Wisconsin Library Heritage Center
The Wisconsin Library Heritage Center is a program of the Wisconsin Library Association Foundation promoting understanding and appreciation of the history of libraries and librarianship in Wisconsin.
The Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame is a project of the Wisconsin Library Heritage Center which is a program of the Wisconsin Library Association Foundation. Induction into the Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame is granted to individuals who have made an exceptional contribution to the statewide improvement of library service in Wisconsin. Inductees into the Hall of Fame are selected by the Steering Committee of the Wisconsin Library Heritage Center. The Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame includes both librarians and library supporters. Nominations of individuals to be included in the Hall of Fame come from the Steering Committee and the library community at large. The first ten individuals were inducted into the Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame in 2008. The inductions take place at the Annual Conference of the Wisconsin Library Association.
Mary Emogene Hazeltine was inducted into the Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame in 2008. Hazeltine was the first head of the Wisconsin Library School established under the auspices of the Wisconsin Free Library Commission in 1906.
Reuben Gold Thwaites was inducted into the Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame in 2008. Thwaites was one of the founders of the Wisconsin Library Association in 1891. He served as President of WLA 1892-1894.
James Huff Stout was inducted into the Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame in 2008. Stout in his capacity as a state senator was the first legislative champion for Wisconsin’s libraries. He also used his personal wealth accumulated in the lumber industry to advance the cause of libraries and education.
In Part I of her autobiography My Seventy-five Years, Lutie Stearns provided the following description of her work promoting traveling libraries:
“From 1895 through October,
Lutie Eugenia Stearns was inducted into the Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame in 2008. Stearns, along with Frank Hutchins and James Stout, was instrumental in establishing the Wisconsin Free Library Commission (WFLC) in 1895. From 1895 to 1897 she served as the unpaid Secretary of the Commission.
Lyman Copeland Draper was inducted into the Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame in 2008. Draper became corresponding secretary of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin in 1854, an office he held until 1886. In that capacity he was responsible for significantly increasing the size of the Society’s library.
Edward Asahel Birge was inducted into the Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame on November 6, 2008. Birge was one of a small group of people who gathered in the office of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction on February 11,
Theresa West Elmendorf was inducted into the Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame on November 6, 2008. Theresa West became Deputy Librarian of the Milwaukee Public Library in 1880 when she was just 25 years old. In 1882 she became the first member of the American Library Association from Wisconsin.
Frank Avery Hutchins was inducted into the Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame on November 6, 2008. Hutchins was one of the founders of the Wisconsin Library Association in 1891. He served as President of WLA from 1894 to 1897.
One of the goals of the Wisconsin Library Heritage Center is to publicize Wisconsin libraries and their history. So it was a pleasant surprise to see a story in the November 28 issue of the Dunn County News about the induction of James Huff Stout into the Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame.