On October 5, 1789, George Washington borrowed two volumes from the New York library and never returned them.
The library first learned of the missing books when it discovered a yellowed ledger in its basement.
It listed all the people who had checked out books from the city’s oldest library between July 1789 and April 1792.
Next to the works “Law of Nations” and the 12th volume of “Common Debates” was the name of the person who checked them out: “President.”