Tag Archives: Poole (William Frederick)

William Frederick Poole: pioneering indexer and librarian

Reading, Writing, Research Posted on by  

These days, municipalities all over the US have tax-supported public libraries. Public libraries, academic libraries, and others offer patrons indexes to help them find articles in periodicals. We have William Frederick Poole to thank for both. He first became famous for the first index to periodicals and later became a founding member of the American Library Association. For most of his career as a librarian, he advocated for public libraries.

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The Newberry Library: building a great library from nothing

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The Newberry Library in Chicago is one of the world’s great research libraries. Most other libraries have started with a core collection, or at least a plan for developing one. The Newberry Library, founded in 1887, started with a codicil in the will of Walter L. Newberry, who died in 1868. There never would have been a library if either of his daughters had borne children. Since they did not, Newberry bequeathed his money to found a public library. His private book collection, which should have formed its nucleus, burned in the Chicago Fire of 1871. How was anyone supposed to create a library with no books, little instruction, and a big pile of money?

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