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Library History Study Links

Traditionally, library history has been encouraged by a variety of sources: graduate library schools, library associations, libraries, interested organizations, and individuals. These international efforts to preserve, collect, organize, and produce historical information about libraries now are being extended to the Internet. As well, linkages with other groups are being developed to study the broader social, cultural, and intellectual roles libraries have assumed, especially within a print culture or the history of the book.

More recently, Libraries Today has sprouted a blog where you can catch up with more current views and notes by visiting it. Also, RSS (really simple syndication) capabilities have opened the possibility of receiving updated feeds from different groups or articles directly into one's browser (provided an RSS reader is installed that can view pages marked with the image Rss tag) or a dedicated RSS reader, for example the latest issues of the British journal Library History. This capability is an important step in linking issues relataed to library history and fostering research.

ACROSS CANADA
Contact the convenors of the Library History Interest Group of the Canadian Library Association about annual sessions held in June and CLA publications on library history. The group has published a number of historical library studies and its latest volume, Readings in Canadian Library History 2 edited by Peter McNally, is available from CLA.

Subscribe to Épilogue, a bulletin published by the School of Library and Information Studies at Dalhousie University. It deals with the history of Canadian libraries, books, and archives.

The Bibliographical Society of Canada and the Toronto Centre for the Book provide information on Canadian printed works and manuscripts that is connected with the history of libraries.

A gateway to many Internet venues for librarians, trustees, and the public is provided by the Heritage and Libraries Branch of the Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Recreation. This site is an excellent source for up-to-date provincial legislation, surveys, annual reports, statistical data, and news releases from the provincial body responsible for public libraries. It also features some historical pieces, such as the work of Andrew Carnegie in Ontario. The Carnegie phenomenon is well-researched across North American and the UK and can provide interesting sources for comparative historical inquiry.

The History of the Book in Canada was a national, interdisciplinary project in print and electronic format to explore the historical development of all aspects related to books and publications in Canada.

Since 1987, the Ex Libris Association has held meetings and published its newsletter to promote the history of Canadian librarians and libraries. It published The Morton Years: the Canadian Library Association, 1946-1971 by Elizabeth Hulse which can be ordered through the CLA.

Search for library history via the Canadiana.org site (formerly Canadian Institute for Historical Microreproductions) with varous partrners. This fiche and electronic archive is a fascinating and rewarding source for 19th and early 20th century Canadian library history and it is possible to order publications directly via web. For some electronic documents a subscription is necessary.
UNITED STATES
The American Library Association Library History Round Table provides articles on library history in L H R T Newsletter; offers awards for historical research; organizes conferences; and provides bibliographies on library history. Its web site also has linkages to organizations and associations interested in library and book history as well as standard Guidelines for Writing Local Library Histories.

Libraries & the Cultural Record, published at the University of Texas, is a leading journal specializing in library history and the development of books in a social, political and technological context.

The Society for the History of Authorship, Reading, & Publication is an important American web site for those interested in electronic links to the history of print culture and libraries.

Search the American Memory web site at the Library of Contress for hundreds of photographs of public libraries between 1880-1920 from the Detroit Publishing Company's digital collection held at the Library of Congress.

The Library History Buff created and maintained by Larry T. Nix, a retired librarian, is a tremendous source for library history, not only in the US, but in around the world. Visitors can find information on history, library historians, collecting library memorabilia and cultural artefacts that emphasize libraries and librarians.

Visit the archival site of the American Library Association at the University of Illinois at Urbana. It provides brief descriptions of ALA holdings, a search function, as well as information about access/restrictions procedures and policies.

Visit two projects on Carnegie Libraries that include pictures and contacts. The Carniegie Libraries of California has information about the Carnegie grants program, Carnegie library styles, and local sites that applied for Carnegie grants before 1917. The Carnegie Libraries of Ohio contains information for this state and for Andrew Carnegie.

Two fun links for potential postmodern interpretations! Search the Internet Movie Database plot summaries for libraries or librarians or visit Martin Raish's Librarians in the Movies to see how they have been portrayed in moving pictures during this century.

UK and INTERNATIONAL LINKS
The Library and Information History Group, originally formed in 1962, published Library History from 1967-98 and continues to be associated with this journal and other publications. It is actively involved in the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals and major projects such as the "History of Libraries in Britain and Ireland." To join its discusion group and access archived messages contact LIBHIST directly.

To receive updated information on articles published in Library History via RSS feeds visit the publishers's journal made available through Ingenta. Look for the image and either drag and drop it to your RSS browser sidebar or cut and paste the url into your RSS reader.

The IFLA Library History Section is an international forum for the study of library history and all areas of librarianship. Conferences, seminars, and publications cover all historical aspects.

A Greek site, the History of Private, Royal, Imperial, Monastic and Public Libraries, that outlines the history of Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Minoan, Greek, Roman, Medieval (Western and Byzantine) libraries with illustrations and text. Maintained by K. SP. Staikos and D. Kontominas.

A research project designed by Robin Alston, the Library History Database, formerly at the University of London School of Advanced Study Centre for English Studies, provides information on libraries in the British Isles to 1850 based on published works. It is expected to contain data on approximately 30,000 libraries when the project is completed.

The Carnegie Libraries of Scotland by Gerry Blaikie is a site that explores Carnegie's origins and the buildings in his homeland. It includes commentary, images, and links about Andrew Carnegie.

Australia's Cultural Network has links for the history of libraries and books that includes mechanics' institutes and free libraries.

Visit the Library Museum at Boras, Sweden. It offers an exhibition hall and historical collections related to libraries in this country.

Last modified on Thursday, 06-Dec-2007 20:47:29 EST



Created February 1996 | Suggestions or comments to: Libraries Today | top of this page |