Monday, October 31, 2016

Bilbo Dies

William Bowen, who served as president of Princeton when I went there, has died. A very important fact went missing from the published obituaries: all of the students (and who knows how many professors) habitually referred to him as "Bilbo." The card catalog for the main library (yes, there were card catalogs back then) even had the following entry:  Bilbo, see Bowen, William G. I don't know if this entry vanished when the university library catalog went electronic -- it would be a pity if it did.

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