Endowments; War work; Soldiers' libraries; Washington (D.C.); American Library Association. Library War Service; American Library Association
Format
correspondence
Genre
Business correspondence
Origin Information
1917-09-14
Physical Description
microfilm, 16 mm, b&w
digitized microfilm
Note (Reel no.)
Reel 78
Note
PDF may contain multiple grant documents.
The Library War Service was established by the American Library Association in 1917 to provide library services to American soldiers training in camps and serving overseas in World War I. Between 1917 and 1920, the ALA raised $5 million from public do nations, erected 36 camp libraries, distributed 7 to 10 million books and magazines, and provided library collections to more than 500 locations, including military hospitals. The Library War Service also provided books in Braille to soldiers that were blinded in battle. Library War Service librarians wore uniforms, similar to those worn by other volunteer groups like the American Red Cross, and the Library War Service provides some of the earliest examples of women participating in uniformed war service overseas. Millions of public libraries in the United States also participated in Library War Service activities, serving as collection points for books as well as places to organize and promote the War Service campaign. The efforts of the Library War Service eventually led to the creation of many modern library services, including the creation of library departments in the Army, Navy, Veterans' Association and Merchant Marine, as well as the establishment of the American Library in Paris, which remains the largest English-language lending library on the European continent today... With the help of a $320,000 grant from the Carnegie Corporation, the Library War Service established 36 'camp libraries' at military bases and training camps. The Carnegie Corporation and the Library War Service also funded 1,100 library workers to staff camp libraries and military hospitals. The 36 camp libraries were simple wooden buildings, similar to World War I canteens. The libraries were designed by architect E.L. Tillman, and provided space for 10,000 volumes and around 200 readers, in buildings that were only between 90 and 120 feet long. Most camp libraries were also provisioned with a small car for the transportation of books. National campaigns provided books to the training camps, hospitals, Red Cross Houses, and small military encampments at home and abroad." [SOURCE: "Library War Service." Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Library_War_Service. Accessed 19 Sep. 2018.]
Language
English
Library Location
Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Columbia University