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Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2015 Ernestine Rose and the Harlem Public Library: Theory Testing Using Historical Sources Julia C. Skinner Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF COMMUNICATION AND INFORMATION ERNESTINE ROSE AND THE HARLEM PUBLIC LIBRARY: THEORY TESTING USING HISTORICAL SOURCES By JULIA SKINNER A Dissertation submitted to the School of Information in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy 2015 Julia Skinner defended this dissertation on May 29, 2015. The members of the supervisory committee were: Melissa Gross Professor Directing Dissertation Jennifer Koslow University Representative Gary Burnett Committee Member Richard J. Urban Committee Member The Graduate School has verified and approved the above-named committee members, and certifies that the dissertation has been approved in accordance with university requirements. ii This manuscript is dedicated to my family and friends who loved and supported me throughout its writing. In particular, it is dedicated to five people I love very much who passed away during my doctoral program: William B. Skinner, Margery Skinner, Julian Huntley, Nick Rahn, and Emily Palmer. Thank you all for inspiring and believing in me; I wouldn’t be here without you. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS It takes a village to support any serious research undertaking, and this project is no exception. The obvious place to start in giving thanks is to my dissertation committee, who provided support, encouragement, and advice throughout the process. Each member of my committee gave incredibly helpful feedback, and was vital to the dissertation writing process. I feel incredibly fortunate to have the advisor and committee members I do. My department has also been an important provider of many different kinds of support, from the encouragement and thoughtful questions from peers in classes and at my defense, to the support of graduate assistantships and scholarships that gave me the ability to finance my education. Florida State University is home to some of the greatest scholars I know, and through my time at the School of Information, is now home to many treasured friends as well. My colleagues elsewhere, including faculty, students, and librarians, deserve praise as well, for continued encouragement and for the valuable insights they have shared throughout the research process. I also would like to thank the various libraries I consulted during my research (the New York Public Library system, Municipal Archives, Columbia University Library, University of Massachusetts Amherst) and the Florida State University libraries, and the wonderful people who work at them, who were a pivotal part of this project’s success. Many (many!) people beyond my professional life have also supported my work. My family has been a constant source of encouragement throughout my doctoral iv program, and without a lifetime of their love, support, and belief in me, there is absolutely no way I would have grown into the person who believed in herself enough to begin a doctoral program in the first place. My friends have been instrumental in this program and in my life as well, giving me places to stay while I was in New York, plus lots of love and encouragement, and pulling me away from my computer once in a while to do something fun and to remind me that there is a world outside my dissertation. I feel incredibly fortunate to be surrounded by so many talented, loving, and amazing people. Thanks is due to Written?Kitten!, the program that motivated me to write through the promise of cat pictures. Finally, thanks is due to my pets, who puzzingly love me no matter what state of disarray my person or my home might be in. The following people deserve a special mention here, as well as my eternal gratitude: Melissa Gross, Richard Urban, Gary Burnett, Jennifer Koslow, Wayne Wiegand, Michelle Kazmer, Christie Koontz, Don Latham, Warren Allen, Paul Marty, Kathy Burnett, Marcia Mardis, Elaine Howard, Linda Ross, Shonda Sampson, Kimberly Amos-Tata, Jade Stagg, Cathy Branton, Pam Doffek, Leila Gibradze, Abby Philips, Jonathan Hollister, Jisue Lee, Wonchan Choi, Jongwook Lee, Jihei Kang, Lenese Colson, Dave Skinner, Margaret Meints, Jan Horton, Jean Sibbald, Tim Meints, Jonathan Horton, Jameson Horton, Jeremy Horton, William Skinner, Margery Skinner, Julian Huntley, Lauren Bradley, Elisa Rojas, Annie Pho, Nicole Fonsh, J. P. Porcaro, Micah Vandegrift, Mick O’Dwyer, Emily Drabinski, Dylan Norden, Liz Shores, Elizabeth Holdsworth, Jacob Engelsman, v Anne Marsh, Michael Mahoney, Justin Haines, Katie Lapp, Joe Urban, Ellen Ireland, Lake Emmerson, Mikki Smith, Jordan Wagner, Bethany Bennitt, Lauren Shay Harris, Lauren Barreiro, Ian Mott, Lauren Everett, Jaime Hampton, Adam Hanley, Queequeg, Gir, Mouse, and Eleanor. I am sure I have left more than a few names off this list. If I have overlooked yours, it is less a reflection of your level of support than a reflection of the state of my brain after writing this dissertation. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ........................................................................................................................viii 1. INTRODUCTION....................................................................................................1 2. LITERATURE REVIEW.......................................................................................26 3. METHOD...............................................................................................................49 4. ERNESTINE ROSE AND THE HARLEM PUBLIC LIBRARY .........................77 5. THEORETICAL TESTING WITH ARCHIVAL DOCUMENTS ......................125 6. CONCLUSION ....................................................................................................150 APPENDICES.............................................................................................................166 A. INFORMATION WORLDS GENERAL CODEBOOK ......................................166 B. CHI MODEL........................................................................................................179 C. TABLE OF RESOURCES CONSULTED ..........................................................180 REFERENCES............................................................................................................181 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH........................................................................................207 vii ABSTRACT This dissertation focused on the 135th Street branch of the New York Public Library, located in the Harlem neighborhood. It focused on the library under the leadership of Ernestine Rose, who was the head librarian from 1920-1942. During this time, the library became a community center with diverse and vibrant programming, and an important influence on the Harlem Renaissance. This study focuses on a longer time period than has been examined previously, and also introduces theory testing to the document analysis, which is an underused method of historical analysis in Information Studies currently. This study uses the theory of Information Worlds, which contextualizes information behaviors within the social worlds individuals inhabit, and introduces the Change in Historic Institutions model, which provides a framework for describing change events. viii CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION Introduction Ernestine Rose (1880-1961) was librarian at Harlem Public Library from 1920-1942 (Jenkins, 1990), and helped make the library into an innovative community space (Anderson, 2003; Jenkins, 1990). Prior to her time in Harlem, she worked with Chinese and Jewish immigrant communities at other branches in Manhattan (Chatham Square Branch Records; Seward Park Branch Records; Sinnette, 1989). According to the secondary literature, Rose was a well-known and admired figure in the Harlem community (e.g. Anderson, 2003; Jenkins, 1990). When Langston Hughes arrived in Harlem in 1921, one of his first stops was the library. Reminiscing about this visit later, he remarked, “There was a warm and wonderful librarian, Miss Ernestine Rose, white, made newcomers feel welcome…” (Hughes, 1963, as quoted in Sinnette, 1989). Rose’s prominent role in the library is clear, whether she is described as a force for positive change (Anderson, 2003; Jenkins, 1990), or as a part of controversy within the library system (e.g. Whitmire, 2007, 2014). However, none of these authors have looked at Rose with the depth of this project, which examined her work throughout her career in Harlem, and contextualized it within the broader New York Public Library system. This study also used the source documents as the basis to explore to application of two theories, thus answering Wiegand’s (1999) call to incorporate theoretical work more centrally into library history research. 1 Significance Practitioners Studying Rose's work offers several potential benefits to the discourse in library and information science, both for researchers and practitioners. First, looking at what was successful (and unsuccessful) about her work with diverse populations may help practitioners and researchers think about how to successfully engage with patrons from a variety of backgrounds. Rose’s experience, and the story of the Harlem library, may speak to librarians who already have considerable experience in the field, and who are adapting their own practices and their institutions
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