Sleepy Eye (MN) Public Library Trio

I took advantage of the opportunity to acquire a bookmark for the Dyckman Free Library in Sleepy Eye, MN recently primarily because I alrea...

1956, A Big Year for Public Libraries

As 2011 comes to a close, I wanted to mention a couple of events that occurred in 1956 that had a major impact on the development of public ...

Louis Round Wilson, Library Educator

Although he was affiliated directly with only two American library institutions, Louis Round Wilson (1876-1979) had a significant impact on ...

Library of Congress Ornament

For those who put up and decorate Christmas trees, there are tens of thousands of ornaments to choose from. Libraries on occasion arrange fo...

William Frederick Poole, Great American Librarian

There are few American librarians with a more stellar resume than William Frederick Poole (1821-1894), and today is the 190th anniversary of...

Holiday Letter From A Library History Buff

Dan Lester (left) and Larry Nix, The Library History Buff Holiday letters often receive a bad rap. My wife and I have sent one out for many ...

Happy 125th Birthday Pierce Butler

Another significant December library related birthday. Today is the 125th anniversary of the birth of Lee Pierce Butler (1886-1953), library...

Happy 125th Birthday Althea Warren

Today is the 125th anniversary of the birth of Althea Hester Warren (1886-1958), a former president of the American Library Association (194...

Christmas in Vladivostok 1918 Revisited

This post is a slightly modified version of a post that I made on Dec. 14, 2008 . It's a nice Christmas story about one of our librarian...

Greetings of Yule and New Year - Boston Public Library

This bookmark with a seasonal tribute to the Boston Public Library was copyrighted in 1913 by Solatia M. Taylor. I don't know if it was ...

Library of Congress Souvenir Spoon

If you're looking for a last minute Christmas present, I came across one for you to consider on eBay. It is a souvenir spoon for the Lib...

Happy (belated) 160th Birthday to Melvil Dewey

Love him or hate him, Melvil Dewey (originally Melville Louis Kossuth Dewey) was one of the most fascinating and complex figures in American...

Most People on a Library Postcard?

It was the people in front of the combination school and public library building in Hunter, New York that drew my interest in the postcard a...

10 of My Favorite Library History Books

Over the years I've put together a basic collection of books on library history. I've identified ten of my favorites from this colle...

70th Anniversary of the Japanese Attack on Pearl Harbor

  On the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, I thought I would share a couple of items from m...

Envelope Seals for German Libraries

Several years ago I acquired a small collection of envelope seals for German libraries.  Some of the seals are shown above along with an env...

Another Piece of Bookmobileana

I recently added another item to my collection of bookmobileana . It is a badge worn by the bookmobile driver of the Oshkosh Public Library ...

Happy 150th Birthday Electra Doren, Dayton Librarian

December is a big month for significant birthdays for former library leaders. Today is the 150th anniversary of the birth of Electra Collins...

Happy 135th Birthday George B. Utley

Today is the 135th anniversary of the birth of George Burwell Utley (1876-1946) who served as administrator of several library organizations...

ALA's WWI Library Sun Parlor in Coblenz, Germany

One of my library postcard collecting interests is postcards that the American Library Association produced to promote its Library War Servi...

On the Brink of World War II

When the Yale University Library mailed the envelope above it was only days before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor which precipitated th...

John Cotton Dana and "The Men of Letters"

I'm a great admirer of John Cotton Dana (1856-1919), one of our nation's great early librarians. Although Dana is best known in the...

Book Delivery on Day of 1906 SF Earthquake

Natural disasters obviously impact libraries if they are in the vicinity of the disaster. Libraries certainly have not escaped untouched by ...

Gerstenslager Bookmobile Postcard Ads

For many years the Gerstenslager Company in Wooster, Ohio was synonymous with bookmobiles for public library extension librarians. Although...

LHBB Milestones

Today is the third anniversary of the Library History Buff Blog. This is also my 400th post to the blog. I'm pleased with the modest suc...

Some Blogs That I Follow

I'm disappointed that there are not more people blogging about library history, but I'm encouraged that this is beginning to change ...

Union College (NY) Semi-Centennials

I recently became aware that this year was the semi-centennial of the Schaffer Library at Union College in Schenectady, NY. The last event ...

Newark's Transition to a Free Public Library

America's transition from fee based membership and subscription libraries to free (to the user) public libraries occurred over a number ...

Reading Stand and Revolving Book Case

Postal cards with advertising related to library supplies and equipment are among my favorites. This one is an 1899 advertisement for the Ma...

Tribute to a Veteran and to a Library Historian on 11-11-11

As a Veteran myself , I take note when I come across information about another librarian who has served in the Armed Forces. In reading Davi...

Most Data Collected on a Postal Card

Melvil Dewey was largely responsible for standardizing the catalog card at 7.5 x 12.5 centimeters in 1877. Almost immediately, Dewey began l...

Dartmouth's Book Battle, An Eyewitness Account

One of the most fascinating events in American academic library history occurred on the evening of November 11, 1817 at Dartmouth College in...