On January 16, 2008, the Providence Journal, published an article discussing a map in the John Carter Brown's collection--one of the first to mention of "America."

History Now, an online publication of the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, published Ted Widmer's "Navigating the Age of Exploration," in its June 2007 edition. This month it was announced that the article will be republished in the Winter 2007-2008 issue of American Educator.

The Providence Journal for August 16 carried a penetrating and very complimentary review of the JCB's current exhibition, "Jamestown Matters." Arts editor Bill Van Siclen gave due credit to Susan Danforth, who curated the exhibition.

Franna Low, a faithful employee in the office of the JCB Associates for nearly 40 years, passed away on August 12. She had retired just a year ago, but she continued to drop in occasionally to be sure we were still "on our toes." Her candor and feisty spirit will be greatly missed.

The New York Times Magazine for July 22 featured an article by Director Ted Widmer with the title "George Bush I: Downtown character, liberal mystic, Islamic scholar. Who knew?"

On July 15th, another op-ed piece by Ted Widmer titled "The Challenge of Imperialism" appeared in the Boston Globe. It describes a speech by Senator John F. Kennedy that rejected Cold War beliefs and foresaw some of today’s foreign policy problems. (This is a PDF version of the article. Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to view it.)

On June 30th, an op-ed piece by Ted Widmer titled "Little America" appeared in the New York Times. The article discusses the fluctuating practical significance of the tiny Caribbean island of Navassa since Columbus supposedly sighted it in 1493.

The long-awaited JCB residence for scholars opened for occupancy on Friday, June 1. The event was celebrated with tours of the elegantly decorated public rooms and a pizza party. Conveniently located near the library at 79 Charlesfield, the residence contains eleven private rooms. For more information, please call 401-863-2725.

Ken Ward, from the University of Texas at Austin, will take up the position of Curator of Latin American Books on August 1. Ken is a historian of the Mexican book and in the final stages of a Ph.D. dissertation. He is currently living in Mexico City, where he is finishing his research on the family of booksellers and printers descended from Bernardo Calderon. He also received an MLIS from Texas and is a veteran of the rare book trade, having worked for years at Powell's Used Books in Portland, Oregon.

The April 3, 2007, issue of the Brown Daily Herald featured an announcement that Ted Widmer had been appointed to a University committee to “design a major academic initiative related to slavery and justice.” Widmer was quoted calling the JCB “one of the best places on Earth to study the comparative history of slavery” and pointing out that “the original committee [the University Steering Committee on Slavery and Justice] did a good deal of its own research there.”

On March 29th, the Reuters web site ran a long article about the JCBL's current exhibit, “Slavery and Justice.”

On March 12th, “The House Of Arthur Schlesinger Jr.: A mentor’s wisdom with Martinis Van Buren,” a column by Director Ted Widmer about his recent experience writing a Presidential biography, appeared in The New York Observer.

This spring, the Charles H. Watts Professorship brings Robert Gross to the JCB to teach the annual in-house History of the Book course.

On January 14th, “His Hour Upon the Stage,” Director Ted Widmer's commentary on President Bush's January 10th speech on his new Iraq strategy, appeared in the Boston Globe.