Recently in Publications Category

In 1897 the Wisconsin Free Library Commission published a 39 page booklet entitled Free Traveling Libraries in Wisconsin: The Story of Their Growth, Purposes, and Development; With Accounts of a Few Kindred Movements. The cover of the publication is shown here. The cover includes the statement: "It is after all, not the few great libraries, but the thousand small ones, that may do most for the people". This philosophy is consistent with that which is discussed in the previous post. Also on the cover is an illustration of a traveling library bookcase similar to the one used by the Stout traveling libraries in Dunn County. The booklet has been digitized by the Wisconsin Historical Society and can be viewed here. Many of the images of traveling libraries in the booklet are also part of the Digital Images Collection of the Wisconsin Historical Society and can be seen here. There is also a page on this site devoted to traveling libraries.

Congratulations to WLHC Steering Committee member Ruth Ann Montgomery on the publication of her new book on the history of Evansville, Wisconsin. The book is part of the Images of America series published by Arcadia Publishing. Ruth Ann is Director of the Arrowhead Library System in Janesville and is a longtime Evansville historian. Many of the images in the book are from her personal collection assembled over many years. Ruth Ann also has also written a history of the Eager Free Library Public Library which is on the web. The Janesville Gazette has written an article about Ruth Ann and the publication of the book.

 

 

The Wisconsin Library Bulletin was begun in 1905 by the Wisconsin Free Library Commission under the leadership of Henry E. Legler. It continued publication through 1984. It is the most comprehensive account of Wisconsin’s library history for that period. It includes a wealth of information which can be utilized by libraries and those interested in local and state history to tell the story of Wisconsin’s libraries. Although the primary focus of the bulletin was initially public library development, the magazine includes information about libraries of all types. It documents a wide variety of library related activities and events which occurred during that period including staff appointments and changes, building projects, library association meetings, library education and continuing education events, legislation, gifts and appropriations, and grant programs including the Library Services Act and the Library Services and Construction Act. Through the involvement of the University of Wisconsin - Madison General Libraries in the Google Books project, the Wisconsin Library Bulletin has been scanned and many early issues of the magazine are now appearing in Google Books.  Locating and accessing periodicals through Google Books is often a difficult process. I have been able to locate the compilations for 1905, 1907, 1908, 1909, 1910, 1917, and 1922. You can search these compilations by keyword and an interesting exercise would be to search for your library in them. I will continue to keep looking for additional yearly compilations.

Two members of the WLHC Steering Committee have articles in the Summer issue of the Wisconsin Magazine of History.  Michael Edmonds is the author of "On the Trail of Paul Bunyan" and Christine Pawley is the author of "The Wisconsin Idea in Action: Reading, Resistance & the Door-Kewaunee Regional Library, 1950-52".  Congratulations to both of them.

Although the Paul Bunyan article by Michael is wonderful, it is Christine's Pawley's article that will be of most interest to the library history buff. Obtaining state funding for the 1950-1952 Door-Kewaunee Regional Library demonstration was one of the Wisconsin Library Associations greatest legislative victories. Pawley's article provides insight into why the county funding referendums which followed the demonstration in Kewaunee and Door counties failed and passed respectively. Passage in both was required for continuation of what was primarily bookmobile service in the rural areas of the counties. The article is well illustrated with some great bookmobile photographs including one of the bookmobile being loaded on the ferry to go to Washington Island.

The Wisconsin Historical Society makes available freely online its archive of the back issues of the Wisconsin Magazine of History from 1917 up through the 2006-2007 volume year. Only the current volume year is not available online. By searching the archive using the terms "libraries" and "librarian" several articles of interest to the library history buff can be found.