ACRL College & Research Libraries News

College & Research Libraries News

News from the Field

ACQUISITIONS

• The History of Veterinary Medicine collection at Washington State University Libraries has been enhanced considerably by a gift of major importance.

J. F. Smithcors, of Santa Barbara, California, has donated to the university his outstanding personal library of more than 1,000 volumes. A recognized authority, especially in American veterinary history, Smithcors has written and published extensively in the field.

The library, which includes manuscripts, broadsides, and ephemera, ranges from sixteenth-century works to twentieth-century textbooks of significance. Continental European publications are present, but English language titles predominate and, for the more recent past, the emphasis is on American works. Two nineteenth-century editions (1821, 1822) are present of what, in fact, might be the first truly native work in the field—Paul Jewett’s The New England Farrier‚ originally published in 1795. Contrasting with the ubiquitous “pocket farriers, are three landmarks in the field of anatomy: Ruini’s Anatomia del Cavallo (1706, 1707); Snape’s Anatomy of an Horse (1683); Stubbs’ Anatomy of the Horse (1766).

The Smithcors library, as it is received, is being specially housed in Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections, because of the rare and often unique character of much of the material.

• A monumental, historic transaction will preserve a national treasure by moving the Western Hemisphere’s largest, privately-owned geographical research library from its present American Geographical Society home in New York City to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Library.

“The integrity of a vastly important resource has been guaranteed by the transfer of the AGS collection to UWM,” Werner A. Baum, UWM chancellor said. “Its preservation in its present locale proved impossible. This transaction assures its future.” It is recognized that the collection will elevate the UWM Library to major international research status in the fields of geography and related earth sciences.

Legal clearances for the move have been made possible after months of negotiations conducted by members of the law firm of Webster and Sheffield, legal counsel for the American Geographical Society. The New York State Supreme Court approved the move.

“The result of these negotiations reflects a magnificent commitment on the part of the people of the states of New York and Wisconsin to save one of our nation’s most significant cultural and educational assets,” said Chancellor Baum.

UWM officials were unanimous in their praise for the reasoned actions that resulted in a final means for both preserving the collections and ensuring the society’s future in New York City.

The collection of the American Geographical Society, which includes 180,000 books and bound volumes of periodicals, 33,000 pamphlets, 45,000 photographs, 350,000 maps, 5,500 atlases, and 67 rare and special globes, is considered to be one of the oldest and finest research collections of its kind in the world.

The move from New York to Milwaukee will take about thirty days, following approval by the office of the governor of Wisconsin. As many as twenty-seven moving vans will be needed to transport the collection, which is estimated to weigh 800,000 pounds.

“This may well prove to be one of the largest library moves, involving transfer of title of ownership, in our nation's 200-year history,” said William C. Roselle, director of the UWM Library.

The AGS offices will remain in New York City and its programs will be continued. The entire collection, which includes such treasures as a world map drawn by the Venetian cartographer Giovanni Leardo some forty years before Columbus sailed for North America, will become the property of the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents. Other items of interest and value include the 1478 edition of Ptolemy’s Cosmographia on vellum, the 1538 world map by Mercator, sixteenth- and seventeenth-century accounts of European exploration in the New World, and books created by such well known early printers as Christopher Plantin.

EXHIBITS

• William Budington, executive director and librarian, announced today the plans for a three-month-long John Crerar Library Celebration of Science. The purpose of the celebration is to bring to the public’s attention the services of The John Crerar Library as a free public reference library specializing in the fields of science, technology, and medicine. A principal element of this celebration is a major exhibit of rare scientific books from the Crerar collections. The exhibit, which is called “Science Through the Ages,” will be on display at the Chicago Public Library Cultural Center’s G.A.R. Exhibition Hall from Wednesday, November 1, 1978, through Wednesday, January 31, 1979. The public is invited to view the exhibit without charge during regular library hours. Group tours with lectures provided also will be made available by calling (312) 225- 2526, Extension 58.

GRANTS

• The libraries of the University of California at Berkeley, the University of California at Los Angeles, and Stanford University have been awarded a Title II C Grant (Strengthening Research Library Resources) from the U.S. Office of Education. For 1978-79 the sum of $675,000 was awarded for the first year of a multiyear proposal. These libraries maintain the strongest research collections in California and are regarded as national resources for scholarship and research.

The libraries have joined together in this project to expand their existing machine-readable files by converting all the other currently received and retrospective serial titles in their collections and to upgrade to CONSER editing standards the bibliographic data for serial records already in machine-readable form. Presently, there are 343,000 MARC-structured serial records in the common processing system: Berkeley, 220.000 records; Los Angeles, 55,000 records; and Stanford 68,000 records. It is estimated that by converting the remaining titles, 285,000 records would be added to the data base. The number of records in the combined data base would then total 650,000—with 400,000 to 450.000 distinct titles.

It is proposed that at a later time and in addition to continuing data base efforts, the participants will develop and implement methods for linking their serial files in order to produce serial finding tools in various formats. Later in the project detailed holdings statements will be added to the records.

The libraries welcome the opportunity to work with one another on this noteworthy project. In the years ahead the academic communities at these and other institutions should benefit considerably from the improved access to serial holdings that together constitute one of the world’s outstanding resources.

• Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies has received an $8,000 grant from the Japan World Exposition Commemorative Fund, according to Peter J. Promen, librarian. To be used during the fiscal year 1978-79, the grant will be used to purchase microfilm, books, and periodicals to strengthen the SAIS Library’s holdings and to support instruction and research in the field of Japan— United States relations.

MISCELLANY

• A special University of Wisconsin System committee has been created for the purpose of developing recommendations for the maintenance and improvement of library services in the UW System.

The UW Library Planning Study Committee (LPSC) was formed in January by UW System President Edwin Young. The planning study, funded by the University of Wisconsin System Administration, is being pursued with the desire to preserve the excellence of the libraries and their capacity to perform their functions in support of teaching, research, and public service. In particular, the LPSC charge calls for recommendations regarding cooperative programming, library support for off-campus credit instruction, applications of technology, and physical facilities.

The University of Wisconsin System enrolls 146,500 students per year at thirteen degree-granting campuses and fourteen freshmansophomore centers. In addition, the University of Wisconsin-Extension reaches more than onemillion people in the state. The UW System libraries are seeking an appropriate response to the increasing numbers of publications and materials for purchase and the reduced financial flexibility induced by inflation and budgetary constraints.

The LPSC membership was selected to represent the broad spectrum of UW System interests as they apply to libraries. The committee is composed of the following library directors, faculty, and administrative staff: Warren Exo, assistant vice-president, UW System Administration; Robert Fetvedt, director of libraries, UW-Eau Claire; Laurine Fitzgerald, dean of the Graduate School, UW-Oshkosh; Emogene Nelson, professor of physical education and assistant to vicechancellor, UW-River Falls; Lorman Ratner, vice-chancellor, UW-Parkside; William Roselle, director of libraries, UW-Milwaιιkee; Richard Schwartz, professor, English, UW-Madison; Roger Schwenn, director of libraries, UW-Center System; Don Tolliver, executive director of learning resources, UW-Whitewater; and Howard Wakefield, professor of education, UW-Madison.

The LPSC has established seven subcommittees, each focusing on a particular aspect of the main endeavor of the committee. The subcommittees will produce data and recommendations regarding historical background and legal bases of the UW System; collection development; bibliographic access and processing of materials; delivery and use of materials; information and instructional services; facilities; and cost and budget analysis.

The study is directed by Dr. Don L. Tolliver, chairperson of the LPSC. Tolliver believes that the study not only will improve services, but also will lead to reduced costs. He estimates that the study will provide planning and direction for the System libraries for up to fifteen years.

The purpose of the study, according to Tolliver, is to “help us better utilize the millions of volumes we have in the UW System.”

The study will be completed in mid-1979.

• The continuation of the CONSER Project, a program to develop an automated serials data base, has been announced by the Council on Library Resources, Inc. (CLR), the Library of Congress, the National Library of Canada, and OCLC, Inc.

As initially planned and implemented, CONSER was a cooperative, two-year program to develop the data base using the resources of fourteen North American libraries and the on-line computer facilities of the Ohio College Library Center (now OCLC, Inc.). With the support and under the management of CLR, the participating institutions contributed to building a file now in excess of 180,000 titles.

In acknowledgement of the benefits of CONSER to the library and information communities, the Library of Congress agreed to assume responsibility for supporting the system at the end of the two-year period. Since fiscal and resource constraints prevented the library from sufficiently expanding its automation activities related to CONSER, however, the project will remain at OCLC for the foreseeable future.

The CONSER Project will continue to develop at OCLC, with OCLC assuming the management role previously performed by CLR. Centers of Responsibility (the Library of Congress and the National Library of Canada) will continue to be responsible for the bibliographic quality of the data base. Adherence to existing working conventions—the CONSER Manual and the MARC Serials Editing Guide: CONSER Edition—will remain a requirement for all CONSER participants. These conventions will be developed and changed as before—that is, through the two national libraries as Centers of Responsibility, working with CONSER participants and OCLC.

OCLC will continue to make CONSER records on magnetic tape available to the Library of Congress and the National Library of Canada for subsequent distribution. In recognition of the importance of the project, the Library of Congress will maintain its current level of staffing and bibliographic support for CONSER. receiving periodicals in foreign languages. Twelve tables, covering seventeen different European languages, provide “Title Page Tips” including numbers one to thirty-one, the days of the week, as well as words for the months, seasons, and other common title page terms. Also provided are lists of cognates for English, Romance, and Germanic languages, a glossary of serial definitions, and a German vocabulary pertaining to serials.

Selected Medieval and Renaissance Manuscript Collections in Microform,Number 133, is by Peter P. Olevnik, head of reference at the State University of New York College at Brockport. Several university libraries and research centers are developing their own manuscript collections in microform. This paper describes the largest of these collections and updates listings of those collections already treated in the literature. Its purpose is to serve as a guide to the scholar by providing information on indexes and catalogs, copying and borrowing policies, facilities provided for the researcher, bibliographic sources, and general collection content.

Numbers in the Occasional Papers series are available by subscription or single copy. The two papers cited above are the first in the 1978 subscription year: Annual subscriptions may be placed for $7; single papers are $2 each (prepaid) or $1 for orders of ten or more of one number. Orders should be addressed to: University of Illinois, Graduate School of Library Science, Publications Office, 249 Armory, Champaign, IL 61820.

• Kanta Bhatia, South Asia bibliographer at the University of Pennsylvania, has compiled a bibliography entitled Reference Sources on South Asia, published by the South Asia Regional Studies Department of the university in September. Although it is primarily a guide to the University of Pennsylvania library collections, South Asianists elsewhere will find it useful as a bibliographic tool. It lists 671 titles by type of reference work, with geographic and subject subdivisions. Selection is restricted to publications in English, but a few works in other European languages are included. Call numbers, annotations, and an author-title-subject index are provided.

This seventy-seven-page guide may be ordered from the University of Pennsylvania Bookstore, Philadelphia, PA 19104, at $4 per copy.

• The Center for the Study of American Catholicism recently published in a working paper format Catholic Americana, A Selected Bibliography of Theses and Dissertations Completed at the University of Notre Dame 1921-1977 by James G. Neal and Anna Rose Kearney. This bibliography can be obtained by mailing $1 to: Center for the Study of American Catholicism, 1109 Memorial Library, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556. Information on other working papers published by the center is also available.

NOTICES

• The University of Illinois Graduate School of Library Science has recently released two new numbers in its series of Occasional Papers.

Number 132, by Jeanne H. Shedd, reference librarian at Northport (New York) Public Library, is entitled Serials in Selected European Languages: The Language Problem. This paper is designed to serve as a practical aid to the librarian