While looking for the Semper Fidelis Club letters I also came across a file full of materials from the dedication of the San Jacinto monument and museum:
The first thing you’d notice if you opened this folder is that this stuff had all gotten wet at some point. Take a look at Dr. Lovett’s badge and credential:
We’ve seen water damaged papers before (here and here, for example) but I have no idea when they got wet or whether they got wet at the same time .
The next thing I noticed was how many Rice people were involved in the two-day dedication ceremonies. Here’s the program, which features not only Lovett but also Marcel Moraud of the French Department, and in his capacity as president of the Texas Folk-Lore Society, our hero, Radoslav Tsanoff:
Bonus: I felt a small pang when I turned a page over and saw this. You can see where the Nifty Clips left rust stains when they got wet and then if you look closer the modern staples that were surely put there by one of our beloved predecessors in the archives. Which aside from any sentimental value also tell us a little something about when the paper got wet.
