Book Signing at the Columbia Archives

This looks like a neat event. The Columbia Archives holds a special place in my heart. My dad, who is an archivist, served on the Columbia Archives Board of Directors. I have known the head of the archives Barbara Kellner for many years and consider her a community treasure. Barbara is a wealth of knowledge about Columbia and I encourage everyone to talk to her.

Columbia Archives will host the first book signing of New City Upon a Hill by Joseph Mitchell and David Stebenne on Friday, May 11 from 5 to 7pm. Columbia Archives is located in the American City Building at 10227 Wincopin Circle in Columbia Town Center . At 5:30pm Mitchell and Stebenne will speak briefly of their ties to Columbia , the research process and how this book heightened their understanding of Columbia . New City Upon a Hill is published by History Press, Charleston , SC.

Mitchell has lived in Howard County since 1961 and taught high school history at Howard, Oakland Mills and Centennial. He also was as an adjunct faculty member at Howard Community College for more than 20 years and has co-authored readers in world history and the Holocaust for McGraw-Hill Higher Education.

Stebenne was Mitchell’s student at Oakland Mills from 1975-77. He has been a professor at Ohio State University since 1993 and is author of Arthur J. Goldberg: New Deal Liberal and Modern Republican: Arthur Larson and the Eisenhower Years.

Mitchell was a regular at Columbia Archives from June 2005 to November 2006 poring through documents and newspapers. He also conducted 20 interviews with people who figured prominently in the history of Columbia and has donated those tapes to the Columbia Archives.

Columbia Archives houses the James Rouse Manuscript Collection and a collection of records of Howard Research and Development, Columbia ’s developer. The collection also includes books and other printed materials, photographs, maps and graphic materials, audio and videotapes and memorabilia that collectively tell the story of the development of Columbia and the clubs, organizations and people which make it a community.

For more information on the book signing or the Columbia Archives contact Barbara Kellner at columbia.archives@columbiaassociation.com or 410 715-3103.

Oh, and I would be remiss in being a proud graduate of Oakland Mills High School if I didn't point out that one of the authors is a fellow alum of my alma mater. I am continually impressed by the caliber of people that Oakland Mills High School has produced.