Shannon Kupfer, State Library of Ohio
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“Oh, joy! To see the Library staff perpetually jogging…”
~Sam Walter Foss, The Song of the Library Staff
“Perpetually jogging?” This was true in 1906 when Mr. Foss wrote The Song of the Library Staff, and it’s certainly true today, as well. There is no question that this is a challenging time for libraries. Budget cuts are nearly universal, and we are increasingly called upon to provide necessary services with fewer resources. Frankly, for many this is a frightening time to be in librarianship. Yet an examination of materials in the Rare Book Room reminds us that, while for the most part, libraries have never been flush and challenges have always existed, we continue to succeed and to make a difference in the lives of our customers.
In 1910, the American Library Association published a piece entitled Why Do We Need a Public Library? This collection of quotes, compiled by Chalmers Hadley, the Secretary of the ALA, was published to be used as materials for drumming up support for library campaigns; it includes statements by William McKinley, Melvil Dewey, Andrew Carnegie, and a number of others. “The public library,” says Sir Walter Besant, “is the greatest educational factor we have; and the librarian is becoming our most important teacher and guide.”
In the pamphlets Library Work for Young Men and Library Work: An Opportunity for College Women, both ALA publications from the early 1920s, prospective librarians are reminded that librarians generally enter into the field because they are “born to library work.” Challenges then, as now, included modest pay in comparison to required qualifications and irregular hours. “A man must be born to library work,” says Young Men, indicating that those who are called to librarianship will find no more satisfying career. Indeed, College Women reminds us that the role of the librarian is that of “an active agent in establishing the most perfect contact between the book and the person who wants the information, help, or pleasure that book could give him.” What could be more rewarding?
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Sam Foss, a librarian from Somerville, Massachusetts, wrote his poem The Song of the Library Staff about the various roles of library workers. In it he describes catalogers as cataloging “all the fruit that’s dropped and mellowed since the Knowledge tree was shaken,” and says that there is “no knowledge known to mortals” that is not known to reference librarians. He writes of the “boisterous joys” of the children’s librarian and the “calm and cool” demeanor of circulation desk attendants. As for the head librarian, Foss describes him or her as “trying to expend a dollar when he only has a dime.”
Librarians as “teachers,” modest salaries but highly-satisfying work, shrinking budgets -- this all sounds extremely familiar. Clearly, however, these challenges are not insurmountable. Libraries have been facing similar hardships for many, many years, and will likely continue to do so. We continue to persevere, however, due to the dedicated work of library staff and the library’s unquestionable value to the community.
To view these titles and others pertaining to librarianship, please visit the State Library of Ohio Rare Book Room.