On Mar. 20, the Cushwa-Leighton Library of Saint Mary’s College hosted a reception to celebrate the donation of Charles Dickens’ works by Lenore Hannebry Madden and her family. Hannebry Madden’s family, students and faculty gathered on the third floor of the library to see an exhibit of the collection created by senior Rebecca Holm.
Dickens, a prolific English writer in the 1800s, was the author of many classic novels, including “Bleak House,” “Great Expectations” and “A Christmas Carol,” among others. Many of his original novels were published in small sections called serials and released over the course of a long period of time. These serials passed from person to person, telling Dickens’ famous stories to a vast audience. Through this donation, four of his original serial novels, along with other first editions and Dickens memorabilia, have arrived at Saint Mary’s.
The new collection is intended to be a learning resource for Saint Mary’s students. Jill Hobgood, the reference and rare books librarian at Saint Mary’s College, said that the new books have the potential to open doors of study for students from a variety of majors, not only English, but also communications and art.
“It’s of use to communication students, maybe, who are looking into serialized presentation, how this was done originally. I like to think of it as really, really slow Netflix. That’s kind of what it was in the 19th century. It’s of interest to marketing students. All of those advertisements show how things were marketed in the 19th century,” said Hobgood. “We have had classes in the art department, which have covered graphic arts and fonts, and the way that images were printed and what those images were, and those are of use. So, besides just the English department, it is something that will continue to be used and enjoyed by students across the board here at Saint Mary’s.”
The collection includes four serialized editions of Dickens’ work: “Bleak House,” “Little Dorrit,” “Dombey and Son” and “Mystery of Edmund Drood,” which Dickens did not complete. A first edition of “A Christmas Carol” with colored plates is also available for viewing in the collection, along with three letters, two of which are written by Dickens himself, a check belonging to Dickens and pieces of art related to his work, among many other things.
The collection has already been used in a variety of classes, including Max Chapnick’s English course, where his students read “Bleak House” and then explored the impact of serialized editions on storytelling with the opportunity to explore the original copies of the text for themselves.
Additionally, Holm’s curatorial work for the Dickens exhibit was a part of her independent study with Dr. Sarah Noonan. Holm shared that the exhibition itself allowed her the opportunity to engage in curation and museum work, which is what she hopes to pursue after graduation.
Holm’s experience working with the donation included creating all of the display cabinets for the exhibit and researching background information to create plates that further explain the materials on display. The experience helped her to gain confidence in herself and her future career.
“I think I gained a lot of confidence in myself. I came into this not knowing a ton about Dickens personally,” Holm said. “I had worked with archives and whatnot before, but I had never been pretty much in charge of figuring out what goes where and what to say about it. And, so, kind of having that experience where I was the one who had to make all the decisions really gave me a lot of confidence that I can do this, and it really reinforced that this is what I want to do with my life.”
Hannebry Madden’s children and grandchildren attended the reception. Lenore Madden McCartney, one of Hannebry Madden’s daughters and a Saint Mary’s alumna from the class of 1988, said her mom had a deep love of Charles Dickens’ work and his inclination to address social justice issues of his time. Madden McCartney said her father always gave her Dickens’ books and collectibles as gifts, and the collection grew over time.
Hannebry Madden had always wanted the collection to end up at Saint Mary’s, according to Madden McCartney.
“She made it clear to us during her lifetime. She wanted her collection of Dickens’ first editions of books donated to the college when she was no longer here with us. And so, I always knew this would ultimately be where they would end up. You know, the library is the perfect place where they can take care of them appropriately. And mom was a librarian,” Madden McCartney said.
Grace and Molly Hayes, two of Hannebry Madden’s granddaughters who attended the reception, explained the importance of the donation for their family. The educational enrichment that the Dickens collection is able to provide was important for Hannebry Madden, Grace Hayes explained, as her grandmother deeply valued access to education.
“I think for her, for my grandma, and for her three grandchildren that are here right now, at least, the access to education is something that’s really important. And I believe that everybody not only has the right to education — I think she has instilled that belief in me — but, the [right] of people taking the time to study the things that they like, as well as studying those primary examples and comparing it using your own rationalization to come up with ideas, beliefs and theories. I think that is incredible. And so the fact that her personal rare book collection is being used to elevate that with other students is just fantastic, and I know that’‘s exactly what she would want,” Grace Hayes said.
“I feel like it’s a kind of closure, as well, with our grandmother passing a long time ago. She was in her 60s when she died. Our grandpa passed away a year and a half ago. And, you know, she always wanted it to come back to Saint Mary’s, where it should be, and it’s great that it’s here now. And she was a librarian as well, and it means a lot to her that future students, for God knows how long, will be able to use these in their education classes, in their education. I know that would mean the world to her,” Molly Hayes said.
The collection will be displayed in the library for a few days this week, before being moved down to the rare books room for preservation. It will be available for use by students and classes.
Madden McCartney hopes that Hannebry Madden’s collection will continue to make an impact on Saint Mary’s education in a place where it can be safely preserved.
“I hope, and now I think it’s pretty clear that this will provide the college itself, on a broader scope, some exposure to maybe some other scholars coming in, seeing the collection, studying the collection. And then, in a more neuro sense, hopefully, the English department, maybe some other departments, will be able to use the collection, and then it will ultimately be better preserved,” McCartney said.
