de Grummond’s Gentle Giant: Big George

: A black and white photo of two young children reading on Big George’s lap. The little boy, Garrett Rabian, has light hair and is wearing a white sweater. The photograph catches him flipping excitedly through the large book in his lap. The little girl, Janice Rabian, has dark hair cut into a bob and bangs; she’s wearing a black dress with a white lace collar. In the photo, she is hugging Big George’s neck, her cheek against his, while she holds a copy of Curious George in her lap.

A photo of Dr. Aubrey Lucas standing with Big George, holding a copy of one of the Curious George books. Big George is wearing black slacks and a plain white dress shirt with a black bow tie. Dr. Lucas stands next to George, smiling down at him with a hand on his shoulder. Dr. Lucas matches George’s outfit with an added black blazer.

In 1966, Lena de Grummond wrote hundreds of letters a week, including to the creators of the beloved Curious George, H.A. and Margret Rey. They responded with excitement and promised to send materials to the collection one day soon. The letter closed with a sketch of Curious George with his arms full of papers, walking by a sign that pointed to Hattiesburg. In 1990, Margret Rey fulfilled that promise. Margret invited the de Grummond staff to her home in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to see the materials and bring them back personally. Her contribution contained materials from twenty-three titles, including the Curious George stories.

News of the collection's newest acquisition spread quickly. To celebrate, Sid Graves at Carnegie Public Library in Clarksdale, Mississippi, made his own curious contribution: a five-foot-tall Curious George stuffed animal. Unfortunately, we don’t know much about Big George, like who originally made him or for what purpose, but he is now a staple of the de Grummond.

In 2008, Ms. Dorothy Cascio, who has since retired from Cook Library, sewed five outfits for Big George. These outfits include a formal suit with a bowtie; a yellow USM button-up; a white Southern Miss t-shirt; farm-themed overalls; and a Santa suit. Over the years, he has traveled to local schools and libraries and even made an appearance on the local news. As he has aged, he’s gotten a bit fragile, so he doesn’t travel as much anymore. For special occasions, he’ll welcome students to Cook Library or greet attendees at the Kaigler Children’s Book Festival, but, otherwise, you will find him standing guard in the de Grummond Manuscript Room.

While Big George isn’t readily available for viewing, he can be brought out for special events, like school trips, in Special Collections. If you have any questions about Big George or the de Grummond Children’s Literature Collection, contact Karlie Herndon at karlie.herndon@usm.edu.

Text by Marge Sauls, de Grummond Collections Specialist.