Gathered for this photograph on October 26, 1915, are staff members of Chicago’s Newberry Library, one of the nation’s leading independent research libraries. Established through the bequest of businessman Walter Loomis Newberry and opened to the public in 1887, the institution had become a respected center for historical, literary, and scholarly study by the early twentieth century. Behind its collections stood the men and women who organized, preserved, and made those materials accessible to readers.
Before computerized catalogs and digital searches, library work required patience, precision, and considerable expertise. Librarians and clerks maintained card catalogs, processed new acquisitions, assisted researchers, and cared for books, manuscripts, and maps. Their work connected the library’s collections with the people who came to consult them.
More than a century later, this photograph offers a glimpse of the people behind that daily work. Great libraries are shaped not only by benefactors and scholars, but also by the staff who keep their collections organized and available. Their contribution is less visible than the volumes on the shelves, but no less essential to the institution’s purpose.
