For centuries, public libraries have played a critical role in communities. A role that evolves and shifts, reflecting the needs of its community. Yet at the same time, public libraries remain timeless and few gathering spaces appear as frequently in an individual's life as the library. Here in Phoenix it's where a child goes for story time and to read their first chapter book. Where an adolescent learns to code and discovers how to get lost in a novel. Where a nervous teenager fills out their college applications. Where adults snag the latest musical album or newest book topping the charts, receive help with their taxes or prep for an interview. Where visitors of all ages can connect with life changing information or find a treasure.
It is also the place where on a recent March morning global scholars gathered in
Phoenix Public Library's Rare Book Room at Burton Barr Central Library. The group, hosted and joined by
Arizona State University
faculty, looked on with slack-jawed wonder at a 437-year-old book with handwritten notes by author John Milton of “Paradise Lost" fame. Normally, it would take months for scholars to research the handwriting and determine if it was Milton's. But, by ASU faculty leading the charge and inviting four international scholars to join together, the red tape was cut away and
history was made.
Just a few floors above where local teens sat filling out college applications these scholars identified the handwriting of Milton in an Alfred Knight Collection copy of “Holinshed's Chronicles," dated 1587. Believed to be very popular in its time, “Holinshed's Chronicles" was used as a source for much of Shakespeare's works. It's likely that, at one time, this was John Milton's personal copy of the book and this is only the third book with Milton's notes known to history.
It would be hard to overstate the significance of such a find nearly 350 years after Milton's death and at this particular point in time. As debates rage across the nation over the notion of free speech, finding the handwriting and real-time thoughts of one of history's most impassioned defenders of both the freedom of speech and of the press seems like kismet. Even more good fortune, this treasure of a rare book representing a timeless thread is accessible at a public library.
