Archived Articles — Archive for August 2005

A newly released, three-volume reference work from publisher M.E.Sharpe, with the catchy title, Encyclopedia of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era, includes six entries by Janet Olson, Assistant University Archivist.

Olson wrote short but pithy biographical entries on social reform notables William D. P. Bliss, Benjamin O. Flower, George Herron, Vida Scudder, Charles Sheldon, and William T. Stead. The encyclopedia is intended primarily for college, high school, and public libraries, and for scholars and students specializing in the history of the United States between 1877 and 1920.

From September 2005 through August 2006, Virginia Kerr will have a reduced (50 percent) appointment at Northwestern. During this time she will also hold a 50 percent appointment in Milner Library at Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois, as adjunct electronic visual resources librarian. At NUL, Virginia's primary assignment will be to develop use of the Kirtas book scanning system in the Preservation Department. At Illinois State she will be responsible for implementing an online study collection of art images which will eventually replace ISU's College of Fine Arts slide library.

The search for a new Head of the Preservation Department will be lead by a committee chaired by David Easterbrook. Other members will be Elayne Bond, Ann Duncan-Gibbs, Claire Stewart, and Steve Di Domenico.

Roxanne Sellberg
Assistant University Librarian for Technical Services

The name’s McMahon … James McMahon. In another life, James, who’s known to most of us at the Library as Jake (Circulation Assistant), might have been an agent for her majesty’s secret service like his movie hero James Bond. For Jake is more than just your average James Bond fan, he’s something of an authority when it comes to Agent 007. Jake has worked as an unpaid consultant on several of the recent James Bond novels written by Chicago-area writer Raymond Benson. Benson was hired in 1995 by the late Ian Fleming’s estate to continue the Bond franchise by writing new novels and screenplays. Jake first met Benson at a spy novel convention, but he knew about him previously from James Bond Internet chat rooms.

It has been a long summer for staff at the Main Library, sort of a "storm" before the "calm." Offices and computers have been moved; traffic has been disrupted; and the sounds of construction, inside and out, have made everyone's job more challenging. But as the tarps are pulled away, we can start to see the beginnings of our new "Forum" (the redesign of what we used to call "The Street"). New lighting and a new project room in the Information Commons, renovation of Circulation Services, and a relocated new book alcove are emerging.

To thank library staff for their patience and perseverance through these months of construction, David Bishop and the Library administration threw a pizza party on Wednesday, August 10 in the VerSteeg Lounge. Many staff attended and no one left hungry! Here are some photos from the afternoon...