Library exhibit displays influential English dictionary

Staff Writer

Walking into the library, it’s easy to overlook the black display cases lining the main corridor, but it may be worth your while to take notice.

Associate Director of Special Collections Ron Patkus has organized the current display, which is particularly relevant to Vassar.

The exhibit is dedicated to the 250th anniversary of Samuel Johnson’s dictionary, Patkus said. The Johnsonians will hold their annual meeting at Vassar. “This is our way of celebrating,” Patkus said.

Samuel Johnson was commissioned in 1746 to write A Dictionary of The English Language, which was completed in 1755. The dictionary stands out from others of the same time period because it uses quotations by noted English authors, including John Milton, Robert Boyle and Francis Bacon.

The exhibit displays several copies of Johnson’s dictionary, including a first edition, and some of the original sources of the quotations that it uses.

Robert DeMaria, chair of Vassar’s English Department and head of the Johnsonians, played a major role in organizing the exhibit and the celebration. A number of alumni donated books for the collection. Alum Mary Crapo Hyde Eccles, class of ‘34, founded the Johnsonians and contributed to the exhibit.

Patkus explained why Johnson’s dictionary and his character warrant such a following. “Johnson’s dictionary was reprinted throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries,” he said. “It certainly had an influence on the English language. Johnson has come down to us as an interesting figure, an interesting personality and a prolific author.”

The exhibit can be found on the first floor of Vassar’s library.