University Library (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign)

The University Library came into being before the university with which it is affiliated, as the university board considered it essential that students and faculty would have books waiting to greet them when the university opened its doors. However, this earliest collection was very small and did not yet have its own library building. As a result, the University Library has moved as it has grown throughout its history, a trend that continues to this day. While its collections had previously resided elsewhere, Altgeld Hall (known as Library Hall at the time) was the first building built specifically to house the university's library. Today, Altgeld Hall is home to the university's Math Department; the University Library moved in the 1920s to what is now called the Main Library. Growing collections The earliest Library collection consisted of around one thousand items. The collection remained small for some time, and in the early 1900s the Library was smaller than those of other large public libraries, as well as private institutions such as the University of Chicago. This would, however, quickly change. Between the mid-1930s and 1940, the library expanded its collection significantly. By certain metrics, such as the number of volumes, it was ranked as the fifth-largest academic library in the United States at that time. A strong library collection became increasingly important to the university's standing and to its retention of students, as well as to the implementation of a successful graduate school program at the university. The Undergraduate Library (UGL) emerged in part from the surge in collections, deriving both from the influx of the shuttered University of Illinois at Galesburg's collection in 1949 and from the need to grant undergraduates free access to research materials. The Undergraduate Library building was constructed in 1969, built underground in order to maintain open spaces and leave unobstructed sun for the university's experimental cornfield. University librarians Early board members' concern for the University Library did not extend beyond purchasing books for student and faculty use: the Library lacked a librarian, and for more than twenty years, between 1873 and 1894, faculty members assumed the management of the small collection. Percy Bicknell, hired in 1894 as the first University Librarian, strove to bring the University Library into line with its counterparts throughout the country, beginning the University Library's tradition of Dewey cataloging as well as creating the Library's first card catalog. Bicknell was let go in 1897, replaced by the progressive and reference-minded Katharine Sharp. Sharp, who took up the reins as the Library moved into Altgeld Hall, University Librarians following Bicknell and Sharp have continued the Library's innovative traditions. They have also fought for patrons' right to privacy according to the American Library Association's code of ethics and its Library Bill of Rights. Paula Kaufman, University Librarian from 1999 to 2003, received several awards for her work protecting intellectual freedom and patron privacy, including the Robert B. Downs Intellectual Freedom Award and an award from the American Library Association's Office of Intellectual Freedom. In short order the technology was put to use cataloging serials, which was seen as a step on the way to the creation of a fully computerized, web-based card catalog. Hugh Atkinson, University Librarian from 1976 to 1986, made the enhancement and creation of automated catalogs and cataloging one of his and the Library's priorities during his tenure. Atkinson, who brought experience with library technology to the University Library, oversaw the implementation of MARC standards, or Machine-Readable Cataloging. Atkinson's dream of a fully automated library began to bear fruit in the late 1970s and early 1980s, as University Library patrons were for the first time able to request books on library computers. Atkinson's 1986 death brought with it a shift towards other facets of library automation. In 1994, the Grainger Engineering Library Information Center introduced both public and staff PC workstations with internet connectivity, aligning with technological advancements of the time. For a time, Grainger's web servers ran the University Library's website. In the early 1990s librarians at the university, including current Grainger head librarian William Mischo, worked to give patrons access to full-text article searching and implemented an early federated search. == Collections ==