The end of the Fall semester is always associated with the holiday break. As for faculty and staff, we go our separate ways for awhile, and head off to enjoy a break with friends, family, and loved ones.

October is National Cookie Month as well as American Archives Month, therefore baking powder is the perfect topic for a post. While Library and Archives staff came up with their favorite recipes to share with the Rensselaer Community, I recalled an important collection in the Archives regarding Rumford Chemical Works, thus making the unique possibility of uniting cookies and archives a reality.

Whenever people return to Troy for reunion at least a few alumni visit the Institute Archives and Special Collections department.  It’s always fun to pull out materials and learn about their student experiences at the ‘tute.  This year an alum came in to do some research on a team he belonged to in the late 1940s and early 1950s.  While printing some pages of the Polytechnic for him I discovered what he already knew – RPI had a phenomenal cross country team 65+ years ago!

Every year leading up to commencement, we revisit the proud heritage that we have here at Rensselaer and offer the community glimpses into our history.  To the Class of 2016, we congratulate you and wish you the best moving forward. You too are leaving a legacy behind, as did the students in 1916.

In our last two Continuing Up the Hill posts we described the Warren estate property purchased by the Institute after the 1904 fire that destroyed the Main Building. The first building to be erected on the newly acquired property was the Carnegie Building.