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Careers in Librarianship

1992

10 interviews



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The Career in Librarianship project includes interviews with ten people employed in libraries or library education. Three of the interviewees were Deans of Indiana University's School of Library and Information Science, or SLIS. Others include a SLIS lecturer, a high school librarian, a college archivist, 2 public library directors, and a public library branch head. All of the interviewees worked in Indiana (except for one of the public library directors, who worked in Michigan). Collectively, the interviews consider the training that librarians receive, librarianship as a career, as well as changes in, and the future of, the profession. The interviews were conducted by students of the Indiana University School of Library and Information Science as a project for a class on the history of American libraries.

Interviewees

Fry, Bernard M.

Gerlach, Dominic

Lair, Nancy Chambers

Martin, Helen

Outlaw, Carolyn

Rufsvold, Margaret

Sander, Harold J.

Weick, Robert J.

White, Herb

Whitney, Eleanor


Interviewee: Fry, Bernard M.
Call number: 92-040
Date(s) of Interview: June 19, 1992; June 23, 1992; June 29, 1992
Physical Description: Not transcribed; 3 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 270 minutes; index; photocopy of newspaper obituary
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Gullett, Matt; LaRue, Gabrielle; Stemmer, John

Bernard M. Fry (born in 1915, died in 1994) was Dean of the Indiana University School of Library and Information Science from 1967 to 1980 and a member of the faculty until 1984. He served in World War II on the Manhattan Project and served in several capacities in librarianship and information science for the federal government from 1946 to 1967. He edited two journals and was active in library and information science organizations. Fry discusses his various occupations and education. He also talks about where the field of library science is going and what still needs to be done.

Keywords

Corporation Names

American Library Association

Catholic University

Central Intelligenc Agency

George Peabody College

Government Publications Review

Indiana Library Association

Indiana University

Indiana University School of Library and Information Science

Information Systems

Information Processing and Management

Legislative Reference Service

Library of Congress

Mary Washington College

National Commission on Libraries and Information Science

National Science Foundation

National Technical Information Service

Syracuse University

Technical University

Theta Chi

United states Army Intelligence

Vanderbilt University

Personal Names

Griffith, Ernest

Hoffman, Ronald

Kaser, David

Maxwell, Robert

Reed, Sarah

Roosevelt, Franklin Delano

Rufsvold, Margaret

Shores, Louis

White, Herbert

Place Names

Canada

Holland

Bloomington, Indiana

New Mexico

Washington, DC

Occupation Names

army intelligence officer

bibliographer

editor

librarian

library school dean

Subjects

Manhattan Project

World War II

atomic bomb

college life

information science

library schools

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Interviewee: Gerlach, Dominic
Call number: 92-037
Date(s) of Interview: April 18, 1993
Physical Description: 24 pp.; 2 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 144 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Hufstetter, John

Father Dominic Gerlach, born in 1921, describes his life as a professor of German and history, and archivist at St. Joseph College in Rensselaer, Indiana, where he began working in 1952.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Brunnerdale High School Seminary

Society of the Precious Blood

St. Charles Seminary

St. Joseph College

St. Louis University

Place Names

Columbus, Ohio

Fort Recovery, Ohio

Mercer County, Ohio

Rensselaer, Indiana

Occupation Names

farmer

history professor

nun

priest

Subjects

Model T Ford

Catholicism

German immigrants

German language

Jim Crow laws

buggies

farming

grade school readers

public library

rural school

school lunches

seminary life

skyscrapers

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Interviewee: Lair, Nancy Chambers
Call number: 92-041
Date(s) of Interview: May 4, 1993
Physical Description: 21 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 50 minutes; black and white photograph, biographical fact sheet
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Holovack, Donna

Nancy Lair, born in 1926, was a lecturer on the faculty of Indiana University's School of Library and Information Science from 1974 to 1993. She describes her childhood, college and library school education, and jobs she has held in and outside of librarianship. She also talks at length about her experience teaching workshops in Malawi in 1988.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Bunda College of Agriculture

Columbia University

Fairview School

Indiana University

Kmusu College of Nursing

Longwood College

McCalla School

Monroe County Community School Corporation

University of Kentucky

Personal Names

Armstrong, Marian

Botne, Robert

Lair, John

Msiska, Augustan

Mwiyeriwa, Steve

White, Herbert

Place Names

Blantyre, Malawi

Bloomington, Indiana

Bunda, Malawi

Lilongwe, Malawi

Maben, West Virginia

New York, New York

Zimbabwe

Zomba, Malawi

Occupation Names

librarian

library educator

Subjects

library associations

public library

school library

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Interviewee: Martin, Helen
Call number: 92-042
Date(s) of Interview: March 18, 1993
Physical Description: 34 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 90 minutes; essay; word list
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Soper, Cheryl

Helen Martin held various positions at the Vanderburgh County Public Library, later the Evansville-Vanderburgh County Public Library, from 1945 to 1992. She describes the changes in her work and the library's services over those years.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Evansville City Library

Evansville North High School

Evansville-Vanderburgh County Public Library

Francis Joseph Reitz High School

Henry Reese Elementary School

Sacred Heart Grade School

St. Theresa Elementary School

University of Evansville

Vanderburgh County Library

Woolworths

Personal Names

Bean, Ruth

Bickel, Bernice

Bruner, Bernice

Henze, Ronald

Herr, Evangeline

Howard, Edward A.

Locker, Pamela

McCollough, Ethel

Rosaaen, Arnold

Teubert, Lola

Voelkel, Mildred

Place Names

Evansville, Indiana

Occupation Names

librarian

Subjects

branch libraries

children's library services

employment benefits

shipyards

stroke patients

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Interviewee: Outlaw, Carolyn
Call number: 92-044
Date(s) of Interview: April 16, 1993
Physical Description: 51 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 41 minutes; outline, word list, glossary
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Brewer, Amy

Carolyn Outlaw, née Carolyn Elaine Howard, born in 1937, describes her youth and education in Evansville, Indiana, before beginning work at the Evanville-Vanderburgh County Public Library in 1970. She describes changes in the library and her work there.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Briggs Chrysler

Evansville-Vanderburgh County Public Library

Federal Produce

Lincoln High School

Family Names

Nicholson

Personal Names

Klinger, Fran

Lensing, Robert

Lensing, Wendel

Sanders, Dolores

Wilson, E. Carolyn

Place Names

Evansville, Indiana

Occupation Names

librarian

Subjects

Carnegie libraries

Christmas traditions

doll collection

flooding

library services

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Interviewee: Rufsvold, Margaret
Call number: 92-043
Date(s) of Interview: May 3, 1992
Physical Description: not transcribed; 3 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 202 minutes; keyword lists, curriculum vita
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Coyle, Tina

Margaret I. Rufsvold, born 1907, speaks about her ancestors, her parent's education, and her personal education. She discusses her early professional career, the development of the library school, the curriculum, and the accredidation of the department. She also discusses being selected to develop a research library for the university in Bangkok, Thailand, and her experience there in the nineteen sixties. She finishes off the interview by discussing some of her academic interests and research areas during her career.

Keywords

Corporation Names

American Library Association

Columbia University

George Peabody College

Indiana Library Association

Indiana State Department of Public Instruction

Indiana University School of Education

Indiana University School of Library and Information Science

Mundelein College

Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division

North Central Association of Standards

University of Wisconsin

Wisconsin Library Commission

Personal Names

Fry, Bernard

Guss, Carolyn

Hazeltine, Mary Jean

Hofster, Anita

Johnson, Edna

Miller, Robert A.

Wells, Edna

Wells, Herman B

Wright, Wendell W. "Whack"

Place Names

Bangkok, Thailand

Calumet, Michigan

Istanbul, Turkey

LaCrosse, Wisconsin

Marinette, Wisconsin

North Dakota

Peshtago, Wisconsin

St. Paul, Minnesota

Occupation Names

SLIS dean

librarian

Subjects

Who's Who in America

World War II

academic research

audio-visual materials

library school

library science

school accredidation

school librarianship

sororities

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Interviewee: Sander, Harold J.
Call number: 92-039
Date(s) of Interview: March 25, 1993
Physical Description: 19 pp.; 2 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 1 hour, 20 minutes
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Heffron, Jennifer

Harold J. Sander, born 1913, describes his education at Evansville College and Columbia University, which led to his career as librarian. In that career, Sander worked at the Indiana State Library, the Roanoke Public Library, and was head of the business branch and ultimately director of the Indianapolis Public Library from 1956 to 1971. During his tenure as director, the library merged with most other public libraries in Marion County. Finally, Sander imparts his philosophy of librarianship.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Indianapolis Public Library

Columbia University

Evansville College

Focus on Business and Industry

Focus on Indiana Libraries

Indiana State Library

Industrial Editors Association

Roanoke Public Library

University of Evansville

Your Cue to Business

Personal Names

Chait, Bill

Gnat, Raymond

Logsdon, Robert

Lugar, Richard G.

Nevins, Allen

Wood, Albert

Place Names

Indianapolis, Indiana

Marion County, Indiana

New York, New York

Roanoke, Indiana

Occupation Names

librarian

Subjects

The Care and Feeding of Executives

censorship

library school

stuttering

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Interviewee: Weick, Robert J.
Call number: 92-036
Date(s) of Interview: March 25, 1993
Physical Description: 16 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 82 minutes; biographical sheet
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Bishop, Raymond

Robert J. Weick, born in 1925, describes his career as a teacher and school librarian, primarily his time in the Fort Wayne, Indiana Community Schools. He observes how schools and their libraries have changed over time.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Association of Indiana Media Educators

Fort Wayne Community Schools

International Harvester Company

Manchester College

Western Michigan University

Personal Names

Lewandowski, Bob

Shang, Marlene

Webb, Marian

Place Names

Chinook, Montana

Flat River, Missouri

Fort Wayne, Indiana

Occupation Names

librarian

teacher

Subjects

school library

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Interviewee: White, Herb
Call number: 92-045
Date(s) of Interview: April 17, 1992; April 22, 1992
Physical Description: 3 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 210 minutes; untranscribed; keyword index; 2 VHS videocasettes
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Aley Hall West, Room 264. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Bryan Hall 201. The videotapes of this interview are also housed at the University Archives. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Oral History Research Center office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: D'Ambrosio, Tom; Luttman, Carrie

This interview with Herbert White, one-time Dean of Indiana University's School of Library and Information Science, covers his family background, education, employment history, library education, and professional issues.

Keywords

Corporation Names

American Documentation Institute

American Society for Information Science

Atomic Energy Commission

Bethesda Research Center

Carleton College

City University of New York

Colorado Clerk Typist School

Columbia University

ERIC

Harvard Law School

IBM Corporation

Indiana University School of Library and Information Science

Indiana University School of Public and Environmental Affairs

Library of Congress

NASA

National Science Foundation

Navy Research Technical Division

New York University

Queensborough Public Library

Special Libraries Association

Tennessee Valley Authority

United Aircraft

United States Army

University of Alberta

University of South Florida

Personal Names

Braylove, Allen

Brown, A.

Bush, Buzzy

Churchill, Winston

Cronin, Blaise

Fry, Bernard

Garfield, Eugene

Kreimer, Richard

Luhn, Peter

Miller, Don

Miller, Morton

Mort, Sara

Murphy, Marcy

Passet, Joanne

Peterson, Peggy

Savage, Terry

Schmidt, Steve

Shull, Harrison

Smith, Kay

Steinberg, Saul

Taub, Mortimer

Tennyson, Alfred

Place Names

Bloomington, Indiana

Brooklyn, New York

Dallas, Texas

Fort Wayne, Indiana

Iran

Mississippi

Poland

Switzerland

Vienna, Austria

Occupation Names

bibliographer

librarian

library school dean

Subjects

high school life

immigrants

library school

student life

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Interviewee: Whitney, Eleanor
Call number: 92-038
Date(s) of Interview: February 1, 1993
Physical Description: 15 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 63 minutes; photocopies of 13 newspaper clippings
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Rauh, Jill

Eleanor Whitney was interviewed as a part of an Indiana University School of Library and Information Science course on library history. She was born in Lansing, Michigan, in 1908, and adopted at age 8. Whitney was a graduate of Benton Harbor, Michigan High School and Ward-Belmont School for Girls in Nashville, Tennessee., and attended the University of Chicago for a semester. She received an A.B. in library science from Western Michigan University in 1952. Whitney worked at the Benton Harbor Public Library from 1943 until her retirement in 1969, serving as children's librarian from 1950 to 1951 and as director from 1951 to 1959. She describes library staff, its board of trustees, services, and the building of a new library late in her tenure.

Keywords

Corporation Names

American Library Association

Benton Harbor Public Library

Benton Township Library

Berrien County Library League

Michigan Children's Home

Southwest Michigan Library Cooperative

University of Chicago

Western Michigan University

Personal Names

Arnold, Theodosia Falkingham

Baker, Dorothy

Burket, Rose

Cole, Emma

Farnum, Don

Goldbaum, David

Gray, Humphrey S.

Hemingway, Janice

Kibler, "Kib"

Kinney, John

McKie, Barbara

Mittan, Roy

Taylor, George

Whitney, Robert A.

Place Names

Benton Harbor, Michigan

Detroit, Michigan

Occupation Names

librarian

library clerk

library director

Subjects

African-Americans

bookmobile

genealogy

library boards of trustees

library collection development

library consortium

library school

library services

young adults' library services

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