AN EXTREMELY RARE 1955 VINTAGE PHOTOGRAPH OFAUGUSTA BRAXSTON BAKER MEASURING 8X10 INCHES
Librarian, author, and storyteller Augusta Braxston Baker was the first African American woman to hold an administrative position with the New York Public Library (NYPL). She was a pioneering advocate of the positive portrayal of blacks in children's literature, and beginning in the 1930s removed books with negative stereotypes from the NYPL shelves.
AUGUSTA BRAXSTON BAKER (1911-1998)
Librarian Augusta Baker showing book Janie Belle to young girl, 135th Street (now Countee Cullen) Library, Harlem, ca. 1941
Courtesy NYPL (57599005)
Librarian, author, and storyteller Augusta Braxston Baker was the first African American woman to hold an administrative position with the New York Public Library (NYPL). She was a pioneering advocate of the positive portrayal of blacks in children's literature, and beginning in the 1930s removed books with negative stereotypes from the NYPL shelves.
Baker was born in Baltimore, Maryland on April 1, 1911 to educators Winfort and Mabel Braxston. She graduated at age 16 from the all-black high school where her father taught, and in 1927 she entered the University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Three years later she married James Henry Baker, Jr., and transferred to New York College for Teachers (now State University of New York at Albany), where she earned her BA in 1933 and a BS in library science in 1934.
In 1937 Baker began work as a children's librarian at the New York Public Library. Early on she recognized the lack of positive role models in children's literature for young African American readers. She identified and removed from the library shelves books that depicted black characters as lazy, ill-spoken, or illustrated with distorted body features. Her work as the assistant coordinator and storytelling specialist at the NYPL's 135th Street Harlem Branch (now the Countee Cullen Branch) brought her into contact with Arthur Schomburg and James Weldon Johnson who worked to improve the children's section of the branch, financing the purchase of new books with unbiased and accurate images of African Americans.
In 1961 Baker became the NYPL's first African American children's services coordinator overseeing all 82 branches of the New York Public Library, a position she held until her retirement in 1974. She also served as a consultant to the public television program Sesame Street. After her retirement from the New York Public Library, Baker moved to Columbia, South Carolina to become the University of South Carolina's story-teller-in-residence at the school's College of Library and Information Science. In 1986, the school collaborated with the Richland County Public Library to establish an annual celebration of stories in her honor. She remained with the school until 1994.
Baker remarried in 1944 to Gordon Alexander. She had one son from her first marriage, James H. Baker III. She died at the age of 86 on February 23, 1998 in Columbia, South Carolina.
Augusta Braxton Baker (April 1, 1911 – February 23, 1998)[1] was an American librarian and storyteller. She was known for her contributions to children's literature, especially regarding the portrayal of black Americans in works for children.[1]
Contents
1Early life and education
2Professional career
3Death and continued legacy
4Awards and honors
5Bibliography
6References
7External links
Early life and education
Augusta Braxton Baker was born on April 1, 1911, in Baltimore, Maryland. Both of her parents were schoolteachers, who instilled in her a love of reading. During the day while her parents worked, her grandmother, Augusta Fax (from whom she received her name) cared for her and told her stories. Baker delighted in these stories, carrying her love for them throughout her life.[2] She learned to read before starting elementary school, later enrolling in the (racially segregated) black high school where her father taught, and graduating at the age of 16.[1] Baker then entered the University of Pittsburgh, where she both met and married James Baker by the end of her sophomore year.[1]
Relocating with her husband to New York, Baker sought to transfer to Albany Teacher's College (now the State University of New York at Albany), only to be met with racial opposition from the college. Eleanor Roosevelt, the wife of Franklin Roosevelt (who was then the Governor of New York), was on the board of the Albany Interracial Council (now the Albany Urban League). Mrs. Roosevelt heavily advocated for Baker's transfer. Though the college did not want to admit blacks, they also did not want to oppose the governors wife, and Baker was admitted.[3] While there, she aimed toward a different career and wrote, "I discovered I loved books, but I didnt love teaching."[4] She completed her education there, earning a B.A. degree in education in 1933 and a B.S. in library science in 1934.[1] She became the first African-American to earn a masters degree in librarianship from the college.[4]
Professional career
After graduation, Baker taught for a few years, until she was hired in 1937 as the childrens librarian at the New York Public Librarys 135th Street Branch (now the Countee Cullen Regional Branch) in Harlem.[1][5] Moore applied three times before the head of children's services, Anne Carroll Moore, took a personal interest in her application. Moore later berated the director of the library for not passing along the application, as she was interested in anyone who showed an affinity for childrens work[6]
In 1939, the branch began an effort to find and collect childrens literature that portrayed black people as something other than "servile buffoons," speaking in a rude dialect, and other such stereotypes. This collection, founded by Baker as the James Weldon Johnson Memorial Collection of Childrens Books, led to the publication of the first of a number of bibliographies of books for and about black children. Baker furthered this project by encouraging authors, illustrators, and publishers to produce, as well as libraries to acquire, books depicting blacks in a favorable light.[7]
In 1953, she was appointed Storytelling Specialist and Assistant Coordinator of Childrens Services.[5] Not long after that, she became Coordinator of Childrens Services in 1961, becoming the first African-American librarian in an administrative position in the New York Public Library. In this role, she oversaw childrens programs in the entire NYPL system and set policies for them.[5] During this time, Baker also figured prominently in the American Library Associations Childrens Services Division (now the Association for Library Service to Children), having served as its president. Additionally, she chaired the committee that awarded the Newbery Medal and the Caldecott Medal.[2] Furthermore, Baker influenced many childrens authors and illustrators—such as Maurice Sendak, Madeleine LEngle, Ezra Jack Keats, and John Steptoe—while in this position. She also worked as a consultant for the then newly created childrens television series Sesame Street.[8]
In 1946, she published an extensive bibliography of titles relating to the black experience titled "Books about Negro Life for Children."[4] In a 1943 article Baker stated her criteria for selection. The books included should be ones, “that give an unbiased, accurate, well rounded picture of Negro life in all parts of the world.” The lists and the standards were freely distributed from 135th Street Branch in Harlem. Many librarians, editors, and authors of the time used the lists in conjunction with their own work.[9] In 1971, it was retitled The Black Experience in Childrens Books, and its criteria played an important part in bringing awareness about harmful stereotypes in Helen Bannermans The Story of Little Black Sambo.[4]
In 1974, Baker retired from the New York Public Library.[5] However, in 1980, she returned to librarianship to assume the newly created Storyteller-in-Residence position at the University of South Carolina; this was also the first such position in any American university at the time. She remained there until her second retirement in 1994. During her time there, Baker cowrote a book entitled Storytelling: Art and Technique with colleague Ellin Green, which was published in 1987.[10]
Death and continued legacy
After a long illness, Baker died at the age of 86 on February 23, 1998. Her legacy has remained even today, particularly through the "Baker's Dozen: A Celebration of Stories" annual storytelling festival.[11] Sponsored by the University of South Carolina College of Information and Communications and the Richland County Public Library, this festival originated in 1987 during Baker's time at the University, and is celebrated still to this day.[5] The College of Information and Communications also created an endowed chair bearing Bakers name in 2011.[12]
When asked: “What do you tell your students when you conduct your workshops?” Baker stated:
“I tell them what I've always said. Let the story tell itself, and if it is a good story and you have prepared it well, you do not need all the extras - the costumes, the histrionics, the high drama. Children of all ages do want to hear stories. Select well, prepare well, and then go forth, stand tall, and just tell” [13]
Her legacy also continues through the Augusta Baker Collection of Childrens Literature and Folklore at the University of South Carolina. The collection, donated by her son, James H. Baker III, contains over 1,600 childrens books, including materials from her personal and working library, as well as papers, illustrations, and anthologies of folktales Baker used during her career.[7]
Awards and honors
First recipient of the E.P. Dutton-John Macrae Award (1953)[2]
Parents Magazine Medal Award (1966)[2]
ALA Grolier Award (1968)[2]
Womens National Book Association, Constance Lindsay Skinner Award (1971)[2]
Clarence Day Award (1975)[2]
Honorary ALA Membership (1975)[14]
Honorary Doctorate from St. Johns University (1980)[2]
Catholic Library Associations Regina Medal (1981)[3][15]
Honorary Doctorate from the University of South Carolina (1986)[16]
Second recipient of ALSC Distinguished Service Award (1993)[17]
Bibliography
Library resources about
Augusta Braxton Baker
Resources in your library
Resources in other libraries
By Augusta Braxton Baker
Online books
Resources in your library
Resources in other libraries
From Janice M. Del Negro, former Editor of The Bulletin for Childrens Books:[5]
Baker, Augusta. 1955. Talking tree; fairy tales from 15 lands. Illus. by Johannes Troyer. Philadelphia, PA: J.B. Lippincott.
Courlander, Harold. 1956. Uncle Bouqui, folk tales from Haiti; from Uncle Bouqui of Haiti. Read by Augusta Baker. Sound recording. Washington, DC: Folkways Records.
Baker, Augusta. 1957. Books about Negro life for children. New York, NY: New York Public Library.
Baker, Augusta, ed. 1960. Golden lynx, and other tales. Illus. by Johannes Troyer. Philadelphia, PA: J.B. Lippincott.
Baker, Augusta, ed. 1960. Young years; best loved stories and poems for little children. New York, NY: Parents Magazine Educational Press; Home Library Press.
Baker, Augusta. 1961. Books about Negro life for children. New York, NY: New York Public Library.
Baker, Augusta. 1963. Books about Negro life for children. New York, NY: New York Public Library.
Baker, Augusta. 1963. Young years library. New York, NY: Parents Magazine Educational Press.
Baker, Augusta, et al. 1966. Come hither! : papers on childrens literature and librarianship. Los Angeles, CA: Yeasayers Press.
Baker, Augusta. 1967. Aids to choosing books for children. New York, NY: Childrens Book Council.
Rollins, Charlemae Hill. 1967. We build together; a readers guide to Negro life and literature for elementary and high school use. With contributions from Augusta Baker, et al. Champaign, IL: National Council of Teachers of English.
Baker, Augusta, ed. 1971. Black experience in childrens books. Cover design by Ezra Jack Keats. New York, NY: New York Public Library.
Baker, Augusta. 1975. Storytelling. Cassette recording. New York, Childrens Book Council.
Baker, Augusta and Ellin Greene. 1977. Storytelling : art and technique. New York, NY: R. R. Bowker.
Baker, Augusta and Ellin Greene. 1987. Storytelling : art and technique, 2nd ed. New York, NY: R. R. Bowker.
Green, Ellin. 1996. Storytelling : art and technique. With a foreword by Augusta Baker. New York, NY: R. R. Bowker.
Augusta Braxton Baker, née Augusta Braxton, (born April 1, 1911, Baltimore, Md., U.S.—died Feb. 23, 1998, Columbia, S.C.), American librarian and storyteller who worked long and prolifically in the field of children's literature. Her many accomplishments included the first extensive bibliography of children's books portraying positive African-American role models.
Braxton was the only child of schoolteacher parents who introduced her at an early age to the joys of reading. At age 16, after earning her diploma at the all-black high school where her father taught, she enrolled at the University of Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania). She married at the end of her sophomore year, transferring to the New York College for Teachers in Albany, New York. Baker received a B.A. (1933) in education and a B.S. (1934) in library science from that institution. Shortly thereafter, the Bakers moved to New York City. Baker worked for a few years as a teacher, but in 1937 she became a children's librarian at the 135th Street Branch (now the Countee Cullen Regional Branch) of the New York Public Library (NYPL).
BRITANNICA EXPLORES
100 WOMEN TRAILBLAZERS
Meet extraordinary women who dared to bring gender equality and other issues to the forefront. From overcoming oppression, to breaking rules, to reimagining the world or waging a rebellion, these women of history have a story to tell.
Appalled by the depiction of black characters in the fiction then available to black children, Baker struggled to amass a collection of books that would provide inspiring black role models while at the same time presenting an accurate view of African-American life to young Americans of all races and backgrounds. The project, begun in 1939, culminated in the branch's James Weldon Johnson Memorial Collection. Baker's dedication to this cause helped produce children's authors of the sort she was looking for as well as publishers eager to publish them. In 1957 Books About Negro Life for Children, the bibliography of the collection, was published; it contained hundreds of book titles.
In time Baker discovered her gift for storytelling, and so did the NYPL. In 1953 she was appointed “storytelling specialist,” and two years later, Talking Tree, the first of what would be four collections of stories by Baker, was published. A promotion in 1961—to the highest position within the city library system held by an African-American to that date—made Baker coordinator of children's services in all 82 branches of the NYPL. While holding that position for the next 13 years, Baker strengthened the library's collection by adding audiovisual materials and in the process brought her vision to the outside world. She became a consultant to television's Sesame Street and began to teach and lecture widely on storytelling and children's literature. Baker retired from her library work after 37 years. In 1980 she was appointed storyteller-in-residence at the University of South Carolina, a position she held for more than a decade.
Augusta Braxton Baker, an African-American librarian, storyteller, and activist, was born on April 1, 1911, in Baltimore, Maryland. Her school-teacher parents put strong emphasis on the importance of education and the joys of reading, and after high school graduation, Baker began attending the University of Pittsburgh in 1927. At the end of her sophomore year, she married fellow student James Baker, and together they moved to Albany, New York. She attended New York State Teachers College, from which she earned a B.A. in education (1933) and a B.S. in library science (1934). Soon afterwards, the couple moved to New York City, where Baker worked briefly as a teacher, and her son, James Henry Baker III, was born.
In 1937, Baker was hired by Anne Carroll Moore, formidable supervisor of youth services for the New York Public Library, to be a childrens librarian at what was then the 135th Street Harlem Branch (now the Countee Cullen Regional Branch). The library had a sizable collection of books on African-American history and culture; unfortunately, Baker found the fiction not only inadequate but insulting, and her career as a velvet-gloved revolutionary began. In 1939, an inspired if exasperated Baker began assembling a special collection of titles that would fairly represent African-American culture and give children of all races a realistic picture of African-American life. To draw attention to the need for accurate portrayals of African Americans in literature for young people, and to promote the visibility of the slowly burgeoning collection, Baker wrote letters and gave speeches to publishers and editors at professional meetings. Her influence motivated several leading publishers to identify authors and illustrators who could produce stories with positive images of African Americans. Baker inspired a number of distinguished authors and illustrators, including Julius Lester, Ezra Jack Keats, Maurice Sendak, John Steptoe, and Madeleine LEngle. Bakers recognition of a deficit in juvenile library collections and her professional and personal responsibility to fill that gap resulted in what was ultimately christened The James Weldon Johnson Memorial Collection. Baker published the first edition of her groundbreaking bibliography, Books about Negro Life for Children, ventes exceptionnelles in 1946, and a number of revised editions followed. In 1971, the bibliography was updated, and the title was changed to The Black Experience in Childrens Books.
It was during the 1940s that the dynamic Baker began to gain a reputation as a spellbinding storyteller. A traditional mainstay of programming for young people at the New York Public Library, storytelling became for Baker a lifelong journey. In 1953, she was appointed storytelling specialist and assistant coordinator of childrens services. She was the first African-American librarian to have an administrative position in the New York Public Library. Her love of traditional folktales and her desire to promote them among both children and other storytellers spurred Baker to compile four collections of stories: The Talking Tree (1955), The Golden Lynx (1960), Young Years: Best Loved Stories and Poems for Little Children (1960), and Once Upon a Time (1964). Two of these titles,The Talking Tree and The Golden Lynx, are recognized by library professionals as classic world folktale collections.
In 1961, Baker became the first African-American coordinator of childrens services for the New York Public Library, a position that put this gifted librarian in charge of both programming for young people and policies governing that programming in all eighty-two branches of the library. Baker seized the opportunity to improve the quality of the youth collections in the library, emphasizing culturally inclusive books and audiovisual materials. Her growing influence did not stop at the library walls, but spread to schools, community groups, and professional organizations. She taught courses, gave workshops, spoke at conferences, and lectured on storytelling and childrens literature. She was a consultant for the television program Sesame Street; an advisor to Weston Woods Media Company; and a moderator of the weekly radio program The World of Childrens Literature. Baker participated in high-profile professional activities, serving the Childrens Services Division of the American Library Association in various capacities, including president of the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) and chair of what was then the combined Newbery/Caldecott Awards Committee. Throughout a productive and respected career, the indefatigable Baker told stories, influenced public library policy, and altered the course of American publishing for children.
In 1974, after thirty-seven years with the New York Public Library, Baker retired as childrens coordinator, but she did not retire from storytelling, libraries, or professional life. She was a sought-after speaker, and continued to lecture at universities, conduct workshops, and tell stories. In 1977, with coauthor Ellin Greene, Baker published Storytelling: Art and Technique, an authoritative handbook on storytelling in libraries.
In 1980, Baker was offered a position as storyteller-in-residence at the University of South Carolina, the first such position at any university. In 1986, the University of South Carolina College of Library and Information Science and the Richland County Public Library established the annual "A(ugusta) Bakers Dozen: A Celebration of Stories" in her honor. Among Bakers many additional awards are two honorary doctorates, the Grolier Foundation Award, the Regina Medal from the Catholic Library Association, the Constance Lindsay Skinner Award from the Womens National Book Association, and the Circle of Excellence Award from the National Storytelling Network.
Baker retired from her University of South Carolina position in 1994 and died on February 23, 1998. Her son donated her papers to the University of South Carolina. The Augusta Baker Collection of African-American Childrens Literature and Folklore is located at the Thomas Cooper Library of the University of South Carolina. The Baker Collection contains more than 1,600 childrens books (many inscribed), together with papers and illustrative material that provide an in-depth, microcosmic look at the history of childrens literature and librarianship in the United States.
See also:Librarians; Moore, Anne Carroll; StoryTellers; Storytelling.
Bibliography
Augusta Braxton Baker, a Black librarian and storyteller, was born on this date in 1911.
Born in Baltimore, Maryland, Braxton was the only child of parents who introduced her to the joys of reading at an early age. At age 16, she finished high school and enrolled at the University of Pittsburgh. She married at the end of her sophomore year, transferring to the New York College for Teachers in Albany, New York. Baker received a B.A. (1933) in education and a B.S. (1934) in library science from that college, moving to New York City soon after.
Baker taught for a few years, but in 1937, she became a childrens librarian at the 135th Street Branch (now the Countee Cullen Regional Branch) of the New York Public Library (NYPL). Appalled by the depiction of Black characters in the fiction available then to Black children, Baker amassed a collection of books that would provide inspiring Black role models that presented an accurate view of African American life to young people. This project started in 1939, and ended in the branchs James Weldon Johnson Memorial Collection. Bakers dedication to this cause helped produce the childrens authors she was looking for and publishers eager to circulate them.
In 1957, "Books About Negro Life for Children," the bibliography of the collection was published; it contained hundreds of book titles. Baker discovered her gift for storytelling, an endeavor supported by the NYPL. In 1953, she was appointed "storytelling specialist," and two years later, "Talking Tree," the first of what would be four collections of stories by Baker, was published. A promotion in 1961 made Baker coordinator of childrens services in all 82 branches of the NYPL.
She held that post for 13 years, strengthened the librarys collection by adding audiovisual materials, and in the process, brought her vision to the outside world. She became a consultant to televisions Sesame Street and began to teach and lecture extensively on storytelling and childrens literature. Baker retired from her library work after 37 years. In 1980, she was appointed storyteller-in-residence at the University of South Carolina, a position she held for more than a decade. Baker died on February 23, 1999, in Columbia, South Carolina.
The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second largest public library in the United States (behind the Library of Congress) and the fourth largest in the world.[5] It is a private, non-governmental, independently managed, nonprofit corporation operating with both private and public financing.[6]
The library has branches in the boroughs of the Bronx, Manhattan and Staten Island and affiliations with academic and professional libraries in the New York metropolitan area. The citys other two boroughs, Brooklyn and Queens, are not served by the New York Public Library system, but rather by their respective borough library systems: the Brooklyn Public Library and the Queens Public Library. The branch libraries are open to the general public and consist of circulating libraries. The New York Public Library also has four research libraries, which are also open to the general public.
The library, officially chartered as The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations, was developed in the 19th century, founded from an amalgamation of grass-roots libraries and social libraries of bibliophiles and the wealthy, aided by the philanthropy of the wealthiest Americans of their age.
The "New York Public Library" name may also refer to its Main Branch, which is easily recognizable by its lion statues named Patience and Fortitude that sit either side of the entrance. The branch was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1965,[7] listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966,[8] and designated a New York City Landmark in 1967.[9]
Contents
1History
1.1Founding
1.2Collection development
1.3Research libraries
1.3.1Main branch building
1.3.2Other research branches
1.4Recent history
1.5BookOps
1.6Controversies
2Branch libraries
3Services
3.1ASK NYPL
3.2Website and digital holdings
3.2.1One NYPL
3.3Community outreach
3.4Temporary programs
4Governance
5Other New York City library systems
6Cultural impact
6.1In popular culture
7See also
8References
9External links
History
Founding
The New York Public Library Main Branch during late stage construction in 1908, the lion statues not yet installed at the entrance
At the behest of Joseph Cogswell, John Jacob Astor placed a codicil in his will to bequeath $400,000 (equivalent of $12 million in 2020) for the creation of a public library.[10] After Astors death in 1848, the resulting board of trustees executed the wills conditions and constructed the Astor Library in 1854 in the East Village.[11] The library created was a free reference library; its books were not permitted to circulate.[12] By 1872, the Astor Library was described in a New York Times editorial as a "major reference and research resource",[13] but, "Popular it certainly is not, and, so greatly is it lacking in the essentials of a public library, that its stores might almost as well be under lock and key, for any access the masses of the people can get thereto".[14]
An act of the New York State Legislature incorporated the Lenox Library in 1870.[15][16] The library was built on Fifth Avenue, between 70th and 71st Streets, in 1877. Bibliophile and philanthropist James Lenox donated a vast collection of his Americana, art works, manuscripts, and rare books,[17] including the first Gutenberg Bible in the New World.[13] At its inception, the library charged admission and did not permit physical access to any literary items.[18]
Lenox copy of the Gutenberg Bible in the New York Public Library
Former Governor of New York and presidential candidate Samuel J. Tilden believed that a library with citywide reach was required, and upon his death in 1886, he bequeathed the bulk of his fortune—about $2.4 million (equivalent of $69 million in 2020)—to "establish and maintain a free library and reading room in the city of New York".[13] This money would sit untouched in a trust for several years, until John Bigelow, a New York attorney, and Andrew Haswell Green, both trustees of the Tilden fortune, came up with an idea to merge two of the citys largest libraries.[19]
Both the Astor and Lenox libraries were struggling financially. Although New York City already had numerous libraries in the 19th century, almost all of them were privately funded and many charged admission or usage fees (a notable exception was Cooper Union, which opened its free reading room to the public in 1859).[20] Bigelow, the most prominent supporter of the plan to merge the two libraries found support in Lewis Cass Ledyard, a member of the Tilden Board, as well as John Cadwalader, on the Astor board. Eventually, John Stewart Kennedy, president of the Lenox board came to support the plan as well. On May 23, 1895, Bigelow, Cadwalader, and George L. Rives agreed to create "The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations".[19] The plan was hailed as an example of private philanthropy for the public good.[13] On December 11, John Shaw Billings was named as the librarys first director.[19] The newly established library consolidated with the grass-roots New York Free Circulating Library in February 1901.[21]
In March, Andrew Carnegie tentatively agreed to donate $5.2 million (equivalent of $162 million in 2020) to construct sixty-five branch libraries in the city, with the requirement that they be operated and maintained by the City of New York.[22][23] The Brooklyn and Queens public library systems, which predated the consolidation of New York City, eschewed the grants offered to them and did not join the NYPL system; they believed that they would not get treatment equal to the Manhattan and the Bronx counterparts.[citation needed] Later in 1901, Carnegie formally signed a contract with the City of New York to transfer his donation to the city in order to enable it to justify purchasing the land for building the branch libraries.[24] The NYPL Board of trustees hired consultants for the planning, and accepted their recommendation that a limited number of architectural firms be hired to build the Carnegie libraries: this would ensure uniformity of appearance and minimize cost. The trustees hired McKim, Mead & White, Carrère and Hastings, and Walter Cook to design all the branch libraries.[25]
Collection development
Cross-view of classical details in the Main Branchs entrance portico
The notable New York author Washington Irving was a close friend of Astor for decades and had helped the philanthropist design the Astor Library. Irving served as President of the librarys Board of Trustees from 1848 until his death in 1859, shaping the librarys collecting policies with his strong sensibility regarding European intellectual life.[26] Subsequently, the library hired nationally prominent experts to guide its collections policies; they reported directly to directors John Shaw Billings (who also developed the National Library of Medicine), Edwin H. Anderson, Harry M. Lydenberg, Franklin F. Hopper, Ralph A. Beals, and Edward Freehafer (1954–1970).[27] They emphasized expertise, objectivity, and a very broad worldwide range of knowledge in acquiring, preserving, organizing, and making available to the general population nearly 12 million books and 26.5 million additional items.[28] The directors in turn reported to an elite board of trustees, chiefly elderly, well-educated, philanthropic, predominantly Protestant, upper-class white men with commanding positions in American society. They saw their role as protecting the librarys autonomy from politicians as well as bestowing upon it status, resources, and prudent care.[29]
Representative of many major board decisions was the purchase in 1931 of the private library of Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich (1847–1909), uncle of the last tsar. This was one of the largest acquisitions of Russian books and photographic materials; at the time, the Soviet government had a policy of selling its cultural collections abroad for gold.[30]
The military drew extensively from the librarys map and book collections in the world wars, including hiring its staff. For example, the Map Divisions chief Walter Ristow was appointed as head of the geography section of the War Departments New York Office of Military Intelligence from 1942 to 1945. Ristow and his staff discovered, copied, and loaned thousands of strategic, rare or unique maps to war agencies in need of information not available through other sources.[31]
Research libraries
Main branch building
Patience and Fortitude, the "Library Lion" statues, in the snowstorm of December 1948
Main article: New York Public Library Main Branch
The organizers of the New York Public Library, wanting an imposing main branch, chose a central site along Fifth Avenue between 40th and 42nd Streets, on top of the Croton Reservoir. Dr. John Shaw Billings, the first director of the library, created an initial design that became the basis of the new building contain a huge reading room on top of seven floors of book stacks, combined with a system that was designed to get books into the hands of library users as fast as possible.[13] The architectural firm Carrère and Hastings constructed the structure in the Beaux-Arts style, and the structure opened on May 23, 1911.[32] It was the largest marble structure up to that time in the United States.[33]
The Librarys historical seal, designed by sculptist Victor David Brenner in 1909, best known as the designer of the Lincoln penny. Though rarely used, the seated personification of wisdom appears on plaques at several branches.
The two stone lions guarding the entrance were sculpted by E.C. Potter[34] and carved by the Piccirilli Brothers.[35] Its main reading room was contemporaneously the largest of its kind in the world at 77 ft (23 m) wide by 295 ft (90 m) long, with 50-foot-high (15 m) ceilings.[36] An expansion in the 1970s and 1980s added storage space under Bryant Park, directly west of the library. The structure was given a major restoration from 2007 to 2011,[37] underwritten by a $100 million gift from philanthropist Stephen A. Schwarzman, for whom the branch was subsequently renamed.[38] Today, the branchs main reading room is equipped with computers with access to library collections and the Internet as well as docking facilities for laptops. A Fellows program makes reserved rooms available for writers and scholars, selected annually, and many have accomplished important research and writing at the library.[13]
The Main Branch also contains several historic designations. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1965,[7] listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966,[39] and designated a New York City designated landmark in 1967.[40] The main reading room was separately made a New York City designated landmark in 2017.[41]
Other research branches
Science, Industry and Business Library
In the 1990s, the New York Public Library decided to relocate that portion of the research collection devoted to science, technology, and business to a new location. The library purchased and adapted the former B. Altman & Company Building on 34th Street. In 1995, the 100th anniversary of the founding of the library, the $100 million Science, Industry and Business Library (SIBL), designed by Gwathmey Siegel & Associates of Manhattan, opened to the public. Upon the creation of the SIBL, the central research library on 42nd Street was renamed the Humanities and Social Sciences Library.
Today there are four research libraries that comprise the NYPLs research library system; together they hold approximately 44 million items. Total item holdings, including the collections of the Branch Libraries, are 50.6 million. The Humanities and Social Sciences Library on 42nd Street is still the heart of the NYPLs research library system. The SIBL, with approximately 2 million volumes and 60,000 periodicals, is the nations largest public library devoted solely to science and business.[42] The NYPLs two other research libraries are the Schomburg Center for Research and Black Culture, located at 135th Street and Lenox Avenue in Harlem, and the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, located at Lincoln Center. In addition to their reference collections, the Library for the Performing Arts and the SIBL also have circulating components that are administered as ordinary branch libraries.
Recent history
Recto of a 16th-century music manuscript found in the front pastedown of Drexel 4180, a manuscript in the Music Division of the New York Public Library
The New York Public Library was not created by government statute. From its earliest days, the library was formed from a partnership of city government with private philanthropy.[13] As of 2010, the research libraries in the system are largely funded with private money, and the branch or circulating libraries are financed primarily with city government funds. Until 2009, the research and branch libraries operated almost entirely as separate systems, but that year various operations were merged. By early 2010, the NYPL staff had been reduced by about 16 percent, in part through the consolidations.[43]
In 2010, as part of the consolidation program, the NYPL moved various back-office operations to a new Library Services Center building in Long Island City. A former warehouse was renovated for this purpose for $50 million. In the basement, a new, $2.3 million book sorter uses bar codes on library items to sort them for delivery to 132 branch libraries. At two-thirds the length of a football field, the machine is the largest of its kind in the world, according to library officials. Books located in one branch and requested from another go through the sorter, which use has cut the previous waiting time by at least a day. Together with 14 library employees, the machine can sort 7,500 items an hour (or 125 a minute). On the first floor of the Library Services Center is an ordering and cataloging office; on the second, the digital imaging department (formerly at the Main Branch building) and the manuscripts and archives division, where the air is kept cooler; on the third, the Barbara Goldsmith Preservation Division, with a staff of 10 (as of 2010) but designed for as many as 30 employees.[43]
The NYPL maintains a force of NYC special patrolmen, who provide security and protection to various libraries, and NYPL special investigators, who oversee security operations at the library facilities. These officials have on-duty arrest authority granted by the New York Penal Law. Some library branches contract for security guards.
To celebrate its 125th anniversary, the NYPL calculated a list of its most checked out books. Topping the list was Ezra Jack Keats The Snowy Day, with The Cat in the Hat and Nineteen Eighty-Four rounding out the top three.[44]
BookOps
In February 2013, the New York and Brooklyn public libraries announced that they would merge their technical services departments. The new department is called BookOps. The proposed merger anticipates a savings of $2 million for the Brooklyn Public Library and $1.5 million for the New York Public Library. Although not currently part of the merger, it is expected that the Queens Public Library will eventually share some resources with the other city libraries.[45][46] As of 2011, circulation in the New York Public Library systems and Brooklyn Public Library systems has increased by 59%. Located in Long Island City, BookOps was created as a way to save money while improving patrons service.[47] The services of BookOps include the Selection Team which "acquires, describes, prepares, and delivers new items for the circulating collections of Brooklyn Public Library (BPL) and New York Public Library, and for the general collections of NYPLs research libraries." Under the Selection Team are the Acquisitions Department, the Cataloging Department, The Collections Processing Unit, and the Logistics Department.[48] Before this facility opened, all the aforementioned departments were housed in different locations with no accountability between them, and items sometimes taking up to two weeks to reach their intended destination. BookOps now has all departments in one building and in 2015 sorted almost eight million items.[49] The building has numerous rooms, including a room dedicated to caring for damaged books.[50]
Controversies
The consolidations and changes in collections have promoted continuing debate and controversy since 2004 when David Ferriero was named the Andrew W. Mellon Director and Chief Executive of the Research Libraries.[51] NYPL had engaged consultants Booz Allen Hamilton to survey the institution, and Ferriero endorsed the surveys report as a big step "in the process of reinventing the library".[52] The consolidation program has resulted in the elimination of subjects such as the Asian and Middle East Division (formerly named Oriental Division), as well as the Slavic and Baltic Division.[53]
A number of innovations in recent years have been criticized. In 2004 NYPL announced participation in the Google Books Library Project. By agreement between Google and major international libraries, selected collections of public domain books would be scanned in their entirety and made available online for free to the public.[54] The negotiations between the two partners called for each to project guesses about ways that libraries are likely to expand in the future.[55] According to the terms of the agreement, the data cannot be crawled or harvested by any other search engine; no downloading or redistribution is allowed. The partners and a wider community of research libraries can share the content.[56]
The sale of the separately endowed former Donnell Library in midtown provoked controversy.[57] The elimination of Donnell was a result of the dissolution of childrens, young adult and foreign language collections. The Donnell Media Center was also dismantled, the bulk of its collection relocated at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts as the Reserve Film and Video Collection, with parts of its collection redistributed.[58][59] The site was redeveloped for a luxury hotel.
Several veteran librarians have retired, and the number of age-level specialists in the boroughs have been cut back.[60]
Rose Main Reading Room
Branch libraries
The Epiphany Branch, on East 23rd Street in Manhattan
See also: List of New York Public Library Branches
The New York Public Library system maintains commitment as a public lending library through its branch libraries in the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island, including the Mid-Manhattan Library, the Andrew Heiskell Braille and Talking Book Library, the circulating collections of the Science, Industry and Business Library, and the circulating collections of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. The branch libraries comprise the third-largest library in the United States.[61] These circulating libraries offer a wide range of collections, programs, and services, including the renowned Picture Collection at Mid-Manhattan Library and the Media Center, redistributed from Donnell.
The system has 39 libraries in Manhattan, 35 in the Bronx, and 13 in Staten Island. The newest is the 53rd Street Branch in Manhattan, which opened on June 26, 2016.[62] As of 2016, the New York Public Library consisted of four research centers and 88 neighborhood branch libraries in the three boroughs served.[63] All libraries in the NYPL system may be used free of charge by all visitors. As of 2010, the research collections contain 44,507,623 items (books, videotapes, maps, etc.), while the branch libraries contain 8,438,775 items.[64] Together the collections total nearly 53 million items, a number surpassed only by the Library of Congress and the British Library.
Services
ASK NYPL
Christmas tree at Astor Hall, adjacent to the main entrance to the NYPLs main branch
Telephone Reference, known as ASK NYPL,[65] answers 100,000 questions per year, by phone and online,[66] as well as in The New York Times.[67][68]
Website and digital holdings
The Library website provides access to the librarys catalogs, online collections and subscription databases. It also has information about the librarys free events, exhibitions, computer classes and English as a Second Language (ESL) classes.[69] The two online catalogs, LEO[70] (which searches the circulating collections) and CATNYP (which searches the research collections) allow users to search the librarys holdings of books, journals and other materials. The LEO system allows cardholders to request books from any branch and have them delivered to any branch.
The NYPL gives cardholders free access from home to thousands of current and historical magazines, newspapers, journals and reference books in subscription databases, including EBSCOhost, which contains full text of major magazines; full text of the New York Times (1995–present), Gales Ready Reference Shelf which includes the Encyclopedia of Associations and periodical indexes, Books in Print;[71] and Ulrichs Periodicals Directory. The New York Public Library also links to outside resources, such as the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook, and the CIAs World Factbook. Databases are available for children, teenagers, and adults of all ages.[72]
The NYPL Digital Collections (formerly named Digital Gallery)[73] is a database of over 900,000 images digitized from the librarys collections. The Digital Collections was named one of Time Magazines 50 Coolest Websites of 2005[74] and Best Research Site of 2006[75] by an international panel of museum professionals.
The Photographers Identities Catalog (PIC) is an experimental online service of the Photography Collection in the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building.[76]
Other databases available only from within the library include Nature, IEEE and Wiley science journals, Wall Street Journal archives, and Factiva. Overall, the digital holdings for the Library consist of more than a petabyte of data as of 2015.[77]
One NYPL
In 2006, the library adopted a new strategy that merged branch and research libraries into "One NYPL". The organizational change developed a unified online catalog for all the collections, and one card to that could be used at both branch and research libraries.[58] The 2009 website and online-catalog transition had some initial difficulties, but ultimately the catalogues were integrated.[78]
Community outreach
The New York Public Library offers many services to its patrons. Some of these services include services for immigrants. New York City is known for having a welcoming environment when its comes to people of diverse backgrounds. The library offers free work and life skills classes. These are offered in conjunction with volunteers and partnerships at the library. In addition, the library offers non-English speakers materials and coaching for them to acclimate to the U.S. For these non-English speakers, the library offers free ESOL classes. An initiative was taken in July 2018, NYC library card holders are allowed to visit Whitney Museum, the Guggenheim and 31 other prominent New York cultural institutions for free.[79]
Temporary programs
In June 2017, Subway Library was announced.[80] It was an initiative between the New York Public Library, Brooklyn Public Library, Queens Public Library, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and Transit Wireless. The Subway Library gave New York City Subway riders access to e-books, excerpts, and short stories.[81][82] Subway Library has since ended, but riders can still download free e-books via the SimplyE app or by visiting SimplyE.net.
Governance
The NYPL, like all public libraries in New York, is granted a charter from the Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York and is registered with the New York State Education Department.[83] The basic powers and duties of all library boards of trustees are defined in the Education Law and are subject to Part 90 of Title 8 of the New York Codes, Rules and Regulations.[83]
The NYPLs charter, as restated and granted in 1975, gives the name of the corporation as The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations. The library is governed by a board of trustees, composed of between 25–42 trustees of several classes who collectively choose their own successors, including ex officio the New York City Mayor, New York City Council Speaker and New York City Comptroller.[84]
Other New York City library systems
Main Branch Reading Room, c. 1910-1920
The New York Public Library is one of three separate and independent public library systems in New York City. The other two library systems are the Brooklyn Public Library and the Queens Public Library.[85] According to the 2006 Mayors Management Report, New York Citys three public library systems had a total library circulation of 35 million: the NYPL and BPL (with 143 branches combined) had a circulation of 15 million, and the Queens system had a circulation of 20 million through its 62 branch libraries. Altogether the three library systems hosted 37 million visitors in 2006. Taken as a whole, the three library systems in the city have 209 branches with 63 million items in their collections.
Other libraries in New York City, some of which can be used by the public, are listed in the Directory of Special Libraries and Information Centers.[86]
Cultural impact
The historian David McCullough has described the New York Public Library as one of the five most important libraries in the United States; the others are the Library of Congress, the Boston Public Library, and the university libraries of Harvard and Yale.[87]
In popular culture
The New York Public Library has been referenced numerous times in popular culture. The library has appeared as a setting and topic multiple times in film, poetry, television, and music.
See also
Education in New York City
Google Books Library Project
List of museums and cultural institutions in New York City
Benjamin Miller Collection, collection of posted stamps
Ira D. Wallach, namesake of the Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs
The New York Public Library Desk Reference
List of New York Public Library Branches
List of Presidents of the New York Public Library
