Library and Information History Newsletter Series 4, no. 2, Summer 2004

The Official Newsletter of the Library and Information History Group, a Special Interest Group of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP)

Series 4, no. 2, Summer 2004 ISSN 1744-3180

Editor's Introduction Perhaps as I am getting older I am becoming overly pessimistic. But as I sit here gazing out over Cardigan Bay and the iron-age hill fort on Pen Dinas, I am wondering what the future holds for academic library history research in the UK. What really worries me is what has happened to the input from the former departments of library studies? As more and more of them move away from any genuine engagement with the history of libraries and associated subject areas, and rush towards the new dawn of information systems, or information/knowledge management, where is the next generation of academic library history researchers going to come from? Look at the report from the ‘Libraries and the Working Classes etc’ Conference held in Leeds in June (pp.15-17), and apart from the power house of Leeds Metropolitan University’s School of Information Management, spot the new blood from the other ‘old library schools’? I am well aware that first class work has been and is being done by academics and researchers in departments of English, History, Politics and Architecture for instance, and it is very encouraging to see that other subject areas have begun to realise the importance of historical studies of libraries within their disciplines. But, such academics may well be isolated in those departments, their interest in library history fleeting and confined to one specific topic, or only one aspect of their research interests. If we need dedicated communities of academics to effectively push forward research in our field, how and where will that happen?

Dr Chris Baggs, Department of Information and Library Studies, University of Wales, Aberystwyth

Library History Group matters

1. Summary of Open Meeting, 24/03/2004 The meeting was held at CILIP, Ridgmount Street, London

Bob Duckett began the Open meeting by extending a welcome to everyone, in particular the visitors observing the meeting. The following brief presentations were made and topics discussed

Professor Alistair Black, Leeds Metropolitan University - Chair of the IFLA Section on Library History - The IFLA survey of archival holdings of the world’s library associations.

Archives are an important source of information, and there are holes in CILIP archives. The world’s library associations have been slow to assume responsibility for archives. There is a need amongst all to commit to maintain, organise, and make accessible their archives. IFLA Library History Committee has commissioned a survey, in two stages:

Survey of Associations’ websites Questionnaires to the world library associations Jill Martin and Caroline Nolan, CILIP - CILIP Archives Policy

Most material was moved last year to UCL, since then CILIP has employed a temporary archivist who has catalogued most of the holdings. He also prepared a draft archives policy for consultation. There is a need to look for a way forward based on in-house funding only. UCL has agreed to house the archives in the long term free of charge, although they are still owned by CILIP. A database of archives, available electronically is planned, but because of lack of resources, nothing has been done yet, although there is a possibility of using UCL archives students to create records. Responses have so far been received from nine groups on the draft archives policy. It is hoped to submit a policy recommendation in July. Most people who replied were in favour of an archives policy, although concerns include storage, administration time, promotion, help and guidance. Not all groups have kept material, and it is necessary to have the goodwill of the groups to ensure success.

Alan Clark, Thomas Parry Library, University of Wales Aberystwyth - Thomas Parry Library’s library history holdings and future plans / Clues/CLWS to a collection

CLW (College of Librarianship Wales, established in 1964) became DILS (Department of Information and Library Studies) of the University of Wales in 1989. The library owes a lot to Frank Hogg, Principal of CLW, and it became an integral part of teaching in the College/Department. The Thomas Parry Library now has a collection of approximately 150,000 items, which include 3000 runs of periodicals, 500 current subscriptions, 2000 microforms, AV materials and electronic resources. There are also large amounts of ephemera, annual reports, press cuttings, and special collections of rare books. There are also collections of donated archive material, such as library buildings, and other smaller collections. Library purchases now are tailored more closely to the teaching and research in the Department. The periodical collection is large, and moving into electronic publications. There are collections of e-journals listed and accessible from the website, and e-books are also being explored. The Public Library Group has deposited submissions for library buildings awards in the Library, and the Library was recently awarded a pilot public library buildings project – to develop a database of descriptive material. Future plans include digitisation of some collections, electronic access to archives, and making more material available via the web.

Kaye Bagshawe, Leeds Metropolitan University - Library buildings project

This is a three-year project funded by AHRB, looking at rate supported public library buildings between 1850 and 1939. It is led by Professor Simon Pepper of Liverpool University and Professor Alistair Black of Leeds Metropolitan University. Kaye is the Project Officer. The first phase began in January 2004, and is concerned with data collection. A database has been set up to record information, and when sufficient background material has been gathered, a questionnaire will be sent to all Local Studies Departments throughout the UK. The second phase of the project will be a socio-economic examination of the issues, and the third phase will comprise examination of the buildings. Likely outcomes will include a book on architectural history of library buildings, and articles in library and architectural journals. Kaye would like to hear from anyone who knows of old library buildings.

A2A website and its potential for library historians – a short discussion Archives have always been a good source for library history, initially accessible through the Accessions lists to the national repository of archives, or through lists in Library History. Both revealed data on libraries and people. More recently A2A (England only) lists repositories beyond PRO/The National Archives. It is easy to search, and also puts out recent additions to listings. (http://www.a2a.org.uk/). Archives Hub (http://www.archiveshub.ac.uk/) lists holdings in UK academic institutions. Aim 25 (http://www.aim25.ac.uk/) gives web access to collection descriptions of archives held by the University of London and other collections in the area bordered by M25. Other sites of interest noted – ANW (Archives Network Wales) and Images of England – English Heritage.

2. Summary of Executive Meeting, 24/03/2004 The meeting was held at CILIP, Ridgmount Street, London

1. The meeting was chaired by Vice-Chair Bob Duckett, in the absence of John Crawford 2. Apologies were received from John Crawford, Chris Baggs, Dorothea Miehe, Natalie Pollecutt (for late arrival), and Christopher Skelton-Foord (for late arrival). 3. Minutes of the previous committee meeting held in Oxford on 20th November 2003 were read and approved. The following matters arose for discussion: · Munford Memorial Lecture. No further progress has been made on this matter. · Conferences - Leeds – Libraries and the Working Classes. To be held 16-17 June 2004 at Leeds Metropolitan University. The keynote speaker will be J. Rose from the USA. Full details of the conference can be found at www.imresearch.org - Anglo-German Conference - Libraries and Innovation. To be held at the BL Conference Centre. Provisional dates - Mon-Tues 26-27 September. A call for papers will be put out one year in advance of the date. - Umbrella Conference June 2005. The structure of the Conference is to be changed. There will be nine programme tracks, covering different subject areas, in order to cut down on the number of meetings at any one time. It is hoped that there will be more interaction between groups under the new system. · Awards. J.G. Ollé Award. Two applications were received for the award. It was agreed to give the award to a group of three people from Robert Gordon University researching the Edzell Library. Both LIHG awards have now been awarded this year. 4. Committee changes: Treasurer – Kathryn McKee was proposed, seconded and elected as Group Treasurer to succeed Geoffrey Forster. The Group expressed its thanks to Geoffrey for his hard work over the last five years. Secretary – there were no proposals for a replacement for Jean Everitt. Jean was thanked for her work. Decision on a new secretary was deferred until the next meeting 5. Maney has offered another contract to continue for 5 years to publish Library History in a “suitable format”. The offer will be accepted 6. Keith Manley, the current Editor of Library History, feels that it is time for a change of editorship, although he agreed to continue until the end of the year. The Group expressed its thanks and congratulations to Keith for his excellent work. It was decided to defer a decision until the next meeting, although names of suitable candidates should be submitted to JC meanwhile. 7. CILIP Framework of qualifications – All members were sent questionnaire forms to complete. 1000 were returned to CILIP. There will be a report in the next Gazette, and a final draft will be put to CILIP Council at their next meeting on 26th April. 8. CILIP regulations are to be reviewed by a team led by Guy Daines. 9. A review of the documentary heritage of the Church of England has been set up by the Church Commissioners. It will look particularly at four bodies – Lambeth Palace, C of E Records Centre, Church House Library, and Cathedrals Fabric Commission, plus the Library at Hartlebury Castle – their roles, finances and futures. 10. The future of York Minster Library is in question. Following discussion at the Preservation and Conservation meeting in January, Bob McKee had written to Lord Habgood expressing CILIP’s continuing interest in the matter. 11. Passmore Edwards Library / Limehouse Library: The library building is due to be sold and replaced by an Ideas Store. It was felt that although CILIP supports the idea of the Ideas Store, LIHG should take an interest in the future of the old library building. 12. The IFLA conference this year will be held in Buenos Aires, and there will be 5-6 Spanish speakers in a joint session with the International Group. The conference next year will be held in Oslo, on a theme of ‘World History of Librarianship’. 13. Parochial Libraries of the Church of England and Church in Wales – the second edition of this publication is to be published shortly. It will be free to Bibliographical Society members, although the full price is £45. It was hoped that a reduced rate might be offered to LIHG members. 14. Group Accounts – The Group’s balance currently stands at £4960. 15. The next committee meeting will be held at the Libraries and Working Classes Conference at Leeds Metropolitan University, on Thursday 17th June at 8.45am. The AGM will be held on the same day at 4.30pm.

3. Annual Report for 2003/4 from the Group Chair, Dr John Crawford Overview It has been a year of varied fortunes for LIHG. At our last AGM (3/7/03) at Under One Umbrella in Manchester we agreed to change our name to Library and Information History Group. We are losing three key office bearers. Jean Everitt, our secretary and Geoffrey Forster, our treasurer are both stepping down as is the editor of Library History, Dr Keith Manley after 17 years. They will be hard acts to follow. · Lis-libhist, the Groups’ email discussion list has 242 subscribers, down from 257 last year · Membership - Membership at June 30th last year was 806. This had fallen to 721 by early May 2004. While this does not take account of outstanding unpaid subscriptions which, when they come in, will increase the total it is still bad news and reflects both falling membership of Special Interest Groups overall and a temporary fall in CILIP membership which has now been reversed. There are also six non CILIP members · The Library History Award for 2003, worth £200, as won by Dr David Allan for an article entitled ‘Provincial readers and book culture in the Scottish Enlightenment: the Perth Library, 1784 – c. 1800’, The Library 3.i (2002), 367-89. · The James G. Olle Student Scholarship 2003-04, worth £500 has been jointly awarded to four students in the Department of Information Management at The Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen. They are doing research into different aspects of the Edzell Library in Angus, Scotland, which is a perfectly preserved example of a late nineteenth-century public library. · Early British public library buildings - origins, condition and future roles. This three-year research project has been awarded funding of £139,956 by the Arts and Humanities Research Board, by far the largest amount of money ever awarded to a library history project in the UK. The project will be carried out under the joint direction of Professor Simon Pepper (Liverpool University) and Professor Alistair Black (Leeds Metropolitan University) · LIHG is currently developing an Access to Resources policy and this was debated at the annual open meeting, held on 24th March at Ridgmount St. and included presentations on the CILIP archives policy, The Thomas Parry Library, Aberystwyth, and the Early British public library buildings project. · Meetings- Three committee meetings were held: Committee and AGM at Under One Umbrella, July 2003; Committee meeting, followed by visit to and tour of the November 20th 2003; Committee meeting and open Meeting for all members (se above) 24th March 2004. · Six papers were presented at Under One Umbrella July 2003. · The overall picture is that, in the short term at least, we have to plan for decline. However, I think we have done well with a diminishing membership base.

4. Unconfirmed Minutes of Executive Meeting, 17/6/2004 The meeting was held in Room 101, Priestley Hall, School of Information Management, Leeds Metropolitan University

Members present: John Crawford (Chair), Alistair Black, Kathryn McKee, Bob Duckett, Geoffrey Forster, Peter Hoare, Ed Potten. Four observers also in attendance: Edward Dudley, Alan Longbottom, Jorgen Svane-Mikkelsen and Laura Skouvig.

Agenda: 1. Apologies 2. Minutes of meeting of 24th March 2004 and matters arising 3. Committee changes and editorship of Library History 4. CILIP matters 5. Date and time of next meeting 6. AOB

1. Apologies Apologies were received from Jean Everitt, Natalie Pollecutt, Chris Baggs, John Bowman, Dorothy Clayton, Toni Bunch Damien McManus and Keith Manley. JC welcomed the observers and thanked BD for chairing the meeting of 24th March in his absence

2. Minutes of the previous meeting Minutes of the previous meeting of 24th March 2004 held at CILIP, Ridgemount Street, London were read and approved. The following matters arose for discussion: · Munford Memorial Lecture. JC noted that there was no apparent movement on this issue as yet, confirmed by BD, who commented that the previous Umbrella meeting had been taken up with larger scale organisational discussions. PH asked whether the lecture should be one formally recognised by CILIP or whether an appropriate lecture should be selected and simply ‘flagged-up’ as such. AB suggested that the new structure of the Umbrella meeting under themes might make the Munford Memorial Lecture more problematic to administer. · Anglo-German Conference. JC asked when the call for papers was due to be issued for this conference, but with neither CS-F nor DM in attendance no further progress could be made. AB stressed the importance of communicating with CS-F and ensuring that the call for papers be issued a year in advance, and should go into the next newsletter. PH suggested the call should be circulated as widely as possible. Action: EP or JC to contact CS-F. · Umbrella Conference June 2005. AB to attend the next Umbrella meeting 22nd June 2004. AB outlined the current structure, arranged around approximately seven themes, rather than in strands as previously, and highlighted the difficulty this raises with calling for papers. At most LIHG could contribute seven speakers, one for each theme, but in reality a figure of four would be more realistic. PH asked whether the lectures would be identified as being affiliated with the LIHG, AB confirmed this. GF returned to the issue of identifying one of the LIHG lectures as the Munford Memorial Lecture, which AB will raise at a future Umbrella meeting. There was general agreement that the reorganisation of Umbrella offered exciting and important opportunities for the LIHG to highlight historical themes alongside contemporary issues. PH suggested that if there were a theme based around raising awareness of preservation issues a LIHG speaker might contribute. Action: AB to circulate the list of themes and request contributions. AB to raise Munford Memorial Lecture at future Umbrella meeting. · New leaflet. BD agreed to make the editorial changes needed to the leaflet due to changes on the committee. Action: BD to make changes and forward to JC for printing. · J. G. Ollé Award / Library History Essay Award / Edzell Library project. In light of DC’s apologies JC deferred discussion on the reduction of the award until the next meeting. DC has indicated that one essay has been entered for the Library History Essay Award. JC working on an access document with Angus Libraries in relation to making the Edzell Library available as a resource. · Library History. JC announced that AB has agreed to take on the editorship of Library History when KM resigns at the end of the year. AB will produce an editorial in his first issue outlining the future direction of the journal. He suggested an increase in the use of referees, JC raised concerns about the criteria used in selecting referees, BD pointed out that publishers do provide notes for referees. JC invited comments from observers. Jorgen Svane-Mikkelsen stated that Library History was a model for the Danish equivalent, expressed admiration of its content and anticipation in its new editor. Edward Dudley also complimented the journal, and raised the issue of marketing. He raised the possibility of providing contents listings for the journal to be included within the Gazette. He also suggested more crossover with other areas, such as CILIP’s information bulletins. BD pointed out that journal publishers do frequently provide a table of contents listing on-line. BD related that Stella Pilling had contacted him volunteering to undertake copy editing or related work for the journal. AB had planned to undertake most of this sort of work in-house. PH suggested that a cumulative index for Library History might be a possible project someone like Stella Pilling could undertake, and BD raised the possibility of acquiring some funding for a project of this sort. PH suggested that the journal should actively pursue contributions from abroad and forge contact with other like-minded institutions. JC suggested a review of subscribers would be a good idea, and that a meeting of the editorial board and Maney would be beneficial. SAGE had contacted JC about the possibility of taking over the publication of Library History. The general consensus was that the current arrangement with Maney was satisfactory, but AB to meet SAGE’s representative. For the first time KM has suggested that he would like to accept the honorarium of £250.00 due as editor of the journal. This was universally approved. Action: BD and AB to discuss possibilities for involving Stella Pilling and the possibilities of an indexing project. BD to invite Stella Pilling to the next committee meeting. AB to meet with Maney and editorial board. AB to meet with SAGE representative. · CILIP matters. JC confirmed that the review of groups was on-going. · Church Commissioners’ Study (and related items). PH has circulated the report of the CILIP Preservation and Conservation Panel meeting of 7th June 2004. He also reported that the Rare Books Group were now becoming involved with the library at Hartlebury Castle. · York Minster Library. PH reported that the current situation was satisfactory, the Library is still open and the previous librarian had now returned part-time to oversee the early printed books. The Advisory Committee interim report had been delayed due to unexpected complications. · A Directory of the Parochial Libraries of the Church of England and the Church in Wales. PH reported that Michael Perkin’s directory had now been published by the Bibliographical Society. The Council of the Bibliographical Society could not agree to LIHG members qualifying for the reduced price available to its own members, as it was perceived this might set a precedent.

3. Committee changes The appointment of EP as Secretary was approved, following the resignation of JE from both the post of Secretary and from the LIHG Committee. AB has agreed to take on the editorship of Library History following KM’s resignation, effective from the end of this year. JC expressed his thanks to JE, KM and GF for their services to the group over many years. JC congratulated KM on his long tenure as editor and praised his success in increasing Library History to a tri-annual publication. BD suggested a formal letter of thanks be sent to JE, KM and GF on behalf of the Committee. Action: JC to produce letter of thanks.

4. CILIP matters JC reported that he had reluctantly voted for the proposed changes to the subscription bands at the April CILIP Council meeting. PH suggested that the reorganisation of finances might provide an opportunity to look at group recruitment and funding in a new light. Edward Dudley asked whether there had been a meeting with representatives of groups regarding finance, JC confirmed there had not. Edward Dudley then suggested that there was a strong argument for groups and branches working more closely together in future regarding finances, JC agreed co-operation was the way forward and would look into this.

5. Date and time of next meeting JC suggested that the format of last year’s autumn meeting was very successful and suggested a Wednesday in late October for the next meeting. Various venues were suggested, including the Welcome Library and Chetham’s Library.

6. Any other business GF stated that once Maney’s cheque had cleared the account would contain £6547.00 and that he would transfer responsibility to KMcK as soon as practically possible. The accounts are currently with the examiners. GF had looked into high interest accounts and had found some suitable, but with a 60-day notice for withdrawals. This to be discussed further at the next meeting. GF raised the issue of the archiving of historic accounts with CILIP, JC suggested contacting Caroline Nolan. Action: GF to contact Caroline Nolan.

The meeting concluded at 10.00.

5. Unconfirmed Minutes of Annual General Meeting, 17/6/2004 The meeting was held in Room G05, Priestley Hall, School of Information Management, Leeds Metropolitan University

Members present: John Crawford (Chair), Kathryn McKee, Peter Hoare, Geoffrey Forster, Alistair Black, Ed Potten Three observers were also in attendance.

Agenda: 1. Apologies 2. Minutes of the AGM held 3rd July 2003, UMIST, Manchester and matters arising 3. Annual Report 4. Annual accounts and treasurer’s report 5. Any other business

1. Apologies. Apologies were received from Jean Everitt, Natalie Pollecutt, Chris Baggs, John Bowman, Dorothy Clayton, Toni Bunch Damien McManus and Keith Manley.

2. Minutes of the AGM held 3rd July 2003, UMIST, Manchester and matters arising. GF and PH confirmed that the minutes were correct and consequently they were approved. There were no matters arising.

3. Annual Report. Prior to beginning the Annual Report JC presented a £20.00 book token to GF in recognition of his services as treasurer. Similar tokens will be sent to JE and KM with a letter of thanks from the Chairman.

JC began by stating that it had been a challenging year. Three key office bearers were standing down: Jean Everitt, secretary, Geoffrey Forster, treasurer and Keith Manley editor of Library History. Succeeding them are Ed Potten as secretary, Kathryn McKee as treasurer and Professor Alistair Black as editor of Library History. The key points within the Annual Report were as follows:

· Lis-libhist. The Groups’ email discussion list has 246 subscribers, down a little from 257 last year. · Membership. As of May 2004 the membership figures were down slightly from 806 to 721, although this figure should increase as outstanding subscriptions are paid. There are six non-CILIP members who pay a subscription direct to the group. · Newsletter. Three issues of the Newsletter were produced by CB and were sent to Group members during the year. Following the decision to change the name of the Group, the Newsletter's name was also changed to Library and Information History Newsletter. · The Library History Essay Award. The Library History Award for 2003, worth £200, was won by Dr David Allan of the University of Stirling for an article entitled ‘Provincial readers and book culture in the Scottish Enlightenment: the Perth Library, 1784 – c.1800’, The Library 3.i (2002), 367-89. · The James G. Ollé Student Scholarship 2003-04. This award, worth £500, has been jointly awarded to four students in the Department of Information Management at The Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen. They are doing research into different aspects of the Edzell Library in Angus, Scotland, which is a perfectly preserved example of a late nineteenth-century public library. · Early British public library buildings - origins, condition and future roles. This three-year research project has been awarded funding of £139,956 by the Arts and Humanities Research Board. Divided into three phases, (the first based at Leeds Metropolitan University School of Information Management and the second and third at Liverpool University School of Architecture and Building Engineering) the project will be carried out under the joint direction of Professor Simon Pepper (Liverpool University) and Professor Alistair Black (Leeds Metropolitan University). The research officer for the first phase of the project is Kaye Bagshaw (Leeds Metropolitan University). The project will provide a social and architectural history of pre-1939 British public library buildings and an evaluation of their potential for modernisation. · LIHG is currently developing an Access to Resources policy and this was debated at the annual open meeting, held on 24th March at Ridgmount St. which also included presentations on the CILIP archives policy, The Thomas Parry Library, Aberystwyth and the Early British public library buildings project. · Meetings. Three committee meetings were held: Committee and AGM at Under One Umbrella, July 2003; Committee meeting, followed by visit to and tour of the Bodleian Library November 20th 2003; Committee meeting and open Meeting for all members (see above) 24th March 2004. · Six papers were presented at Under One Umbrella July 2003. · The Group is now represented on CILIP’s Preservation and Conservation Panel, which has allowed our views on subjects such as the threat to York Minster Library to be heard at a higher level. · Continuing the successful series of Anglo-German seminars on library history convened jointly by the Library and Information History Group and the Wolfenbütteler Arbeitskreis für Bibliotheks-, Buch- und Mediengeschichte, a fourth seminar in this series is scheduled on the topic of Libraries and Innovation to be held in London in September 2005. JC commented that the LIHG was particularly successful in continuing to foster and forge international connections.

4. Annual accounts and Treasurer’s report. GF thanked the committee for the book token. He expressed his thanks to Trevor Bishop and Terry Casey, the examiners, and stated that Terry Casey was considering standing down, and hence KM might need to find a suitable accountant to replace him. GF reported that expenditure was down and the LIHG was now in profit. A number of old projects had been concluded, freeing up resources, and there were no major expenditures expected in the remainder of this financial year. Furthermore, BD has had some success in attracting personal members and Umbrella had proved a profitable event. The increased costs of the tri-annual newsletter were noted, as was the ongoing investigation into the funding of CILIP branches and groups. GF concluded by mentioning a proposal to maximise the group’s resources by moving some of the LIHG’s funds into a higher interest account.

5. Any other business. PH informed the attendees that provided all contributions were edited and submitted by September 2004, the three-volume Cambridge History of Libraries would hopefully be published by the end of 2005.

The meeting concluded at 5.00.

Forthcoming Conferences (home)

1. ‘Reaching the margins’ 'Reaching the Margins: the Colonial and Postcolonial Lives of the Book, 1765-2005’

The Colonial and Postcolonial and Book History research groups at the Open University, UK, in association with the Institute of English Studies, University of London, invite papers for the above international conference to be held at the IES, Senate House, London, 3-5 November 2005.

Keynote Speakers: John Sutherland, Harish Trivedi, Sydney Shep. The primary focus will be on Asia, Africa and Australasia, although workshop papers are invited on any aspect of colonial and postcolonial publishing and reading history within the specified period. Methodological or comparative papers across more than one region are also welcome. Highlighted themes will include: Publishing and the colonial system; Missionary publishing houses; Distribution and the transport network; British publishers in the Empire; Local publishing; Publishing Commonwealth Literature; Censorship and Copyright; Imperial archives and current research; Postcolonial publishing opportunities; Globalisation, print and the nation state.

Abstracts of no more than 300 words should be submitted by March 1st 2005 to:

[email protected] or [email protected]

Further particulars including accommodation details may be obtained from: [email protected] 2. Book Trade History Annual Conference 2004 ‘Book-trade Consumers: Owners, Annotators and the Signs of Reading’

Dates Saturday 4 December and Sunday 5 December 2004

Venues Saturday: Swedenborg House, Bloomsbury Way, London WC1 Sunday: Birkbeck College, London

The conference fee of £100 will include coffee, tea and a buffet lunch on both days. The way in which book-trade customers used their purchases has become a matter of growing interest to scholars working in different areas of book history. Current research takes in the physical signs and marks made on the page, images of the act of reading and manipulations of the text by such devices as extra-illustration. This is helping to provide a new sense of how readers, booksellers and authors formed an interactive circuit centred on the text. The conference will explore some of these areas examining the practices of reading from the Middle Ages to the 20th century.

Speakers: Stephen Colclough (Reading University) on sharing books in manuscript, 1800-1850; Rudi Eliott- Lockhart (Cambridge University) on monastic reading in 12th-century England; Mary Hammond (Open University) on the future of the Reading Experience database, 1450-1914; Heather Jackson (University of Toronto) on marginalia as evidence of reading, 1790-1830; Alan H. Nelson (University of California, Berkeley) on contemporary owners of Shakespeare's poems and plays, 1593-1616; Lucy Peltz (National Portrait Gallery) on the extra-illustration of books, 1770-1820; William H. Sherman (University of Maryland) on pointing fingers in marginalia; and Steven Zwicker (Washington University, St. Louis) on tracing readers in early modern England Everybody attending the conference will be invited to attend a reception and private view of the exhibition on books and their owners from the Foyle Special Collections Library at King's College London on Friday evening (3 December). To book a place please contact Michael Harris at Birkbeck College, 26 Russell Square, London WC1B 5DQ. Phone: 020 7631 6652. E-mail: [email protected]

3. CILIP Rare Books Group Annual Study Conference "Rare Book Futures: curating collections in the 21st century" Weds 1-Fri 3 September 2004. University of Sussex (Brighton).

For more details and how to book, see http://www.cilip.org.uk/groups/rbg/events.html The conference is designed to help rare books librarians develop a "toolkit" of the managerial and technical skills they need to bring their collections to life. These skills include publicity and marketing (exhibitions, web design, publishing), policies (acquisition and disposal), project management, fund- raising and training. Further speakers and workshops have since been confirmed since our original mailing: Ed Maggs (of Maggs Brothers) will be joining Chris Sheppard of the , Leeds to discuss collecting policies; Phil Bradley (of Internet Q&A in CILIP Update) will be running our web workshop and Tim Padfield (copyright expert from The National Archives) will cover intellectual property issues in widening access to archives. The conference dinner will be in the magnificent Royal Pavilion and includes a tour of this spectacular building. The programme also offers visits to several local libraries and archives, including the Royal Pavilion's Archive, the East Sussex Record Office, University of Sussex Special Collections (Mass Observation, Rudyard Kipling Archive), and the Brighton City Library (rare book collection). If you have further queries about the Conference, please contact me (Alison Cullingford, e-mail [email protected]) or Mary Nixon of the University of Sussex (e-mail: [email protected]).

Alison Cullingford Special Collections Librarian J.B. Priestley Library University of Bradford Bradford. BD7 1DP. UK. [email protected] +44 (0)1274-235256 Fax: +44 (0)1274-233398 http://www.bradford.ac.uk/library/special

Forthcoming Conferences (further afield) 1. US Library Research Seminar III ‘Learning and Growing: Inquiry into Librarianship’

Join colleagues to share research and scholarship on all aspects of librarianship. Inquiry into services, access to information, facilities and technology, organizations, personnel, and the foundations of our profession will be welcome. Your participation will make the Seminar a success. Library Research Seminar III will be held in Kansas City, Missouri at the Fairmont Hotel, Thursday October 14 through Saturday, October 16th. There will be an opening reception on Wednesday, October 13th. The Fairmont Hotel is in the heart of the historic Country Club Plaza, a district rich in dining and shopping opportunities. See http://www.countryclubplaza.com/index.aspx The principal invited speaker at LRS III is Robert Darnton, Shelby Cullom Davis '30 Professor of European History at Princeton, and author of numerous works on the history of books and censorship including George Washington's Teeth, The Kiss of Lamourette, and The Great Cat Massacre. Registration cost for the conference will be $100 for students (Masters or Ph.D.) and $225 for everybody else. Registration cost will cover the opening reception, breakfast on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and lunch on Thursday and Friday. Dinner is on your own, although we are organizing salon dinners, topics to be announced. This year's conference co-chairs will be: John Budd and Charley Seavey

NOTE: There will be no published conference proceedings. Presenters retain intellectual ownership of their work and are free to submit to whatever appropriate publishing venue they choose. More information on the conference is on the website at http://libraryresearchseminar.org/

2. "Paradise: New Worlds of Books and Readers" “Paradise: New Worlds of Books and Readers" 27-30 January 2005, Wellington, New Zealand.

Hosted by the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand with the Bibliographical Society of Australia and New Zealand. Organised by the Stout Research Centre for New Zealand Studies and Wai-te-ata Press. Special guests: Alberto Manguel, Michael Twyman, Rimi Chatterjee, and friends. The conference will be open to papers dealing with any aspect of the study of print culture, including production, distribution and reception. Particular emphasis will be placed on colonial and postcolonial histories of the book and print, particularly in the Asia/Pacific, South America and Africa. Significant questions include: How does print capture / colonise / create new worlds? Can paradise be reforged, once lost? How do readers colonise spaces of writing? What role does geography play? What happens when the text is not a book? Who shall be the master? The writer or the reader? (Diderot:1796) Is translation the ultimate act of comprehending? Other topics directly related to the conference themes might include the role of the market, libraries as agencies of culture, books and reading in popular culture, textual encounters, the author as reader, orality and text, visual cultures of the book, etc.

Dr Lydia Wevers & Dr Sydney J Shep Stout Research Centre PO Box 600, Wellington, NEW ZEALAND. Fax: 64-4-463-5439 e-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]

Conference and other reports 1. Libraries and the Working Classes since the Eighteenth Century Report of a Conference held at Leeds Metropolitan University, 16th-17th June 2004

Jointly sponsored by Leeds Metropolitan University, The British Academy, and the Library and Information History Group of CILIP, this successful conference added to the developing momentum in the study of library and information history. The 35 delegates included visitors from the USA, Finland, Sweden and Denmark, as well as from around the UK.

Conference organiser Alistair Black opened the proceedings by setting the conference in the context of recent work in library historiography, while Professor Gaynor Taylor (Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Leeds Metropolitan University) gave us a warm welcome. She was pleased that LMU was involved in the development of library and information history.

The keynote address ‘Arriving at a History of Reading’ was by Professor Jonathan Rose (Drew University, New Jersey), founder of the SHARP (Society of the History of Authorship, Reading and Publishing) and author of The intellectual life of the British Working Class. Thirteen categories of sources were identified to find out what people read ranging from police records and library registers to pictures and the Reading Experience Archive. What, exactly, constituted the ‘reading experience’ provoked a lively discussion.

Chris Baggs (University of Wales at Aberystwyth) gave us an insight into the 1930s records of Abercraf Miner’s Library with ‘Mrs Evans had Lady Chatterley’s Lover out for over a month’. Catalogues, reader registers and issue records revealed a range of reading from popular fiction to Russian philosophy. Ilka Mäkinen (University of Tampere, Finland) followed this with a detailed account of three successful Finnish working class writers who had relied heavily on public libraries and literary clubs between the Civil War of 1928 and the 1950s. A major role of public libraries was seen to be the education of writers. From the Royal School of Library and Information Science at Copenhagen, Denmark, came Laura Skouvig, who presented a paper on ‘Danish public libraries and the working classes, 1880-1920’. The public library ideal inherited from the USA and the UK in the 1920s was so widely focused on the whole population that the earlier working class libraries were excluded. This exclusion was examined in terms of the bureaucratisation of the state library service and the resulting bureaucratisation of the user. Mary Hammond (Open University) followed this with ‘Free libraries and the construction of a reading public in England, 1880-1914’, provocatively arguing that fears about the dangers of fiction and financial strictures were responsible for public libraries becoming conservative, middle-brow and middle-class, alienating the very readers for whom the movement had been established. Reading experience is based on the literature available, and this was controlled.

In a conference on the working class, Simon Gunn (Leeds Metropolitan University) usefully looked at a number of issues relating to the very concept of ‘class’ itself. In ‘Reflections on the History of Class’ the importance attached to class in its heyday of the 1960s to 1980s was related to later theoretical work in which the concept of ‘power’ has transformed earlier thinking. Our vocabulary was at a transitional stage and we were ‘developing a new lexicon’. There was a need for more ‘micro-history’.

Away from theory, Professor Simon Pepper (University of Liverpool) gave a lecture illustrated with slides of library buildings: ‘Carnegie library buildings: comparisons between the United States and Britain’. The three thousand or so Carnegie library buildings worldwide ranged from the gothic and Edwardian baroque, to ‘the democratic library’ much vaunted in the US, the designs of which were ‘sold as standard’.

Magnus Torstensson (Swedish School of Library and Information Studies, University College of Borås) returned to the working class theme in ‘Libraries ‘for’ or ‘by’ workers in Sweden: an historical perspective’. The development of libraries in early 19th century Sweden saw libraries provided for the workers by the Church of Sweden, factory owners and liberal philanthropists. Later in the century libraries were developed by the trade unions and social democratic clubs; these were libraries not only for the workers, but by them. In the 20th century, these libraries were gradually amalgamated in the local communities to become modern municipal public libraries. Following on from this, Peter Almerud from Sweden drew attention to the fact that in the 1970s public libraries aimed to promote reading by establishing book collections in work places. In more recent years, though, this activity has been reduced, no longer being seen as a mainstream activity, with a shift to private enterprise.

‘Empowerment or indoctrination? American public library services to working-class youth in the late- nineteenth and early twentieth centuries’ was the theme of Bill Lukenbill (University of Texas at Austin, USA). The ‘missionary’ ethic of early American librarians was a powerful force. As was local community politics in Hulme, Manchester! ‘Class and community librarianship: collective consumption and the successful resistance to the closure of Hulme Library, Manchester in 1977’ was the paper given by John Douglas (Leeds Metropolitan University). Faced with the closure of their library, a campaign by residents forced a re-think and ‘their’ library was saved.

A remarkable working class library movement was described by Peter Hoare (Editor of the Cambridge History of Libraries). ‘The Operatives’ Libraries in 19th century Nottingham’ served the lowest class of manual workers (as distinct from the Artisians’ libraries and the Mechanics’ Institute libraries). They were started and run by the workers themselves, mostly in public houses. Nottingham was very much a centre of radical protest.

What do people remember of libraries? Alistair Black (Leeds Metropolitan University) gave a talk on ‘Memories of public library use in the Mass Observation Archive’. This archive contains evidence going back to the 1930s of the British public’s daily lives and its attitudes to local, national and international affairs. Testimony from the 1988 data relating to pastimes reveals concerns about plans to reform the public library in line with market economics, and concern about the cultural and moral purpose of public libraries. In a 1999 investigation correspondents commented on their past use of the public library, how libraries had changed, and the part public libraries had played in their lives. The archive provides a rich stock of public commentary on the twentieth century public library in Britain.

Some Scottish ‘micro-history’ followed with John Crawford’s report (Glasgow Caledonian University) ‘Recovering the lost Scottish community library: the example of Fenwick’. Research into the parish of Fenwick in North Ayrshire attempted to resolve some of the outstanding conundrums of Scottish library history. Why, for example, did small towns have so many libraries when one would have been enough? Local data was related to the wider political scene and it was found that religious dissent and radical politics were major factors in the development of libraries and book use. Fast-forward to more recent history, and information history, and Steve Walker (Leeds Metropolitan University) gave us an insight into ‘Community computing in Manchester in the 1980s’ via the Cold War politics of the early development of computer networks. The conference was not all lectures. The Library and Information History Group had both a committee meeting and their AGM, at which they were pleased to welcome observers, not to mention a new secretary, treasurer and journal editor! A conference reception and dinner both featured.

The conference was a success with much mental stimulation and food for thought. It is hoped that many of the papers presented will be published, so that the momentum is continued. Alistair Black is to be congratulated on his initiative in originating the conference and producing such a rich panel of speakers, and LMU is to be congratulated on their continuing support for library and information studies.

Bob Duckett Membership Secretary, LIHG

Resources of Interest 1. Selected Readings No.93 We are delighted to announce the publication of SR No. 93, now available online: http:// www.personal.psu.edu/special/C18/sr/sr93.htm

Selected Readings is the ongoing running bibliography of recent essays and books and links to materials on many different subjects concerning the long 18th-century, across the disciplines. SR is made possible by the contributions of many volunteers, named in the honour roll at the top of the masthead. We are always looking for new volunteers and contributors, and encourage graduate departments and graduates themselves to contribute dissertation titles, as well as other publication information.

SR 93 is the most comprehensive issue so far, and has strong listings in Bibliography and related studies, Archaeology, Classics, Computers in Teaching and Scholarship, Economics, English history, English literature, French history, French literature, Geograohy & Travel Writing, German Literature, Historiography, History of Art, History of Medicine, History of Music, History of Science, History of Sexuality & Gender, Irish History & Literature, the Islamic World, Italian history & literature, Philosophy, Political Thought, Scottish literature, Spanish literature, Theatre history, Theory & Criticism, U.S. Colonial & Federal history & literature

Kevin Berland

Items you might have missed 1. Circulating Library Labels Diana R. Mackarill ‘Circulating library labels and their value as social documents’. Local History Magazine 94 Jan/Feb 2004, 8-11.

2. Cambridge Observatory Library An interesting brief history of an unusual library by a LIHG member Mark Hurn. ‘An English Astronomical library: the case of the Cambridge Observatory’. The Observatory 124 February 2004, 37-46.

Miscellaneous 1. Job possibility I thought it might be useful (with summer coming) to give early warning of a job advert that I'll be posting in the next couple of weeks (with more details of course then, but take-up is expected to be in the autumn)

I have funds to support a three-month full-time research assistant at Essex to prepare a report on the library of Archbishop Samuel Harsnett - virtually his complete working library as he left it to Colchester at his death in 1631, and now in the library of Essex University Library and being catalogued (a late nineteenth-century printed by Gordan Godwin is also available for anyone with interest the character of this collection). Further news of plans for a research centre will follow in due course.

In the meantime if anyone wants further preliminary information please contact me by email or phone.

James Raven Professor of Modern History University of Essex Colchester UK CO4 3SQ Direct line -00 44- (0)1206 872226

2. Death of Stanley Gillam Stanley Gillam died in April 2004 at the age of 88. He was Librarian of the London Library from 1956 to 1980 - through some troubled years for that historic library - and encouraged my own early work in library history. Indeed, he allowed me to use the London Library's address for the publication of the Library History Group's new journal Library History, and that address duly appeared in vol. 1 no. 1 in May 1967 (by the time the next issue appeared the editor had moved elsewhere). But he was also a notable library historian himself, concentrating on Oxford and especially the Bodleian Library. His B.Litt. thesis on the correspondence of Arthur Charlett (1655-1722) gave him many insights into the world of 18th-century scholarship (in Oxford and elsewhere) and its impact on libraries. He published an edition of the building accounts (1737-49) of James Gibbs's Radcliffe Camera for the Oxford Historical Society in 1958, followed in 1992 by an attractive illustrated booklet on the Camera, the first in the new series of Bodleian picture books. More substantial was The Divinity School and Duke Hufrey's Library at Oxford (Clarendon Press, 1988), a detailed study of the architecture of one of the Bodleian's most important buildings. He was also largely responsible, with Aliobinia de la Mare, for the Bodleian's 1988 exhibition for its 500th anniversary.

Finally, the Bodleian Library Record for April 2003 carried his useful account of the Bodleian Library in the 1930s, drawing on his own experience (he started as a 'Bodley Boy' in 1931 and remained there, except for war service, until 1954). Reminiscence is not the same as history but Stanley Gillam's historical awareness gives this memoir real value.

[from Peter Hoare, who worked at the London Library from 1961-7]

And finally... During my ongoing research into the novelist George Gissing and his use of libraries, I have come across the following in a letter to his brother, Algernon, dated 10th October 1885:

'I saw in this week's Athenaeum they are advertising for a librarian for Yarmouth - £65 a year, with rooms, gas and coal. By Jove, if the pay had been a little more (no change here I'm afraid - Ed.), I should have applied, I think; but unfortunately the £65 would not meet my bare necessities'. (See the cover of this issue for contemporary views of Yarmouth Public Library and Reading Room - Ed.)

This got me thinking. I wonder which other literary figures we can associate with public libraries, leaving aside famous authors who were wheeled out for opening ceremonies, such as those at Manchester in September1852 which involved Dickens, Thackeray and Bulwer Lytton. Any names?