Card Catalog Grave

Washington, DC

Dr. Thomas Mann's tombstone befits a man who worked for 33 years as a reference librarian at the Library of Congress. His rectangular monument is sculpted to resemble a card from an old-fashioned library card catalog. Mann's birthplace of Chicago is listed as his place of "publication," and his parents, Charles and Margaret, as his "publishers." His date of birth is listed in the format of an International Standard Serial Number. One line says "Rev. ed. Baton Rouge, 1976; Washington, DC. 1980," which were significant dates and places in Mann's life. Also included is the call number for a book that Mann authored, The Oxford Guide to Library Research. The gravestone even has a hole bored through its lower half, reproducing the dowel hole in cards that held them in place in a card catalog drawer.

As for what is in store for Mann (who is still alive), the stone says, "Future corrected edition in the hands of a Higher Editor."

[Grave report by Kurt Deion]