Remnant Trust loans to Trine

ANGOLA, Ind. – Don't miss an opportunity to thumb through early and first-edition books and manuscripts focused on human dignity and individual liberty when Trine University hosts a collection of works on loan from The Remnant Trust.

These rare finds -- including a Gutenberg Bible leaf from 1455, Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address  from 1863, a 16th-century Hebrew Torah and "The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection" by Charles Darwin published in 1883 – will be available for students and visitors to view and to read, courtesy of The Remnant Trust based in Winona Lake. Trine will have a collection on loan from The Remnant Trust through May.

"Trine is grateful to offer these rare finds for the benefit of our students and the community," said Earl D. Brooks II, Ph.D., Trine president. "Many professors are using the collection to enhance their classes and all students are encouraged to get their hands on these pieces. The ability to offer individuals such a unique opportunity to not only see but hold such works is a privilege."

Though the collection on loan is comprised of rare and early works, the trust encourages visitors to hold and look through the works. Remnant Trust president Kris Bex shares the founder's  wish that the rare finds be read, touched and enjoyed, not simply locked away to be kept safe.

For many, this could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to have access to early editions of some of humankind's greatest books and documents. In fact, the great scholarly libraries of the United States, such as the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C., the Newberry in Chicago and the William Andrews Clark in Los Angeles, will only allow credentialed scholars into their collections.

Visitors are encouraged to view The Remnant Trust collection in Wells Gallery in the Taylor Hall of Humanities. A grand opening is set for 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 8. Additional hours are 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 14; 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 15, 1 to 3 pm. Saturday, Sept. 21 and 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 22. Additional hours will also be announced.

To arrange a tour for a group or organization, please call Dareen McClelland in the Office of the President, at mcclellandd@trine.edu or 260.665.4102.

The Remnant Trust, a growing collection of more than 1,200 works, was started nearly than 15 years ago by Brian Bex, an Indiana University graduate and longtime political commentator.

The mission of the trust, a public educational foundation, is to elevate the public's understanding of individual liberty and human dignity, raise consciousness of the documents that have shaped America and lift the spirits of each generation to think the grandest thoughts. The trust also focuses on being "the world's finest repository of the great ideas that have propelled man through the centuries from earth to the stars."