A margin note in a 1972 atlas started a fight at my library

I found an old road atlas at the Goodwill in Boise with handwriting in the margins, stuff like "don't trust this bridge after rain" and "gas station closed, use the one on 5th." The dates on some notes line up with the early 80s, but a few look recent, maybe 2010s. So my question is, do we treat these as a real person's local knowledge or just vandalism? I showed the ladies at the circulation desk and half said it's a treasure, half said it's defacing library property. Has anyone else found notes that feel like a secret guide, and did you try to track down who wrote them or just leave it be?

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troy_gibson432mo ago

People leave these breadcrumbs everywhere, it's how we talk to strangers across time.

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leer122mo ago

Notice them in old graffiti and even song lyrics, it's like the internet existed way before screens.

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