Reading Time: 7 minutesThe USF Libraries’ 1864 printing of American Kitchen, Directory and Housewife by Ann Howe is a later edition of a popular book first published as American Housewife in 1839. The recipe for “Composition Cake” as it is written in the clipping above requires “five cups of shifted flour, three of sugar, two of butter, a tea spoonful of soda, a tea cup of sweet milk, a wine-glass of wine, one of brandy, five eggs, one nutmeg; add a point of seeded raising if you want the cake quite rich.”
Category: Collections of Interest
National Author’s Day: 2025 Staff Recommendations
Reading Time: 2 minutesIn honor of National Author’s Day, Digital Dialogs wanted to share with you some of our favorite authors. The recommendations below were submitted by our very own USF Libraries’ staff and faculty. Fiction, non-fiction, poetry… this list really has something for everyone! …Continue Reading
The Haunted House on the Harlem
Reading Time: 5 minutesRichard Schmidt, Digitization Coordinator in the Digital Initiatives unit, Special Collections takes us on a Halloweenie journey through the USF Library Special Collections’ spookiest dime novels wit his review of “The Haunted House on the Harlem” from Pluck and Luck issue 1074, dated January 1st, 1919.
Boucicault’s Newly Digitized “The Vampire”
Reading Time: 2 minutesDion Boucicault (1820-1890) was a prolific and innovative playwright, actor, producer, manager, and director of the 19th-century, English-speaking stage. This year, the collection gained a newly digitized play, just in time for Halloween. The Vampire, a supernatural melodrama explores two encounters with a mysterious phantom, blending elements of the supernatural with dramatic tension.
Baking the Archives: Wisconsin Crumb Cake
Reading Time: 4 minutesToday’s bake takes us back to 1908, when the Woman’s Club of Jacksonville, Florida published its Woman’s Club Cook Book, a 220-page community collection spanning everything from soups to “chafing dish recipes” to “diet[s] for the sick.” These early 20th-century cookbooks are more than just recipe compilations, they’re cultural documents of women’s lives, networks, and foodways.
Remembering Roberts City Through the Stories of Its Community
Reading Time: 4 minutesOnce a vibrant community in West Tampa, Roberts City was notable for its residents, bustling businesses, and nationally recognized athletes. Today, it is remembered only through historical markers, cherished memories of former residents, and the archives they preserved.
National Reading Month: Rick Riordan, Percy Jackson, and Olympians
Reading Time: 5 minutesIn honor of National Reading Month, Digital Dialogs asked members of USF Libraries’ faculty and staff to share a story about a book sparked their love of reading. Read one of these stories below! This post was guest authored by Henesis Veras, …Continue Reading
Baking the Archives: Blueberry “muffins”
Reading Time: 6 minutesThis post was guest authored by Alexandra Vargas-Minor, Florida Studies Curator and Campus Archivist at the Nelson Poynter Memorial Library on the St. Petersburg campus Growing up in a family of bakers, I have always had an affinity for baking and …Continue Reading