Junior Astronomy Club in session, Henry Herman presiding, Planetarium, American Museum of Natural History, circa 1930J. Kirschner/© AMNH
Welcome to Library Fun Finds! An ongoing series where we share some of the fun and unique items we come across in the library and archives collections.
A look at the 10th anniversary of the Junior Astronomy Club in March 1939!
This past week I happened upon quite a few issues of the Junior Astronomy Club News from 1929-1939. These had been removed from the Central Archives years ago when the collection was photographed and microfilmed.
This particular issue celebrates 10 years of the club and therefore celebrates some of the work and individuals involved, which is why I chose it for this post.
Dorothy Bennett was not only an associate curator of astronomy and sponsor of Junior Astronomy Club, but she was also the editor, and sometimes author, of the Little Golden Books series after leaving the museum. She wrote and published “Handbook of the Heavens” with another club member that stayed in print for 60 years.
Roy Glaubner (fourth from the bottom) went on to win the Noble Prize in theoretical physics in 2005. In his biographical sketch and Noble Prize acceptance speech Dr. Glaubner credits Dorothy Bennett for her role and the role of the Junior Astronomy Club in his life:
“It met on Saturday evenings biweekly, in an imposing auditorium on the top floor of the Roosevelt Memorial building, adjacent to the Planetarium. There the kids, who came in by subway from the far reaches of the city, heard invited lectures by real astronomers. It was that club that Miss Bennett suggested I try attending. I was indeed excited by it and caught up in it from the first meeting I went to. It then formed a large part of my life till I went off to college."
I am happy to say this edition, and several other issues, have now been reunited with the rest of Central Archives allowing for much easier access.
This entry was written by Lauren VanDenBerg, Shelby White & Leon Levy Project Archivist.