments on this article you can email her at azaya@mvlc.org)

Did your grandparents move during the Great Depression? Was an aunt or uncle you’ve been trying to track down born in 1931? For 72 years, the individual records from the 1940 Census have been sealed. On Monday, April 2 at 9:00 a.m. the records will be available for your perusal.

In addition to questions regarding name, age, gender, race, education, and place of birth, census takers asked occupants if they owned or rented their home, its value, and whether the home was on a farm. They recorded respondents’ occupation and employment status for the week of March 24-30, 1940, as well as their income for the previous year. Citizenship for the foreign born was noted, as was the person’s residence on April 1, 1935. This information could be particularly insightful for a family that moved often. For each census form, two people provided supplementary information. Approximately 5% of census takers shared the place of birth of their parents, their native language, veteran status, and whether they had a social security number. Married women were asked if they had been married more than once, the age at their first marriage, and the number of children born. I find these last questions, as well as the instruction to enter “infant” if a child under one year had not been given a name, particularly interesting. The National Archives website has a list of the questions asked as well as a blank census form.

You may be tempted to log on to your favorite genealogy site at 9:00 on Monday. After all, it has been 10 years since the 1930 records were unveiled. Despite the availability of the records, finding what you want may be difficult for a while. The 1940 census records are not yet indexed; thus, name searching is not possible. Some genealogy sites, including Ancestry.com, will be working to index the census once it is released. In the meantime, you can use enumeration districts (geographic areas assigned to census takers) to locate people, but it is a more complicated and time consuming process. More information about the enumeration districts is available on NARA's website.

If you want more information about the 1940 census, take a look at the following websites:

1. The National Archives, which includes an FAQ about the census
2. Archives.com, which is hosting the census website for the National Archives, and the Archives.com blog
3. The United States Census Bureau
4. The US Census Community Project, which is working to index the 1940 Census
5. Pollard Memorial Library’s Online Research Database page, which has a link to Ancestry Library (in library use only)

Artist Richard Marion @ Dracut Library, March 27th, 7PM

Local artist Richard Marion will be at the Parker Memorial Library in Dracut next Tuesday, March 27th at 7pm. Mr. Marion's work captures a unique vision of Lowell and its surroundings. He's been painting for more than thirty years and will be discussing his artwork and its muse, the city of Lowell. A full description of the event can be found on the Parker Memorial Library's website and his paintings have recently appeared on Richard Howe Jr's Blog.

Dickens in Lowell Opening Weekend - Victorian Parlour Games and a screening of Oliver! the PML Saturday, March 31st

The Pollard is elbows deep in the grand celebration of Charles Dickens' 200th birthday sweeping across Lowell this year. Can you feel the Dickens in Lowell buzz? Opening weekend is nearly here.

We'll be celebrating opening weekend in grand style with a morning of Victorian Parlour games of the ilk that Mr. Dickens played and wrote about in his novels. This event for children grades 1-4 and runs from 10am-11am Saturday, March 31st, in the Ground Floor Meeting Room. While your at the library, you'll want to be sure to visit the Dickens & Victorian Scrapbooks Exhibit created by the talented girls of Girls, Inc. You can catch their fun and informative display in the cases outside the meeting room.

What's that? You want more, you say? MORE? Well...

Come on back at 1pm, Saturday, March 31st for a special screening of the musical Oliver! This winner of six Academy Awards boasts a superb British cast including Ron Moody, Oliver Reed and Shani Wallis and an unforgettable musical score. Rated G; 148 minutes; 1968. This screening sponsored by the Friends of the Library. Free and open to the public.

About Dickens in Lowell:
To mark the bicentenary of Charles Dickens's birth and to commemorate his historic trip to America in 1842*, UMass Lowell and its partners present "Dickens in Lowell," a seven-month slate of performances, speakers, family programs, and a landmark exhibition exploring Dickens's life, work, and travels in America! Full schedule of events is available at: www.uml.edu/dickens.

*He visited Lowell on this trip and dedicated an entire chapter to our fair city in the book he wrote chronicling his time in America. Mr. Dickens believed there was a lot to like about Lowell, even then!

Mass Memories Road Show Hits the Boot Mills this Saturday 10am-3pm

If you work, live, or feel a connection to Lowell you have an incredible opportunity this weekend to participate in a sweeping state-wide history project. Here's the deal: you bring up to three photos that exemplify life in Lowell, to the Tsongas Industrial History Center on the 4th floor of the Boot Cotton Mills. You can bring historical photos or contemporary casual pictures of your neighborhood—as long as they show what it's like to live in Lowell they're fair game. The photos you bring will be scanned and the originals returned to you. You may also participate in an oral history video project where you would tell the story behind your photo. For more information about this event and the Mass Memories Project please visit their website, or contact Ellen Anstey via e-mail: Ellen_Anstey@uml.edu or by phone: 978-978-5080

Another Busy Week @ PML - Author Night, Library Club, Hunger Games Food Drive, etc, etc

There's lots of interesting reasons to come down to the library this week quite apart from the usual ones of checking out books, audiobooks, CD's, DVDs and museum passes.

Thursday night at 7pm, we have local author night featuring Nicholas DiGiovanni discussing his latest book "Rip"—a hillarously irreverent retelling of Washington Irving's classic Rip Van Winkle.

Friday features two fun youth oriented events. First there is the kick off of Library Club from 10-11am for kids aged 3 and older. A program to familiarize youth with all the benefits of a library! There will be fun library activities, and a special guest performer storyteller / puppeteer. Sign up by calling 978-970-4122.

And second there is the highly anticipated Hunger Games Teen Event & Food Drive from 3-4pm for teens grade 5 and up. Participants are encouraged to bring non-perishable food items to donate to the Merrimack Valley Food Bank for their chance to win movie passes. Teens will also have the opportunity to create buttons to support their favorite tributes and to participate in some friendly competition of our own. May the odds be ever in your favor.