Dr. Sidney L. Jackson was a prolific writer, Chairperson of the Intellectual Freedom Committee, Associate Historian for the American National Red Cross, Professor of Library Science at Kent State University–and an enthusiast for the American Library Association’s Centennial in 1976. He wrote an entire book A Century of Service: Librarianship in the United States and Canada (with Eleanor B. Herling & E.J. Josey. Chicago: ALA, 1976. (a copy is available in the Internet Archive) to celebrate this milestone. May we draw inspiration from his example as we approach the Sesquicentennial.

Find out more about Dr. Jackson in the essay on him by Dr. Kathleen de la Peña McCook in her essay on Librarians We Have Lost, Sesquicentennial Memories -1976-2026 (https://lhrt.news/librarians-we-have-lost-sesquicentennial-memories-1976-2026/).

The next meeting is June 4, 2025, from 1-3pm Eastern time. The link to join the meeting is here and the agenda is included below.

All members are welcome to attend (only executive committee can vote).

Hope to see you there! (If you have any issues joining, email me at henlear@miamioh.edu and I’ll try to keep an eye on my email just in case.)

• Approval of minutes from last meeting
• Announcements
  • Annual Meeting
  • 150th ALA Commemoration status
  • Awards
• LHRT Reads & Book purchase assistance
• Budget for 2025-2026
• Membership survey initial results
• ALA Memorial Resolutions project
• COPE document
• LHS Update
• LCHS Report & cover revision
• GODORT RT Buddy Program

–Alea Henle, LHRT Chair

Eric C. Novotny has been selected as the recipient of the LHRT Innovation and Advocacy in Library History Award!:

https://www.ala.org/news/2025/05/eric-c-novotny-selected-lhrt-innovation-and-advocacy-library-history-award

Hermina G. B. Anghelescu has been selected as the recipient of the LHRT Distinguished Service in Library History Award!:

https://www.ala.org/news/2025/05/hermina-g-b-anghelescu-selected-receipent-lhrt-distinguished-service-library-history#:~:text=The%20Library%20History%20Round%20Table,the%20field%20of%20library%20history.

 Please join me in applauding Jesse Carliner and Tys Klumpenhouwer, Robarts Library, University of Toronto, for a fanastic, original article for the blog!  In preparing this article for us, Carliner and Klumpenhouwer interviewed library workers at Robarts Library, University of Toronto, who had experienced firsthand the implementation and impact of technological developments over the last several decades, including the rise of microfiche, computers, library web site, Wifi, and more.  

Access the full article and historic images in our Information Innovations column:

Information Innovations

https://kathleenmccook.substack.com/p/two-ariadne-threads-through-the-bibliographic?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=321273&post_id=164075330&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=51xvh&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email

Please see below the very timely and keen analysis about the recent unjust firings at the Library of Congress written by Dr. Anita Coleman on her blog Infophilia: A Positive Psychology of Information…also some additional material. (Her blog features a wealth of thought-provoking content about the social, cultural, and historical aspects of information…be sure to sign up for her future blog posts while there!)

1). Thank you, Dr. Carla Hayden: 14th Librarian of Congress

https://infophilia.substack.com/p/thank-you-dr-carla-hayden

2). The Future of public knowledge: an investigation into the motivations behind the recent firings at the Library of Congress

https://infophilia.substack.com/p/the-future-of-knowledge

3). Cultivating civic infophilia: protecting public knowledge by practicing freedom of expression

https://infophilia.substack.com/p/cultivate-civic-infophilia

4) Serendipity’s charm: “major changes start with small beginnings” (“whole book” approach to cataloging)

https://infophilia.substack.com/p/serendipitys-charm

UPDATE:  We have extended the deadline for this survey to Friday, May 23. 

The Executive Board of the Library History Round Table seeks input from members and non-members on its programming and financial budgeting. As a round table of the American Library Association, income (including dues, other revenue) and expenses are reported on an annual basis. Your responses will assist the LHRT Board in assessing current activities and improving the value of annual dues to individual members.

https://tinyurl.com/LHRT2025survey

The survey should take no more than 5 minutes to complete. 

2024-2025 LHRT Membership Committee: 
   Erik Nordberg, Secretary/Treasurer Elect (and Membership Committee Chair)
   Alea Henle, Chair
   Jennifer Bartlett, Chair-Elect
   Steven A. Knowlton, Past-Chair
   Sterling Coleman, Member-at-Large 

——————————
Erik Nordberg
Dean of the Paul Meek Library
University of Tennessee at Martin
He/Him/His

Greetings!

Please join us online for the next Library History Round Table (LHRT) Reads on Thursday, June 5, 2025. We will be discussing In Silence or Indifference: Racism and Jim Crow Segregated Public School Libraries by Wayne Wiegand. Wayne has kindly agreed to join us at the end of our discussion for an author Q&A. Please bring your questions!

The event will begin at 7pm EST.  Advanced registration is required: https://ala-events.zoom.us/meeting/register/XF0K6beISkqM53klGr-pOQ

If you would like to participate but cannot access the book from a local library or afford to allocate resources towards is purchase, please email the LHRT Reads co-organizers, Amanda Belantara and Michele Fenton.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Amanda Belantara and Michele Fenton, co-organizers

Library History Round Table (LHRT) Reads

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The University of Mississippi Press is running a 55% discount on books purchased via their web site from May 14 through May 23–which will include Dr. Wayne Wiegand’s In Silence or Indifference: Racism and Jim Crow Segregated Public School Libraries:

https://www.upress.state.ms.us/Books/I/In-Silence-or-Indifference

https://www.ala.org/news/2025/05/ALA-praises-service-dr-carla-hayden-decries-dismissal