LHRT NEWS AND NOTES

https://journals.flvc.org/flalib/article/view/142968

“This article argues that the DeFuniak Library (now the Walton-DeFuniak Public Library) is best understood in the context of the political, social, and technological changes that took place in the late 19th century, namely the developments of railroads and adult education programs in the postbellum South. This milieu helps explain how and why individuals from the Northeastern United States, especially New York, made their way first as tourists and then permanent residents to DeFuniak Springs.”

WOW!!! That’s all I can say about the Los Angeles Public Library’s library history celebration.  Lots of engaging web content and events.  LHRTer Tiffney Sanford is in Los Angeles and writing posts for the event, and we thank her for the update below…   –Brett Spencer, Editor

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The Los Angeles Public Library has been celebrating their Central Library’s centennial year, dubbed Central 100. There is a web page devoted to the celebrations [https://www.lapl.org/central-100] which included an all-day festival in July that had activities and performances throughout the building and the grounds. Descendants of the architects and artists who worked on Central Library were present along with approximately 12,000 attendees.

I’ve been working on historical Central Library-focused articles alongside a few other colleagues [https://www.lapl.org/news-stories/topics/central-100]. There are also staff-created podcasts, community oral histories, plus color-by-number sheets featuring the library’s architectural features and tied to a Beanstack reading challenge. 

One of the biggest hits of Central’s centennial celebration has been the Card Catalog Stamp Collection (see attached). There’s a larger story behind this project but basically each of LAPL’s libraries have been given large supplies of former Central Library catalog cards along with a rubber stamp that depicts their branch. People from all over the city are visiting each library to collect the stamps. It has been a wonderful way for the libraries to connect with a larger audience, and a great way for participants to explore parts of the city they might not have been to before. As someone collecting the stamps I’ve met incredible library workers (I rarely introduce myself as a fellow staff member so I’ve been an anonymous participant). And as someone in the library stamping the cards for patrons I’ve met incredible Angelenos (and tourists) and had an opportunity to share what makes my branch unique.

–Tiffney Sanford

We are excited to share that Dr. Maxie Schreiber’s book Places of Participation: The History and Architecture of Public Libraries in Germany and the United States was published this summer! The attached flier and table of contents as well as the publisher web site provide more details (the text of the book is in German but the attached materials are in English).

From the publisher: “A knowledge hub, a third place, a public living room: public libraries in Germany are tasked with more roles than storing books. Some even see them as places of civic participation that can help secure the future of democracy. Yet if German public libraries are so important, then why doesn’t their architecture reflect this mission? To answer this question, the author embarks upon a journey into the history of public libraries and the promised land for German librarians: the United States of America.”

Dr. Schreiber, who earned a PhD in Art History from Freie Universität Berlin, was profiled in LHRT’s Member Spotlight column in 2022. Her previous works include the book Altägyptische Architektur und ihre Rezeption in der Moderne (Ancient Egyptian Architecture and Its Reception in Modern Times: Architecture in Germany 1900–1933) and “Public Libraries, Public Input: How Citizens’ Comments Can Inform Public Library Architecture” in Platform, among many other publications. She has taught at Free University of Berlin, the Technical University of Darmstadt, and University of Wisconsin—Madison (USA), and she organized a virtual conference in 2020 about library architecture in North America.

Of special note, she also wrote “Senses of Place: An Architectural Historian Before and During COVID-19” for LHRT’s own Libraries: Culture, History, & Society journal.

Find a bio and full list of her research and activities at https://maxieschreiber.com/

The Library History Round Table (LHRT) of the American Library Association (ALA) is pleased to announce our 15th Library History Seminar (LHS) and we’d like to offer you an opportunity to share your research!

LHS XV will take place virtually December 3-5, 2026. 

The theme is “A History of Modern Libraries, Warts and All: Development, Organization, and Transformation.” 

The American Library Association is celebrating its 150th year in 2026 and LHS XV seeks to explore all aspects of the history of modern libraries and librarianship in North America and beyond. “Libraries” is defined broadly and includes public, academic, school and special libraries, library organizations (state, national, and international).  We especially welcome voices from marginalized and non-mainstream communities, and critical examinations of the history of modern libraries/librarianship.  

The conference will be low-cost or no-cost for attendees. For more information and to submit your proposal, please go to Library History Seminar XV CFP/Submission Form

Greetings!!

Please join us online for the ALA Library History Roundtable’s (LHRT) media discussion group, LHRT Reads on Thursday, October 22nd, 2026 at 7pm Eastern Time. We will be discussing byhttps://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__bibliotactics.com_&d=DwMGaQ&c=slrrB7dE8n7gBJbeO0g-IQ&r=Eh_cETWZfUV0Gn5ctbqBFw&m=eT-xvh-m8WD2b2Snqk8aRjmAFDnc3fEWmry2BNBA4L59iIee-FfnlElJ8hNhRmJf&s=q7GQYbiuOWJaQ__Xp-XzoZQJ8pGVx” rel=”noopener”> Bibliotactics: Libraries and the Colonial Public in Vietnam by Cindy Anh Nguyen.

 Advanced registration is required. To register,  please visit:  https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__ala-2Devents.zoom.us_meeting_register_SFjrQZpXSPajJ-5FrULLFmCg&d=DwMGaQ&c=slrrB7dE8n7gBJbeO0g-IQ&r=Eh_cETWZfUV0Gn5ctbqBFw&m=eT-xvh-m8WD2b2Snqk8aRjmAFDnc3fEWmry2BNBA4L59iIee-Ffn” rel=”noopener”>https://ala-events.zoom.us/meeting/register/SFjrQZpXSPajJ_rULLFmCg

Note: This event will not be recorded.

If you would like to participate but cannot access the book from a local library or afford to allocate resources towards its purchase, please email the co-organizers, Amanda Belantara and Michele Fenton. We look forward to seeing you there!

Amanda Belantara & Michele Fenton

ALA Library History Round Table (LHRT) Reads

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Michele Fenton
Librarian I/Cataloger
Indiana State Library
Indianapolis, IN
mfenton@library.in.gov
(317) 234-4937
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https://blogs.loc.gov/loc/2026/07/two-thousand-years-of-the-odyssey-at-the-library

For those of you with an interest in the Mechanics’ Institute/Schools of Art/Athenaeums movement and their libraries this call for papers for the bicentenary celebrations of Australia’s institutes may be of interest. To find out more about these Australian institutes and their history a brief summary can be found in the  Dictionary of Educational History in Australia and New Zealand—Mechanics’ Institutes and Schools of Arts Australia, 1820-2010 or visit MIV Victoria Inc

Call for papers

On Saturday the 13th  March 2027 the Mechanics’ Institutes Australia Bicentenary 2027 Seminar: Learning from the Past, Looking to the Future will be held at the Melbourne Athenaeum. We are marking this significant milestone with a daylong conference, followed by a bus tour of selected Melbourne and regional institutes on Sunday the 14th March. 

The program will be organised around two thematic streams:

• History — exploring the development and legacy of Mechanics’ Institutes in Australia
• Future — examining their evolving role and opportunities ahead

We invite submissions of abstracts aligned with either stream in the following formats:

• Presentations (20 minutes)
• Lightning talks (8 minutes)
• Workshops (90 minutes)

We welcome both academic and practice-based contributions, and encourage submissions from anyone with an interest in, or knowledge of, Mechanics’ Institutes. The call for papers closes on the 15th August. 

For more information please see: https://www.mechanicsinaus.org/

• Reference “commandments” from the 1970s, 1990s, and today
• ALT-BLA: Altoona’s first community website
• Librarians Seeking Ten Nights in a Barroom (rare books librarianship, 1950s}
• Keith Doms (former PaLA president) talks about leadership (1986)

Exciting news: an absolutely fantastic oral history project by Ruth Tillman at Penn State Libraries explores the rise of one of the early computerized catalog systems:

https://liashistory.com

It includes audio interviews with transcripts and a timeline, reflecting several years of research!

This is not only invaluable as a history of computing in libraries, but also an example of how to do oral history in libraries.