WORCESTER — A library book that was 51 years overdue is finally back in its rightful place in the Worcester Public Library, all thanks to the keen eyes of a Boston resident.
Worcester Public Library’s only copy of “The Early Work of Aubrey Beardsley” was discovered somewhere in Boston and brought to the Cambridge Public Library, who realized the book wasn’t theirs, and contacted the library in Worcester.
Alex London, the genealogy and local history librarian with the Worcester Public Library, got the call.
“I was contacted by a librarian at the Cambridge Public Library,” he said. “Someone had come into the library with the book and they were able to save it from essentially being thrown away.”
“The book was borrowed in 1973, with a return date of May 22, 1973,” London said, adding it’s the longest overdue book he’s seen returned during his employment with the library.
Most outstanding library books are lost in attics and basements, London said, and often found when someone is moving, someone dies or during a deep clean.
Published in 1899, the book was added to the library’s collection that same year.
“It’s a rarity that someone found this,” he said. “but not only that they found it, but that it is in such good condition.”
The book had been overdue for so long, it missed the modern digitization of the library, effectively removing the title from the library’s catalog altogether.
The library in Worcester no longer charges overdue fines for books but will still send out reminders to those who do not return items.
“The WPL’s mission is to make services and information available to everyone, and they believe that charging overdue fines goes against that mission,” the library states on its website.
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