Margaret Tanchuck was cleaning out her late father’s jewelry store about a year and a half ago when she found some old Bibles and books, including a centuries-old manuscript by Benjamin Franklin potentially worth more than $1 million.
The only catch was the New York Public Library call numbers on the spines.
Now, the manuscript—a handwritten workbook of the items printed in Mr. Franklin’s print shop in the 18th century—and seven other rare books are at the heart of a contentious dispute between the 50-year-old Nassau County woman and the library, which alleges the books were stolen from the library decades ago.
