GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY ,LIBRARY CIlsSQCIATES N E W s L E T T E R WINTER 1997. NEWSLETTER 46 IN THIS ISSUE FAIRCHILD GALLERY TO OPEN IN APRIL Gaining Needed Space in Lauinger .......................... 2 N JANUARY 22 CONSTRUCTION BEGAN ON THE CHARLES MARVIN Did You Know? .................... 2 OFairchild Memorial Gallery in the elevator lobby on the fifth floor of Lauinger Patrick O'Mahony ................ 3 Library. The gallery, being built on funds provided by Mrs. Charles M. Fairchild, will When Librarianship provide a permanent exhibit venue for changing selections from the library's rapidly Was Simpler ......................... 3 growing collection of fine prints, drawings, watercolors, original editorial cartoons, and Thomas Derrick ................... 4 other graphic arts. The Fairchild Gallery will be open to visitors to the library seven 56 Days Out ......................... 4 days a week. Exhibit to Feature First Books ........................... 4 80 Years Ago ........................ 5 Faithful Partnership ........... 5 Bowen Cataloging Project Nears Completion ................ 5 A Note of Appreciation ........ 6 Join the Associates .............. 6 UPCOMING EVENTS MARCH 19 Los Angeles Judge Paul Flynn APRIL 22 New York Professor Judith FaIT will speak on Emily Dickinson APRIL 30 Washington, D.C. Susan Eisenhower "Mrs. Ike and Reflections on How America Conveys Its History" MAY 30 Washington, D.C. At the heart of the library's collections is an assemblage of more than 3,000 Reunion Weekend Open House, Appraisals, twentieth century American fine prints, including substantial holdings of the works of Introduction to the Internet such artists as Grace Albee, Thomas Hart Benton, John Steuart Curry, Werner Drewes, Isac Friedlander, Norman Kent, Joseph Pennell, Charles Quest, Philip For further information on Reisman, Prentiss Taylor, Lynd Ward, and Grant Wood. These are supplemented by Associates events, please contact Ms. Melanie Savage (continues on page 6) at (202) 687-7446. The Georgetown University GAINING NEEDED SPACE IN LAUINGER Library Associates Newsletter is issued four times a year. It Despite the recent massive growth in electronic information resources, the library is distributed to all Library must still contend with both the vast number of books and journals newly published Associates, members ofthe each year and with the needs for space exerted by the continued growth of the Association of Research University Archives and our success in acquiring new collections of manuscripts and Libraries CARL), members of related materials. We are rapidly using the Georgetown University up the space available in Lauinger Board of Directors, Board of Library for expansion of the collections, Regents, Board of Governors, and now "gaining needed space" has and selected others. taken on the unpleasant, but inevitable, aspect of removing items from the collections to make way for new arrivals. Chair of the Library Advisory Council Many readers of this Newsletter will John H. Forsgren, Jr. (C '67) have seen the expanses of empty ;., shelving on the first, fourth, and fifth floors of Lauinger since it was installed University Librarian in late August. The more than 2,800 new Susan K. Martin shelves will provide space for a further two to three years' worth of acquisitions. During the previous fiscal year, however, we gained additional space by a highly Contributors selective weeding of the main stacks in which multiple copies of books were reduced Marty Barringer from as many as 10 or 12 copies of a single edition to two or three at most. As a result Joan Owings of the weeding and the new shelving, we have added space sufficient to accommodate Melanie Savage .expected collection growth for at least the next three years. Nicholas Scheetz A similar initiative was undertaken in Special Collections, where room for additional university archival files and manuscript collections was nearly exhausted. Photographer Two very large collections, neither of which were used by the Georgetown community David Hagen or by outside researchers, the archives of the American Political Science Association and the papers of pollster Samuel Lubell, were transferred to other institutions. Designer Lubell's papers may now be found through the Elmo Roper Center at the University of Laurie L. England Connecticut; the American Political Science Association archives are now housed at Mount Vernon College. Space gained through these de-acquisitions together with the erection of a limited amount of new archival style shelving will suffice to house u Printed on recycled paper expected archival transfers and newly-acquired manuscript collections for the next If you have any comments, four to five years. j-e, suggestions, criticisms, or compliments about this DID YOU KNOW? Newsletter, please contact the editor: Marty Barringer, V Lauinger Library is the most heavily used building on campus with over one Georgetown University Library, million use visits each year; the largest user group is students of the Georgetown by phone: (202)687-7475, School of Business. fax: (202)687-7501 or e-mail: V The Murray Room, on the fifth floor of Lauinger, was reported by The [email protected] Washingtonian as providing one ofthe 10 best views in Washington. V The oldest print item in the library is a Japanese prayer scroll dating from about AD 770; the oldest printed book was produced in Basel not later than 1468. V The most distant "branch" of the library is at the McGhee Center for Eastern Mediterranean Studies at Alanya, Turkey. j-e, 2 LIBRARY ASSOCIATES • Winter 1997 PATRICK O'MAHONY WHEN lIBRARIANSHIP More than a year ago in The Tablet, the London Catholic weekly, Library Associate WAS SIMPLER Jack Deedy explored in his article "A Heritage Goes West" the collecting by American universities of British Catholic materials. Papers of British Catholics are a core strength in Georgetown's holdings, as they are also at Boston College. Colette Ware, of Solihull, England, was intrigued by the Deedy article and some months later contacted Lauinger Library. Since then she has generously donated the remarkable papers of Monsignor Systematic library training Patrick "Paddy" O'Mahony was introduced, thanks to (1925-1991), the British author and the efforts of Melvil Dewey, by the School of library noted human rights activist. The Economy at Columbia collection was recently cataloged and University in 1887. In the is now open to researchers. same year the school The papers show clearly - became the New York ...... State Library School and O'Mahony's concentration on the was transferred to the working and hiring policies of Cartoon by Paul Thomas for article by Jack Deedy in State Library in Albany. In multinational corporations and their The Tablet, July 22, 1995; courtesy of The Tablet 1926 the school merged subsidiaries in the Third World. with the Library School of O'Mahony undertook a study of the moral implications of investment in such the New York Public Library companies and the responsibilities of their shareholders, even questioning the to form the School of investments of his own Diocese of Birmingham. His early findings, primarily centering Library Service, once again on South Africa, resulted in Investment: A Blessing or a Curse? (1969). His other at Columbia. It was a books include The Fantasy ofHuman Rights (1978), Swords and Ploughshares charter member of the (1986), and A Question of Life (1990). Association of American The collection also contains much about O'Mahony's support for Amnesty Library Schools. International and the Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture. Files A course devoted relating to his work as a member of the Pontifical Justice and Peace Commission exclusively to instruction in (1969-1975) and as its vice-chairman (1972-1975) are also included, as is much on his library science was work for the Catholic Fund for Overseas Development, the Catholic Housing Aid introduced at Albany in Society, and the Catholic Institute for International Relations. 1896 in connection with the New York State Library In the course of his life O'Mahony raised millions for the poor of the world; a under the direction of Melvil notable item in the collection is a letter from Mother Teresa thanking him for a Dewey. A six weeks' course delivery of medical supplies to Calcutta in 1972. Other correspondents include a was given, comprising variety of British prelates and politicians such as Archbishop George Patrick Dwyer, cataloging, classification of Basil Cardinal Hume, Roy Jenkins, Archbishop Maurice Couve de Murville, and books, conduct of Shirley Williams. /a, reference and loan departments, bookbinding, and library economy. [Based on Famous First Facts by J. N. Kane, 1934J 3 LIBRARY ASSOCIATES • Winter 1997 EXHIBIT TO FEATURE THOMAS DERRICK FIRST BOOKS A recent gift from Joseph and Jeannine The collecting of authors' Jeffs includes letters from such writers "first books" has long been as Spanish critic Leopoldo Duran, Japanese novelist Shusako Endo, an established branch of English playwright Christopher Fry, bibliomania. Not a little of American poet Ned O'Gorman, and a the lure of first books is number of original drawings and prints their incredible variety, and by British artist Thomas Derrick, whose not a little of the difficulty Sancta Joanna victrix est is shown of collecting them is that at left. so many are either ephemeral or issued in very small printings. "First Books by American Writers, 1786-1984" will display more than 60 writers' 56 DAYS OUT maiden efforts, ranging further addition has been made to the papers of Michael Richey, the famed English from the typical slender A sailor and navigator. Last summer, at age 79, Richey sailed his 25-foot folkboat Jester volume of verse to in the single-handed race from Plymouth, England, to Newport, Rhode Island, a translations from foreign voyage he has made many times before. Jester has no engine, and this time he was out languages to best-sellers for 56 days. that have become overnight classics.