Libraries Then and Now: The Ideas We Share

Libraries Then and Now: The Ideas We Share

What products or materials come to mind when you think of libraries? The obvious things might be books and shelving, but to keep a library functioning other items are needed as well. Supplies for circulating and tracking books and identifying ownership of books remain largely behind the scenes but are just as important.
Classified Illustrated Catalog of the Library Department of Library Bureau
(1899) by
Library Bureau
is a
trade catalog
providing us a glimpse into supplies and equipment that library staff in 1899 might have used to complete their everyday tasks. Though much has changed, we might recognize some basic concepts that still exist.
Library Bureau
, Boston, MA.
Classified Illustrated Catalog of the Library Department of Library Bureau
(1899), front cover.
Library Bureau
, Boston, MA.
Classified Illustrated Catalog of the Library Department of Library Bureau
(1899), title page.
Today we use a library borrower’s card to check out a book. Typically, each book has a barcode that assists library staff in circulating and tracking that particular book via an online library system. We might also notice a property stamp inside the book. The property stamp identifies the library that owns the book. What supplies did libraries in 1899 use to circulate and identify their materials?
As highlighted in a
previous post
, paper-based charging systems were used to circulate books before the availability of computers and online library systems. Both types of systems require borrower’s cards, but paper-based charging systems also require a book card or charging card for each book.
An example of a borrower’s card from 1899 is shown below. The top portion included general information pertaining to the user such as name and address. It also included the Borrower’s Pledge. A version of this pledge might sound familiar to us today. As in the example below, library borrowers pledged to be responsible for all materials charged to them. The bottom portion of the card included ruled lines for noting borrowed books and dates for when each book was borrowed and returned.
Library Bureau
, Boston, MA.
Classified Illustrated Catalog of the Library Department of Library Bureau
(1899), page 76, Borrower’s Card and Charging Cases.
When a paper-based charging system is used, a charging card, or book card, for each book is also necessary. An example of a charging card from 1899 is shown below. It included ruled lines on both the front and back to record information about the book. The three lines at the top were intended for entering the title and author of the book and its number, what we typically refer to as a call number today. Below that section were more ruled lines or small boxes. Each time the book was checked out and returned, library staff recorded such things as borrowing date and returned date in those small boxes. This provided a history of the book’s circulation.
Library Bureau
, Boston, MA.
Classified Ill…