Maine Antiquarian Booksellers Association

Attempted Theft at Bowdoin Library

This notice was circulated on the ABAA website:

To: ARLIS Libraries: For your internal information
From: Bowdoin College Library
Date: December 21, 2005
Re: Attempted theft at Bowdoin Library

We are writing to advise you about an incident at the Bowdoin Library involving a patron who may have been attempting to steal library materials. On Monday, we noticed a patron in the stacks acting suspiciously, and simultaneously found a pile of library materials hidden behind shelved books in the stacks nearby. The materials were primarily old maps that had been torn out of turn-of-the-century government documents, depicting National Parks and other American territories. e immediately called our Director of Security, Randy Nichols, who came to the Library and talked to the man. After the man hurriedly left the Library, Randy contacted the Brunswick Police who stopped the man for questioning. The man had no library materials on his person, but his actions and attitude convinced Randy that he was responsible for tearing out the maps and probably planned to remove the items he had stashed away. He has now been issued a trespass warning and will not be permitted on the Bowdoin campus.

The man's name is Laurent A. Beaucage of Brunswick, age 56, 5'11", 170 lbs, gray hair, and hazel eyes. He was neatly dressed and was wearing a loose-fitting light khaki jacket.

For a couple of weeks we had been finding torn-up pieces of old text pages in wastebaskets in different areas of our basement stacks, so we suspected something strange was going on. Yesterday we found the empty cardboard covers of some of these texts, mixed in with the torn-out maps. We suspect that the man might have been inserting stolen maps in the cardboard covers to conceal them. These old items would not have set off our security alarm.

If you feel nervous about the actions of a patron, or see mysterious torn-up materials in wastebaskets, trust your instincts! Our valuable collections are unfortunately vulnerable to mutilation and theft by people who can make money selling the materials through antique stores, flea markets, etc.

Reports of Book Thefts

September 2004. Estelle Plumb at The Booklover's Attic in Belfast has discovered that a first edition of Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath has disappeared from the store. It went missing sometime between mid-August and early September. It is in near mint condition, with a very good dust jacket, which is covered in acetate. One small flaw might help in identifying the book: on the top of the dust jacket's spine there is a little bit of scotch tape folded over the edge, probably to cover a small tear. In pencil on the front endpaper was written lightly "1st Edition" along with a date and the price, $3,500 (of course, this could be easily changed or erased). If anyone has any information about this book, please call Estelle at (207) 338-2450.

March 2004. Bill Lippincott at Lippincott Books in Bangor reports a problem with theft of books at his shop, some of them valuable titles that were in a large glass sectional bookcase, including:

Charles Farrar. Eastward Ho or Adventures at Rangley Lakes, 1880. The second edition. Brown cloth in near fine condition.

Charles Farrar. Through the Wilds, [1892]. Brown cloth. Very good condition.

Oliver Goldsmith. Vicar of Wakefield, circa 1900. Attractive edition, illustrations in color, in a fine binding.

Henry Herbert. Frank Forestor's Fish and Fishing in the United States...., 1851. The third edition. Brown cloth in very good condition.

Bill writes, "Whoever is lifting these is quite sophisticated, as they replace the book in the case with another book from elsewhere in the shop with a similar appearance.

"Please let me know if anyone tries or has tried to sell you these titles; I often - but not always - have a code in the tail edge of the final page of the book, if it hasn't been erased."

He has posted a reward for any information leading to identification of the thieves / recovery of the books.

Items Stolen from the Bangor Public Library (Reported 19 April 2001)

1. Page, J. Q. A Topographical Map of Androscoggin County, Maine. Portland J. Chace, 1858. (912.7418.P143t) accession #409736 Large wall map mounted on cloth, folded to 30.5 x 27.5 cm

2. Atlas Moderne: ou, Collection de cartes sur toutes les partiers de globe terrestre par plusieures auteurs. Aves approbation & priviledge du roy. Paris, Delalain, 1762. (912.A881) accession 28948

3. Walling, Henry Francis. Map of the State of Maine from survery ... Portland, J Chace Jr. & Co, 1862 (912.741 W158m) mounted on cloth, folded to 42 x 46.5cm. Accession 306401

4. Chace, J Jr. Map of Sagadahoc County, Maine from actual surveys... Portland, J. Chace Jr. 1858 (912.7416.C344m) , mounted on cloth, folded to 38 x 39 cm. Accession 337078

5. Burritt, Elijah Hinsdale. The geography of the heavens... (Atlas of the Heavens). New York Huntington and Savage 1845 (523.B945g) accession 34350. 8 plates diagrams 42.5x37.5 cm.

6. Hopkins, C. M. A Topographical Map of Lincoln County Maine. Philadelphia, Lee & Marsh, 1857 (912.7416.H774t) accession 337079 mounted on cloth, folded to 38.5 x 36 cm.

7. Laurelled, Chefs-D'Oeuvre D'Art. Philadelphia, Gebbie & co, 1889, 25 plates, (750. L373l), accession122347

8. Album des Nouveautes, Paris, Goubaud, 18__ (391. A345a) accession 227062. 12 Colored Plates.

9. The Century Gallery. Selected proofs from the Century Magazine and St. Nicholas. New York, The Century Co. 1893. (759. C33) accession 70170. 64 plates 43 x 33.5 cm.

10. Walton, William. The Army and Navy of the United States. Boston, G.Barrie & Son. 1889-1895. 3 vols. Plates 1-40 plus text. (973.W179a Plates 3vols) accession 276015. 50 cm

11. Tennyson, Alfred Tennyson 1st Baron. Idylls of the King. Illustrated by Gustave Dore. London, E Moxon & co. 1868. 281 p. Plates 45 x 32 cm. (821.81.R4) accession 37903.

12. Tessier, Louis. Bouquets par Jean-Baptiste Monnoyer Fils et Louis Tessier. Paris, Charles Massin et Albert Levy, nd. (758.M754b) accession 281932

13. Megargee, Edwin. Gun Dogs at work, Sis [six?] paintings. Gunning and fishing prints, New York 1945 6 prints. (636.75.M472g) accession 331397.

14. Frescoes of Diego Rivera. New York, Museum of Modern Art, 1933. 11 Colored Plates (750.R525f). accession 227268.

Private Office Theft of Scholarly Series

Brattleboro Books reports that 57 Library of America volumes have been stolen from a customer's office. Ellen Tenney writes, "Michael received a call from a Professor T. Hunter Wilson at Marlboro College, and a regular customer here, reporting that 57 Library of America volumes were stolen from his office over the weekend. Oddly enough the thief left behind the slipcases! Prof. Wilson said that there were no college markings on them as they were from his own collection, and he had not put his name in them. Professor Wilson's number is 802-464-5129 or you can call or email me here. Thanks, Ellen Tenney, Brattleboro Books, brattbks@sover.net."

	Reports of Book Thefts and Similarly Bad Goings-On
	Attempted Theft at Bowdoin Library This notice was circulated on the ABAA website: To: ARLIS Libraries: For your internal information From: Bowdoin College Library Date: December 21, 2005 Re: Attempted theft at Bowdoin Library We are writing to advise you about an incident at the Bowdoin Library involving a patron who may have been attempting to steal library materials. On Monday, we noticed a patron in the stacks acting suspiciously, and simultaneously found a pile of library materials hidden behind shelved books in the stacks nearby. The materials were primarily old maps that had been torn out of turn-of-the-century government documents, depicting National Parks and other American territories. e immediately called our Director of Security, Randy Nichols, who came to the Library and talked to the man. After the man hurriedly left the Library, Randy contacted the Brunswick Police who stopped the man for questioning. The man had no library materials on his person, but his actions and attitude convinced Randy that he was responsible for tearing out the maps and probably planned to remove the items he had stashed away. He has now been issued a trespass warning and will not be permitted on the Bowdoin campus. The man's name is Laurent A. Beaucage of Brunswick, age 56, 5'11", 170 lbs, gray hair, and hazel eyes. He was neatly dressed and was wearing a loose-fitting light khaki jacket. For a couple of weeks we had been finding torn-up pieces of old text pages in wastebaskets in different areas of our basement stacks, so we suspected something strange was going on. Yesterday we found the empty cardboard covers of some of these texts, mixed in with the torn-out maps. We suspect that the man might have been inserting stolen maps in the cardboard covers to conceal them. These old items would not have set off our security alarm. If you feel nervous about the actions of a patron, or see mysterious torn-up materials in wastebaskets, trust your instincts! Our valuable collections are unfortunately vulnerable to mutilation and theft by people who can make money selling the materials through antique stores, flea markets, etc. Reports of Book Thefts September 2004. Estelle Plumb at The Booklover's Attic in Belfast has discovered that a first edition of Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath has disappeared from the store. It went missing sometime between mid-August and early September. It is in near mint condition, with a very good dust jacket, which is covered in acetate. One small flaw might help in identifying the book: on the top of the dust jacket's spine there is a little bit of scotch tape folded over the edge, probably to cover a small tear. In pencil on the front endpaper was written lightly "1st Edition" along with a date and the price, $3,500 (of course, this could be easily changed or erased). If anyone has any information about this book, please call Estelle at (207) 338-2450. March 2004. Bill Lippincott at Lippincott Books in Bangor reports a problem with theft of books at his shop, some of them valuable titles that were in a large glass sectional bookcase, including: Charles Farrar. Eastward Ho or Adventures at Rangley Lakes, 1880. The second edition. Brown cloth in near fine condition. Charles Farrar. Through the Wilds, [1892]. Brown cloth. Very good condition. Oliver Goldsmith. Vicar of Wakefield, circa 1900. Attractive edition, illustrations in color, in a fine binding. Henry Herbert. Frank Forestor's Fish and Fishing in the United States...., 1851. The third edition. Brown cloth in very good condition. Bill writes, "Whoever is lifting these is quite sophisticated, as they replace the book in the case with another book from elsewhere in the shop with a similar appearance. "Please let me know if anyone tries or has tried to sell you these titles; I often - but not always - have a code in the tail edge of the final page of the book, if it hasn't been erased." He has posted a reward for any information leading to identification of the thieves / recovery of the books. Items Stolen from the Bangor Public Library (Reported 19 April 2001) 1. Page, J. Q. A Topographical Map of Androscoggin County, Maine. Portland J. Chace, 1858. (912.7418.P143t) accession #409736 Large wall map mounted on cloth, folded to 30.5 x 27.5 cm 2. Atlas Moderne: ou, Collection de cartes sur toutes les partiers de globe terrestre par plusieures auteurs. Aves approbation & priviledge du roy. Paris, Delalain, 1762. (912.A881) accession 28948 3. Walling, Henry Francis. Map of the State of Maine from survery ... Portland, J Chace Jr. & Co, 1862 (912.741 W158m) mounted on cloth, folded to 42 x 46.5cm. Accession 306401 4. Chace, J Jr. Map of Sagadahoc County, Maine from actual surveys... Portland, J. Chace Jr. 1858 (912.7416.C344m) , mounted on cloth, folded to 38 x 39 cm. Accession 337078 5. Burritt, Elijah Hinsdale. The geography of the heavens... (Atlas of the Heavens). New York Huntington and Savage 1845 (523.B945g) accession 34350. 8 plates diagrams 42.5x37.5 cm. 6. Hopkins, C. M. A Topographical Map of Lincoln County Maine. Philadelphia, Lee & Marsh, 1857 (912.7416.H774t) accession 337079 mounted on cloth, folded to 38.5 x 36 cm. 7. Laurelled, Chefs-D'Oeuvre D'Art. Philadelphia, Gebbie & co, 1889, 25 plates, (750. L373l), accession122347 8. Album des Nouveautes, Paris, Goubaud, 18__ (391. A345a) accession 227062. 12 Colored Plates. 9. The Century Gallery. Selected proofs from the Century Magazine and St. Nicholas. New York, The Century Co. 1893. (759. C33) accession 70170. 64 plates 43 x 33.5 cm. 10. Walton, William. The Army and Navy of the United States. Boston, G.Barrie & Son. 1889-1895. 3 vols. Plates 1-40 plus text. (973.W179a Plates 3vols) accession 276015. 50 cm 11. Tennyson, Alfred Tennyson 1st Baron. Idylls of the King. Illustrated by Gustave Dore. London, E Moxon & co. 1868. 281 p. Plates 45 x 32 cm. (821.81.R4) accession 37903. 12. Tessier, Louis. Bouquets par Jean-Baptiste Monnoyer Fils et Louis Tessier. Paris, Charles Massin et Albert Levy, nd. (758.M754b) accession 281932 13. Megargee, Edwin. Gun Dogs at work, Sis [six?] paintings. Gunning and fishing prints, New York 1945 6 prints. (636.75.M472g) accession 331397. 14. Frescoes of Diego Rivera. New York, Museum of Modern Art, 1933. 11 Colored Plates (750.R525f). accession 227268. Private Office Theft of Scholarly Series Brattleboro Books reports that 57 Library of America volumes have been stolen from a customer's office. Ellen Tenney writes, "Michael received a call from a Professor T. Hunter Wilson at Marlboro College, and a regular customer here, reporting that 57 Library of America volumes were stolen from his office over the weekend. Oddly enough the thief left behind the slipcases! Prof. Wilson said that there were no college markings on them as they were from his own collection, and he had not put his name in them. Professor Wilson's number is 802-464-5129 or you can call or email me here. Thanks, Ellen Tenney, Brattleboro Books, brattbks@sover.net."