Holy Cross Libraries

The 27th Annual Convention of the International Catholic Deaf Association was filled with both the Holy Spirit and the Spirit of '76! This program from the Bicentennial Convention, held July 1-17, 1976 in Los Angeles, is part the Deaf Catholic Archives collection in Archives and Distinctive Collections at the College of the Holy Cross.

📸 Deaf Catholic Archives

These simple-looking blocks of wood are pieces of the elm tree that stood in Cambridge, Massachusetts under which George Washington is said to have taken command of the American Army on July 3, 1775. They were presented by the City of Cambridge in 1924 and are now items in the Special Collections at the College of the Holy Cross. The legendary tree fell in 1923, and the story is now considered more myth than fact. However, July 2 does indeed mark the 250th anniversary of George Washington's arrival in Cambridge followed by his inspection of troops in Cambridge on July 3.

📸 College of the Holy Cross Archives and Disinctive Collections; Cousins, Frank, “Cambridge, views, Washington elm tree,” ca. 1865-1914, Frank Cousins Glass Plate Negatives Collection, PhotoVault_Box 82_3721. Courtesy of Phillips Library, Peabody Essex Museum, Rowley, MA.

Happy Independence Day! The Holy Cross Libraries will be closed this Thursday and Friday in observance of this holiday.