Events

November 2026 First Fridays - ‘Unburied’ and ‘A Plain Pine Box’

First Fridays: Archivist’s Choice!

First Fridays is a series of intellectually stimulating talks from the Archives and Special Collections at the UMN Libraries. This year’s theme is “Archivist’s Choice!” All of our collections have extensive depth and breadth — and some random things too. Not every remarkable story can fit into a theme. This year we’re throwing out a theme in favor of the archivist’s choice. Anything under the sun is fitting for this smorgasbord of presentations!

Light lunch at 11:30 a.m. Presentations begin at noon. A tour of the archival caverns will take place after the event concludes. ASL interpreters will be present for all First Fridays events.

Register

PRESENTATIONS

“Unburied: Death and Mourning in the Archives”

Presented by Caitlin Marineau, Assistant Curator, Children’s Literature Research Collections; Aiden Bettine, Curator, Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies; Erin McBrien, Curator, Upper Midwest Literary Archives; and Darren Terpstra, Exhibit Designer, Archives and Special Collections.

A new exhibit in Andersen Library showcases materials related to death and mourning pulled from across all of Archives and Special Collections. From burial and mourning practices across communities and cultures, to popular conceptions of death in folklore and literature, learn more about this new exhibit from the curators and exhibit designer.

“A Plain Pine Box: Jewish Burial Practices”

Presented by Kate Dietrick, Archivist, Upper Midwest Jewish Archives.

Traditional Jewish laws have imbued Jewish funerals and burial not only with strong significance but also with practices that deviate from other religions. But these laws weren’t always observed. In 1976, a group of concerned yet motivated congregants from Adath Jeshurun synagogue founded the Chevra Kavod Hamet (the Society to Give Honor to the Dead). Their return to traditional Jewish practices – including constructing pine box coffins, sewing shrouds, and preparing the body for burial – sparked a national interest in returning to these simple Jewish rituals. A 1977 ABC-TV documentary called “A Plain Pine Box” brought their work to a wider audience. Learn more about the Chevra’s influence, and what it means to mourn in accordance with Jewish traditions.

Event details

What: November First Fridays: ‘Unburied’ and ‘A Plain Pine Box’

When: Friday, November 6, 2026 | Lunch at 11:30 a.m. | Presentations begin at noon

Where: Elmer L. Andersen Library, room 120 and ONLINE | Parking and directions

Fall 2026 Colloquium - Marion Quirici

Kennesaw State University

Title: “Degeneration Theory and Disability Panic in Early Irish Sports Journalism”

Abstract: This talk explores the central significance of degeneration theory, an idea propagated by nineteenth-century psychiatrists and criminologists suggesting the human race was in evolutionary decline, in the early sports journalism of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). Founded by athlete and newspaperman Michael Cusack in the 1880s, the GAA aimed to revive native Irish sports and pastimes, such as hurling and Gaelic football, and to diminish the influence of foreign games. The Association had a profound and lasting impact on the project of the Irish Revival, not least because its production of athletes and ideals of athleticism proved useful for the recruitment of soldiers into the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB). The GAA maintained a print culture that has been largely overlooked, including Cusack’s own Celtic Times newspaper, the Gaelic Athletic Annual journal, and a number of books.

My archival research examines the organization’s journalism and promotional literature to trace the GAA’s roots in fears of racial degeneration, and to expose its articulation of a eugenic body politic. GAA nationalists made a conscious effort to invert stereotypes of Irish weakness, unruliness, drunkenness, laziness, and uncleanliness with a specific code of conduct for Irish men, and to a lesser extent, Irish women. They imagined their task—building up the nation’s “inherited manliness”—to be a matter of racial preservation. The degeneration paranoia endemic to Irish nationalism influenced not only the creative responses of modernist authors, but also the biopolitical regime in Ireland after independence.

Marion Quirici is Assistant Professor of Disability Studies and Global Anglophone Literature at Kennesaw State University, and the author of Fitness for Freedom: Disability, Degeneration, and Modern Irish Writing, published in 2026 with Syracuse University Press. She has published in the Journal of Literary and Cultural Disability Studies, The Year’s Work in Critical and Cultural Theory, BMJ's Medical Humanities, The Journal of Pediatric Rehabilitation Medicine, Éire-Ireland, and the Joyce Studies Annual.

Fall 2026 Colloquium - Kate McDonald

History, UC Santa Barbara

Title: The Rickshaw in Twentieth-Century Japan: A User’s Manual

Abstract: The rickshaw was invented in Japan in 1869. Rickshaw pulling flourished as an occupation and rickshaws dominated cultural representations of Japan’s urban modernity. Though it declined in popularity in the 1930s and 1940s, the rickshaw was quickly reinvented as a popular – and flexible – cultural symbol. Drawing from my current book project, The Rickshaw and the Railroad: Transportation, Labor, and Technology in Modern Japan, I share my favorite rickshaw stories from twentieth-century Japan. Along the way, I show how the multi-faceted history of the rickshaw raises important questions about how historians conceptualize the “user” of transportation technologies.

First Fridays, February: ‘Play It Again, Watson!’ and ‘African American History 101’

First Fridays: Archivist’s Choice!

Erin McBrien presents, “Play It Again, Watson!” and Davu Underwood Seru presents, “African American History 101.”

Light lunch at 11:30 a.m. Presentations begin at noon. A tour of the archival caverns will take place after the event concludes. ASL interpreters will be present for all First Fridays events.

Register will open in January.

PRESENTATIONS

“Play It Again, Watson!”

Presented by Erin McBrien, Curator, Sherlock Holmes Collections.

What makes something a pastiche, an homage, an adaption, or fanfiction? And what is it about Sherlock Holmes that draws people to continue the story in their own way? Join the Sherlock Holmes Collections as we dive into works written by fans old and new alike.

“African American History 101”

Presented by Davu Underwood Seru, Curator, Givens Collection of African American Literature and Life.

For too many, African Americans are a nagging outlier and challenge to America’s self-esteem. To mark Black History Month (which is to say, to mark February), and the 101-year anniversary of Negro History Week, the Givens Collection makes the case that African American history is not separate from American history. If one is honest with themselves, then African American history is not to be regarded as a threat. It is, however, different from what many American students get an opportunity to learn in school. As such, the study of African American history might make you different.

Event details

What: First Fridays, February: ‘Play It Again, Watson!’ and ‘African American History 101’

When: Friday, February 5, 2027 | Lunch at 11:30 a.m. | Presentations begin at noon

Where: Elmer L. Andersen Library, room 120 and ONLINE | Parking and directions

About

First Fridays is a series of intellectually stimulating talks from the Archives and Special Collections at the UMN Libraries.

This year’s theme is “Archivist’s Choice!” All of our collections have extensive depth and breadth — and some random things too. Not every remarkable story can fit into a theme. This year we’re throwing out a theme in favor of the archivist’s choice. Anything under the sun is fitting for this smorgasbord of presentations!

These events are made possible by a generous gift from Gov. Elmer L. Andersen and Mrs. Eleanor Andersen in honor of former University Librarian Dr. Edward B. Stanford.

First Fridays, March: ‘Virginia Lee Burton’ and ‘Activism of the Target City Coalition’

First Fridays: Archivist’s Choice!

Lisa Von Drasek presents, “Virginia Lee Burton: Artist, Teacher, and Entrepreneur,” and Aiden Bettine presents, “The Activism of the Target City Coalition: Anita Bryant and the Rise of a Local Gay Politic.”

Light lunch at 11:30 a.m. Presentations begin at noon. A tour of the archival caverns will take place after the event concludes. ASL interpreters will be present for all First Fridays events.

Register will open in January.

PRESENTATIONS

“Virginia Lee Burton: Artist, Teacher, and Entrepreneur"

Presented by Lisa Von Drasek

“The Activism of the Target City Coalition: Anita Bryant and the Rise of a Local Gay Politic.”

Presented by Aiden Bettine

Event details

What: First Fridays, March: ‘Virginia Lee Burton’ and ‘Activism of the Target City Coalition’

When: Friday, March 5, 2027 | Lunch at 11:30 a.m. | Presentations begin at noon

Where: Elmer L. Andersen Library, room 120 and ONLINE | Parking and directions

About

First Fridays is a series of intellectually stimulating talks from the Archives and Special Collections at the UMN Libraries.

These events are made possible by a generous gift from Gov. Elmer L. Andersen and Mrs. Eleanor Andersen in honor of former University Librarian Dr. Edward B. Stanford.

First Fridays, April: ‘Treasures in Transit’ and ‘In Remembrance of Ann’

First Fridays: Archivist’s Choice!

Kristen Mastel presents, “Treasures in Transit: Unearthing Stories from AHL’s Rare Books,” and Rebecca Toov presents, “In Remembrance of Ann.”

Light lunch at 11:30 a.m. Presentations begin at noon. A tour of the archival caverns will take place after the event concludes. ASL interpreters will be present for all First Fridays events.

Register will open in January.

PRESENTATIONS

Treasures in Transit: Unearthing Stories from AHL’s Rare Books

Presented by Kristen Mastel

In Remembrance of Ann

Presented by Rebecca Toov

Event details

What: First Fridays, April: Kristen Mastel presents, “Treasures in Transit: Unearthing Stories from AHL’s Rare Books,” and Rebecca Toov presents, “In Remembrance of Ann.”

When: Friday, April 2, 2027 | Lunch at 11:30 a.m. | Presentations begin at noon

Where: Elmer L. Andersen Library, room 120 and ONLINE | Parking and directions

About

First Fridays is a series of intellectually stimulating talks from the Archives and Special Collections at the UMN Libraries.

These events are made possible by a generous gift from Gov. Elmer L. Andersen and Mrs. Eleanor Andersen in honor of former University Librarian Dr. Edward B. Stanford.

First Fridays, May: ‘The Good Machine’ and ‘Architectural Alternate Realities’

First Fridays: Archivist’s Choice!

Amanda Wick presents, “The Good Machine,” and Teresa Tjepkes and Olivia Copia present, “Architectural Alternate Realities: Unbuilt Designs from the Northwest Architectural Archives.”

Light lunch at 11:30 a.m. Presentations begin at noon. A tour of the archival caverns will take place after the event concludes. ASL interpreters will be present for all First Fridays events.

Register will open in January.

PRESENTATIONS

The Good Machine

Presented by Amanda Wick

Architectural Alternate Realities: Unbuilt Designs from the Northwest Architectural Archives

Presented by Teresa Tjepkes and Olivia Copia

Event details

What: First Fridays, May “The Good Machine,” and “Architectural Alternate Realities: Unbuilt Designs from the Northwest Architectural Archives.”

When: Friday, May 7, 2027 | Lunch at 11:30 a.m. | Presentations begin at noon

Where: Elmer L. Andersen Library, room 120 and ONLINE | Parking and directions

About

First Fridays is a series of intellectually stimulating talks from the Archives and Special Collections at the UMN Libraries.

These events are made possible by a generous gift from Gov. Elmer L. Andersen and Mrs. Eleanor Andersen in honor of former University Librarian Dr. Edward B. Stanford.