The lights were dim in the cramped room– “to minimize damage” the librarian said as he cradled a 15th century book in his hands.  All the items laid out on the table in front of us were precious bits of history. There was an ancient cuneiform tablet from the start of civilization, one of Shakespeare’s folios (the earliest collection of all his works), a stack of Charles Dicken’s paperbacks, and even a book with a bullet hole from the gun fight that ended Sitting Bull’s life. It was exciting to examine a letter in Ezra Cornell’s hand speaking of his visit to the White House, where he met Abraham Lincoln in person (though not quite as exciting as seeing Abraham Lincoln’s own signature on a memorial copy of the thirteenth amendment– I was truly in awe of that faded scrawl). Mark Twain’s writing also made an unexpected appearance, in the form of a recommendation letter for a German professor (who then proceeded to teach at Cornell for two years). E. B. White, a Cornell alumnus and the author of the classic children’s book Charlotte’s Web, had drafts of his work laid out on the table along with his sketches of the farm. It was amazing to see all of these precious items up close and to hear their stories.

(I have to admit, even with all the key pieces of history laid out in front of me, what thrilled me the most was seeing that Sitting Bull signed his autographs with hearts above the i’s. Even though the librarian insisted that Sitting Bull was not channeling his inner adolescent girl, I like to think the cutesy hearts were a deliberate touch.)