A History of the Library as Seen Through Notable Researchers The New York Public Library’s Beaux-Arts Stephen A. Schwarzman Building celebrates its 100th anniversary this month on May 23. The Centennial offers a wonderful opportunity to reflect on Library use from the past 100 and uncover stories that can serve as inspiration for another century. One unique way to trace the history of the Library is through call slips. In order to use books in the research collection, patrons request specific titles by filling out a call slip, which includes the following information: author, title, and call number. Not all call slips have been saved over the years, but some have been preserved for posterity. Max Eastman and Aristophanes March 22, 1920. In March 1920, President Woodrow Wilson and the Democratic Party were losing favor. If there was a spirit of change in the air, Max Eastman was all too familiar with it. Lewis Mumford and Moby-Dick August 2, 1928. Imagine his excitement then, when L. New York of the Roaring 1920s is an iconic time. R. Who is R.
A library is many things Early-1971, in an effort to attract as many youngsters to the premises as possible, Marguerite Hart — children's librarian at the newly-opened public library in Troy, Michigan — wrote to a number of notable people with a request: to reply with a congratulatory letter, addressed to the children of Troy, in which the benefits of visiting such a library were explained. Below are five of the wonderful responses she received, from the following people: Neil Armstrong; Isaac Asimov; Hardie Gramatky; Dr Seuss; and E. B. White. Transcripts follow. (Source:Troy Public Library; Image: Oberlausitz Library, Germany, via.) Transcript NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATIONAPR 13 1971The Young Citizens of Troy, Michigan c/o/ Mrs. 16 March 1971Dear Boys and Girls,Congratulations on the new library, because it isn't just a library. Dr. E.
Are libraries finished? Five arguments for and against 4 February 2011Last updated at 17:26 By Peter Jackson BBC News A photographer and a businessman explain how libraries helped them With more than 400 public libraries under threat of closure, the campaign to save them is gathering pace. But in an age of downloads, cheap books and easy online shopping, can this great British institution survive? Some of the UK's best-selling authors have joined the fight against "cultural vandalism" by backing a national day of protest read-ins against library closures on Saturday. But no matter how eloquently Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy or author Colin Dexter extol their virtues, the fact is library visitor numbers - like their budgets - are falling. Campaigners say they are irreplaceable doors to learning more relevant now than ever before, but for others the speed and breadth of the web has rendered them obsolete dinosaurs. 1. "It's amazing what you can find online and also amazing what nobody managed to produce yet," he says. New chapter for UK libraries
Showing, Not Telling: Prezi & Omeka [This is a guest post by Caro Pinto, the John Hay Whitney Family Papers Processing Archivist at Yale University Library. Follow her on Twitter at @caropinto.--@jbj]An Archivist Walks into a Classroom… Many archivists spend their professional lives working in basements preparing diaries, letters, and photographs for use by students and faculty. And why not? Since finishing graduate school with a degree in library science and and a powerful aversion to PowerPoint, I’ve hunted for an alternative demonstration tool and found it with Prezi. In the past, to familiarize students with the range of sources they could deploy when writing research papers, I have challenged them to pair a type of resource (scholarly, popular media, trade publication) with a paragraph of text taken from each representative resource. Teaching students about primary sources is a hallmark of history instruction. How has–or how might–library instruction become more dynamic on your campus? Return to Top
Christian Zabriskie: How To Protest Library Cuts The libraries in New York City have been getting hammered in the budget fight over the last couple of years. In the 2010 budget, the Mayor's executive budget proposed $75 million in cuts to the three public libraries that serve the city. In 2011 it was worse, with $90 million on the table. These doomsday scenarios, if enacted, would have lead to massive layoffs and library closures (40 in 2010 and 28 in 2011.) As part of this effort over the last two years Urban Librarians Unite began the Save NYC Libraries Campaign. We didn't start the group with activism in mind and we hope that eventually these annual budget wars can be thing of the past. Urban Librarians Unite started as a way to get librarians from all three systems to exchange ideas and quickly spread to include academic librarians, corporate librarians, and library school students. Over time we've cultivated an effective mix of Social Media and old fashioned advocacy. We worked it into our logo and give out real ulus as awards.
On Denton ISD In-Service “Getting Techy” session | lillylibrarian's Blog My handout from today “Technology Teasers” Robot Handout PDF includes some tools discussed by Greg and I to facilitate discussion for or today’s In-Service day for Denton ISD librarians . Elementary and Secondary School librarians went to each table to share their ideas. in what Donna called “speedgeeking” ; ) I brought along “Comment Robot” so people could put in suggestions on slips of paper as well. Tweets:#di4ll @lillylibrarian @ghardin DentonISD popular suggestions during #di4ll “speedgeeking” session: Glogster, Photo Story (mac/windows xp) Aurasma, Windows Moviemaker, Animoto, & befriend your ITS! The ITS (Instructional Technology Specialist) was used interchangeably with CTS (Computer Technology Specialist) and it sounded like activities performed differed. I’ve hyper-linked ideas (in image below) suggested by the librarians (some of which were new to me and I can’t wait to play with!) Denton ISD school librarian tech ideas Like this: Like Loading...
THE HARM OF BOOKLESSNESS - The Ubiquitous Librarian The future of libraries… actually looks like an Info Commons from 10 years ago? You’ve probably seen the press about BiblioTech, the first bookless public library system in the country. It is being hailed as a “big success” and “the future of libraries.” While I can appreciate the marketing tactic they are using, I actually think they are doing more harm than good. My primary concern is that this might (or already has?) I could actually see this playing out like the UVA situation; people losing their jobs because they are not moving fast enough toward an all-digital environment. Bookless (not counting eBooks of course) Bookless? This also raises some old questions about what is a book? I don’t mean to be sour toward this library.
10 vintage library infographics from the 30s and 40s (pictures) Libraries are doing extremely well in using infographics to promote their services to communities, and reading in general. The infographics shown in this post are not “vintage-style”, like the one we created to analyze love in famous classic novels. They are truly vintage. They prove that libraries were doing very well in the area of visual communication already 80 years ago. Designed by Peabody Visual Aids in the 30s and 40s of the XX century, they were found by Char Booth in a throw-away pile at her library school in 2003. As Book Patrol reports, these infographic-like posters were produced under the supervision of a respected librarian Ruby Ethel Cundiff. Click on the images below to enlarge them. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Check out more library infographics collected on Ebook Friendly: About Ola Kowalczyk Collecting bits and pieces about books, libraries, and reading in digital age. PostsTwitterFacebook Leave a comment Get free updates via email Powered by MailChimp Featured products
Why going to the library is one of the best things I do for my kids and the planet My two kids and I head to the library every week and it's one of my favorite things. I love getting a huge bag of books and feeling the excitement to get home and read them and see where they take us. It's a strong memory I have from my own childhood and I cherish getting to repeat it with them, but the more time I spend at the library with my family, the more I realize its benefits go beyond just a bag of new books to read. The resources libraries provide and the values they reinforce are making my kids into better human beings and helping the planet along the way. The original sharing economy Libraries were participating in a sharing economy long before Netflix or Airbnb. For my kids, learning about how our library books are just on loan to us and belong to everyone in the community was a first lesson on how to take care of things so that they last and can be used by many people. Just as importantly, libraries are institutions dedicated to the sharing of information and ideas.
2015 Library Design Showcase Welcome to the 2015 Library Design Showcase, American Libraries’ annual celebration of new and renovated libraries. These are shining examples of innovative architecture that address user needs in unique, interesting, and effective ways. New construction dominated this year’s submissions, but renovated and repurposed spaces were a close second, showing how today’s libraries are both conserving existing resources and adapting to economic realities. Renovating History The John Hay Library, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island Built in 1910, the John Hay Library at Brown University was brought into the present with recent renovations. Sawyer Library at Stetson Hall, Williams College, Williamstown, MassachusettsThe massive library complex at Williams College is a marriage of the traditional and modern. Mary Helen Cochran Library, Sweet Briar (Va.) Repurposed Shared Spaces For the Kids East Hampton (N.Y.) A/V Teens Main Library, Monroe County (Ind.) Higher Learning Syracuse (N.Y.) Wow Factor
AIA/ALA Library Building Awards By Phil Morehart | September 1, 2015 The following libraries are winners of the 2015 Library Building Awards, sponsored by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and ALA’s Library Leadership and Management Association. The biennial award recognizes distinguished accomplishment in library architecture by an architect licensed in the United States for any library in the US or abroad. The awards were presented at the 2015 ALA Annual Conference and Exhibition in San Francisco.