University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Cornelia Marvin and Mary Frances Isom: Leaders of Oregon's Library Movement

Gunselman, Cheryl

Permalink

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/1699

Description

Title
Cornelia Marvin and Mary Frances Isom: Leaders of Oregon's Library Movement
Author(s)
Gunselman, Cheryl
Issue Date
2004
Keyword(s)
  • Library science --History
  • Information science --History
Abstract
Free public libraries, and “modern” library methods, arrived late in the Pacifi c Northwest. Two individuals were particularly infl uential in the introduction, growth, and professionalization of library service in the state of Oregon: Cornelia Marvin (later Pierce), of the Oregon Library Commission and the Oregon State Library (1905–28), and Mary Frances Isom of the Library Association of Portland (1901–20). This article will explore their relationship as leaders and colleagues during the early years of public library service in Oregon. Isom and Marvin frequently consulted one another on professional and personal questions, supporting each other as senior leaders of their institutions and as women in positions of power. Often working together, Isom and Marvin promoted tax-supported libraries throughout Oregon and the advantages of staffi ng them with formally trained librarians. Between them, they established the foundations for community and government support for libraries in the state. They contributed to creating a professional support system for librarians in the region as cofounders of the Pacifi c Northwest Library Association and were also active in the American Library Association. Their publications, reports, and surviving correspondence provide evidence of their extensive mutual support, opinions, actions, and decisions, as well as their professional development during their years as Oregon colleagues.
Publisher
Graduate School of Library and Information Science. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
ISSN
0024-2594
Type of Resource
text
Language
en
Permalink
http://hdl.handle.net/2142/1699
Copyright and License Information
Copyright owned by Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. 2004.

Owning Collections

Library Trends 52 (4) Spring 2004: Pioneers in Library and Information Science PRIMARY
Library Trends 52 (4) Spring 2004: Pioneers in Library and Information Science. Edited by W. Boyd Rayward