In May 1895, newspapers around the country reported that Columbia President and alumnus Seth Low (CC 1870) had donated $1 million for the construction of the library building on the future Morningside Heights campus. This was at the time the largest donation ever made by an individual to a college or university. Low received letters […]
Category: Columbia University Archives
From In Absentia to In Person
The Office of the Secretary recently sent out its yearly appeal asking members of the Columbia community to submit nominations for this year’s honorary degree and University Medal for Excellence recipients. The University aims to honor individuals “across all of the various areas of study and fields of academia.” The only restrictions are that honorees […]
A Change in Furniture
At the RBML, there are a couple of historical chairs in our reading rooms. One chair used to be in Benjamin Franklin’s library and is featured during presidential inaugurations. The other belonged to Columbia College Class of 1786 alum DeWitt Clinton. In fact, as the plaque on the chair notes, this is the chair “in […]
Belle da Costa Greene and Columbia
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Morgan Library and Museum as a public institution. As part of the commemoration, the Morgan has put together an exhibition about the life and career of its first director, Belle da Costa Greene. Columbia librarians collaborated with Greene long before the Morgan was open to the public, […]
Vickrey’s Scaled Roadway Pricing
Columbia Professor of Economics William Vickrey (1914-1996) is widely considered the Father of Congestion Pricing. And deservedly so. Vickrey studied traffic bottlenecks, gridlock and public transportation to find system efficiencies. With a version on congestion pricing about to go into effect in New York City starting January 5, 2025, we look back at a version […]