Verso

In the middle of the 19th century, the small town of Concord, Mass., had an outsized reputation as New England's intellectual center. This was in large part thanks to the fame of four writers who called the place home

When it came to finding the confidence to publish her writing, science fiction writer Octavia E. Butler (1947–2006) could count on herself for a pep talk. "I shall be a bestselling writer," she wrote in one of the notebooks contained in her papers.

It's easy to imagine that heritage roses—with names such as 'Archduke Charles', 'William R. Smith', and 'Maman Cochet'—originated in England or France. But every repeat-blooming rose today traces its history back to the China rose, Rosa chinensis, says Tom Carruth

In a suite of audio posts, visiting journalist Corinne DeWitt heads into our three collecting areas—Library, Art, and Botanical—and meets up with staff to explore facets of the vast collections that are the core of The Huntington. First up: Botanical.

In the early 1980s, Mary Robertson, then chief curator of manuscripts, had an unusual meeting with a film production designer. Robertson was used to talking with people about the wonders and mysteries within The Huntington's vast and renowned collections.

The Huntington possesses an astonishing Elizabethan-era illuminated manuscript, dating from 1567, entitled Heroica Eulogia. Containing a series of vignettes of earls and kings, it is an exquisite volume that combines paintings, coats of arms, Latin poems

The Huntington and the University of California, Riverside, have selected the first two fellows for the highly competitive Huntington-UC Program for the Advancement of the Humanities, a partnership designed to boost the humanities at public universities.

The highways and byways of early modern England carried travelers transporting news of the day. Royal messengers jostled with post-boys, merchants, booksellers, and balladeers. Judges rode their circuits