New Acquisitions

October 2003

Optiks: or, A treatise of the reflections, refractions, inflections and colours of light
by Sir Isaac Newton

Sir Isaac Newton's Optiks: or, A treatise of the reflections, refractions, inflections and colours of light was donated by John and Barbara Hood in October. This wonderful volume was printed for William Innys, London, in 1730, and is a valuable addition to the rare astronomy and other sciences collections.

September 22, 2003

Mamvsse Wunneetupanatamwe up-biblum God naneeswe nukkone testament kah wonk wusku testament
Cambridge, Mass: Printeuoop nashpe Samuel Green, 1685

Dr. Guerard Piffard, a charter member of the Friends of the SDSU Library, donated a leaf from The Book of Proverbs from the Eliot Bible This fragment, measuring 18 centimeters in height, contains text from Proverbs, Chapter 10 verse 19 through Chapter 13 verse 4. Please view our special feature!

August 2003

Barbara Abele bookplate collection

The daughters of Barbara Abele donated her very large collection of original bookplates collected from around the world, as well as her extensive library of books about bookplates to the Library in August. Ms. Abele was a scholar of this beautiful art form, and her collection adds wonderfully to the book arts holdings of Special Collections.

May 21, 2003

Don Freeman Collection

Veteran award-winning journalist Don Freeman has donated his collection of newspaper columns spanning approximately fifty years. Freeman originally hails from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada but spent much of his early years in the Chicago area. He earned his bachelor's degree from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism in Evanston, Illinois. Before choosing San Diego as his home, Freeman served as a sports staff writer for the Chicago Tribune. He joined the staff of the San Diego Union, where he reviewed plays and launched its first jazz column. For more than 35 years, he was the Union's television editor and columnist. Since 1992, when the San Diego Union merged with the San Diego Tribune, Freeman has been the paper's critic-at-large columnist. Freeman has received two San Diego Press Club awards and was designated that organization's print Headliner of the Year in 1998. His collection also includes a tape-recorded interview with Freeman, along with its transcript, conducted by Special Collections staff. Freeman reflects on his entrance into the field of journalism; his discovery of the writer who would become his idol, Ring Lardner; and his experiences interviewing many celebrities over the years, such as singers Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby, actresses Marlene Dietrich and Donna Reed, and baseball legend Ted Williams. Researchers of journalism and rhetoric, as well as those interested in sports and entertainment history, will find this collection particularly appealing.