ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries


J u n e  1 9 9 7  /  381

New s 
fr o m  the

F i e l d

M a r y  Ellen D avis

Ma k in g  of A m e rica  on 
the W eb
The University o f Michigan 
(UM) and Cornell University 
are using digital technology 
to make available a collec­
tion o f American writing that 
d o cu m en ts so cia l history 
from the antebellum period 
through Reconstruction.

Using the collections at 
UM and Cornell, app roxi­
mately 5,000 volumes pub­
lished b etw een  1850 and 
1877 are now available on 
the Web. UM’s site (http://www.umdl.umich. 
edu/moa/) focuses on monographs in the ar­
eas of education, psychology, American his­
tory, sociology, science and technology, and 
religion. Cornell has focused on major serials 
o f the era, ranging from general interest publi­
cations to those with more targeted audiences 
such as agriculture. Cornell’s documents can 
be viewed at http://moa.cit.cornell.edu/. Work 
is under way to allow  for cro ss-co llectio n  
searching of the two sites.

“Because popular and research materials are 
included in the collection, both scholars and 
those with a general interest in this historical 
period can identify many o f the important is­
sues o f the time,” explained Wendy Lougee, 
UM’s assistant director for digital library initia­
tives. As an example, Lougee cites several items 
focusing on the role and status o f women, from 
suffrage to proper homemaking to tales of Civil 
War nurses.

Comments and suggestions concerning the 
Making o f America project can be sent to moa
info@um ich.edu. For more details about the 
project visit http://www.umdl.umich.edu/moa/ 
about.html.

JSTO R  p articip an ts n e a r 2 0 0
Nearly 200 academic and research institutions 
of all types (including such institutions as Agnes 
Scott College, Harvard, Kalamazoo College, the 
Library o f Congress, Northwestern University, 
Siena College, and Wesleyan University) have 
signed on to becom e charter participants in 
JSTOR, a not-for-profit organization dedicated 
to helping the scholarly community take ad­
vantage o f advances in information technolo­
gies (http://www.jstor.org/).

JSTOR’s initial focus is on 
creating a fully searchable 
ele c tro n ic d atab ase co m ­
prised o f the complete runs 
o f 100 important research 
journals in ten to fifteen aca­
dem ic disciplines (JSTOR-
Phase I). Many o f these jour­
nals began publication in the 
late 19th and early 20th cen­
turies. By con vertin g the 
journals back to the first is­
sue published, JSTO R en ­
hances access to valuable 
scholarly resources while of­

fering libraries with large collections o f these 
journals the chance to recover premium shelf 
space. For libraries with gaps in their collec­
tions or for those lacking the physical or finan­
cial resources to subscribe to them in paper, 
JSTOR offers an opportunity to acquire com ­
plete collections and to make these materials 
directly available to their constituents.

“We are very excited to receive this strong 
vote o f confidence from the academic library 
community,” said Kevin M. Guthrie, JSTO R’s 
executive director. “If the promise o f advances 
in electronic technologies is to be fully real­
ized, libraries, publishers, and scholars are go­
ing to have to collaborate in new and creative 
ways.” JSTOR participants pay a combination 
o f a one-time fee to help build the database 
and an annual access fee to provide for its con­
tinuing maintenance.

LC joins CIRLA
The Library o f Congress is the newest member 
o f the Chesapeake Information and Research 
Library Alliance (CIRLA). LC joins the National

Ballot correction
The Nominating Committee listed on the 

1997 ACRL division ballot you received was 
incorrect. The Nominating Committee re­
sponsible for the 1997 ballot is comprised 
of: B etsy  B a k er, ch air, Elaine Albright, 
Katherine Branch, Jay  B. Clark, Jo h n  W. 
Collins III, Susan Maltese, Rita Pellen, Fred 
Peterson, and Lorna Peterson. The ACRL staff 
regret the error.

http://www.umdl.umich
http://moa.cit.cornell.edu/
mailto:info@umich.edu
http://www.umdl.umich.edu/moa/
http://www.jstor.org/


3 8 2  /  C&RL News

Agricultural Library, the Smithsonian Institution, 
the University o f Delaware, the University of 
Maryland at College Park, and Georgetown, 
Howard, and Johns Hopkins Universities. CIRLA 
was founded in 1996 as a “voluntary, not-for-
profit organization o f educational and research 
institutions in Delaware, the District of Colum­
bia, and Maryland” seeking to enhance scholar­
ship “through collaborative development of li­
brary co llectio n  and service program s and 
expanding use o f information technology.”

During its first year, CIRLA focu sed  on 
projects such as improving interlibrary loan per­
formance, developing a reciprocal borrowing 
program, pursuing joint purchases and subscrip­
tions, and launching the Chesapeake digital li­
brary project.

Jim  Neal, chair of the CIRLA Board, said that, 
“We increasingly recognize that the synergy we 
create by closer cooperation helps us fill the 
gaps in our individual ability to meet the de­
mand for scholarly information. Only through 
such reciprocity will w e succeed.”

North Cen tral Co llege benefits from  
se n io r cla s s gift
For the third time since 1990, the senior class 
has decided to present its senior class gift to 
North Central College’s (Naperville, Illinois) 
Osterle Library. The class o f 1997 has decided 
to fund a library instruction com p uter lab 
equipped with 10 workstations, as well as mu­
sic listening equipment that will allow up to 
four students at a time to listen to CDs.

D u k e ’s sh eet m usic a d d e d  to Internet
Pieces o f historic American sheet music from 
the Special Collections Library at Duke Univer­
sity will b e available via the Internet this sum­
mer at American Memory, a Library o f Con­
gress (LC) online site.

The sheet music, which spans the period 
1850-1920, includes a wide variety o f songs 
from the antebellum years through the Civil 
War and Reconstruction, through the beginning 
o f the 20th century and WWI.

About 3,000 compositions at Duke will be 
digitized thanks to a partnership between LC 
and Ameritech. The organizations awarded Duke 
a $64,688 grant to support the project, which 
could take up to 18 months to complete.

“Having this material on the W eb will make 
it much easier for people to study and appreci­
ate our country’s musical heritage,” said Duke 
university librarian David S. Ferriero.

The grant is part o f a larger initiative by LC 
and Ameritech to assist U.S. libraries, archives, 
museums, and historical societies in digitizing 
their historical materials for inclusion in Ameri­
can Memory, a digital collection o f primary 
source materials in U.S. history and culture, 
available at http://www.loc.gov/. Ten libraries 
across the country have been granted awards 
by the Ameritech Foundation.

UNC-CH a lso  ta p p e d  for LC’ s 
A m e rica n  M e m o ry  project
Narratives written by Southerners between 1860 
and 1920 (diaries, autobiographies, and mem­
oirs) in the collections o f the University o f North 
Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH) have been 
chosen for the Library o f Congress’ American 
Memory project, an online collection o f primary 
source materials in U.S. culture and history (http:/ 
/www.loc.gov). A grant of nearly $75,000 from 
Ameritech and LC funded the scanning, coding, 
and posting to the Internet.

Supported by $2 million from Ameritech, the 
com petition allows LC to fund eight to ten 
projects annually for three years beginning in 
1996-97.

“Even m ore im portant than the m oney, 
which is very helpful, is the fact that our project 
has been evaluated as one of the better projects 
nationally,” said Jo e  Hewitt, UNC-CH associate

S h eet m u sic c ir c a  1 8 5 0 -1 9 2 0  fr o m  th e 
Duke c o lle ctio n s  is b ein g  ad ded to  LC’s 
A m e ric a n  M em o ry I n te rn e t site.

http://www.loc.gov/
http://www.loc.gov


Ju n e  1 9 9 7  /  383

Pat Dominguez, Natalia Smith, and Jo e  
Hewitt will add narrative histories ow ned 
by UNC to LC’s A m erican M em ory project.

provost for university libraries and director of 
the Academic Affairs Library. UNC-CH already 
has 32 texts online at http://sunsite.unc.edu/ 
docsouth, as part of its digitization project, 
“Documenting the American South: The South­
ern Experience in 19th-Century America,” where 
the narratives project will also reside.

U nCover an d CatchW ord to develop 
n e w  docum ent-delivery service
The UnCover Company and CatchWord Ltd. plan 
to develop an interface that will allow users to 
order and receive journal articles via the Inter­
net.

UnCover offers its database of 17,000 jour­
nal titles. CatchWord offers RealPage, an intui­
tive document browser that allows users to view 
online articles in their original printed layout 
including tables, graphics, and diagrams. The 
companies plan to integrate the UnCover data­
base into the network of servers maintained 
by CatchWord. Where the publisher has given 
permission to UnCover and CatchWord to pro­
vide electronic document delivery, users will 
be able to access the CatchWord servers and 
order articles of interest. After a request has 
been placed, users will be able to load the 
RealPage software at no cost to view the ar­
ticle on their desktop.

Univ. of M ichigan gets first en d o w ed  
lib ra ry  position
The first endowed position at the University of 
Michigan Library, the Irving M. Hermelin Juda
ica Curatorship, has been established. The lead 
gift of $325,000 was given by David and Doreen 
Hermelin and Henrietta Hermelin Weinberg in 
honor of their father, a great lover of books 
and of Jewish history and culture. Friends of 
the Hermelins along with supporters of UM’s 
Frankel Center for Judaic Studies and the Uni­
versity Library contributed with other gifts that 
completed the million dollar endowment.

The new curatorship will provide a full-time 
Judaica expert responsible for building collec­
tions and providing research assistance to fac­
ulty and students.

“The addition of the curator position will 
mean that the very important responsibilities 
of collection development, reference, outreach, 
and funding development will now receive the 
attention they demand,” said Jonathan Rodgers, 
head of the library’s Near East Division.

ACRL publishes b o o ks on copyright 
policies an d  w o m e n ’s studies
For academic librarians who are facing the chal­
lenge o f creating formal copyright policies, 
procedures, and publications, A Copyright S am ­
pler, edited by Wanda K. Johnston and Derrie B. 
Roark, has been published by ACRL.

The sampler includes results of a survey of 
community colleges about administration of 
copyright policies 
and p r o c e d u r e s , 
along with sample 
d o cu m e n ts from  
various institutions. 
Examples include 
board policies and 
informational docu­
ments and specific 
applications in in­
te r lib ra r y  lo a n , 
print d up lication  
and course packets, 
video, music, com­
puter software, and other areas. Appendices 
include a bibliography and fair use criteria and 
related guidelines. A Copyright S am p ler (ISBN
0-8389-7878-9) is available for $29.00 ($24.50 
to ACRL members).

ACRL has also published a comprehensive 
new reference source for creating or building 
on a women’s studies collection. C hoice Reviews

http://sunsite.unc.edu/


3 8 4  /  C&RL News

in  W o m e n ’s  Studies 
1 9 9 0 - 9 6  features re
views that appeared 
in C h o ice magazine 
of more than 2,000 
r e c e n t w o m e n ’s 
studies titles.

Arranged alpha­
betically by subject 
matter, using classi­
fications created by 
the C h o ic e  editorial 

staff, each entry reprints the full text o f the 
original review, gives detailed bibliographic 
data, and indicates recom mended readership 
level. Name, title, and topical indexes are also 
included.

Martha R. Fowlkes (University o f Connecti­
cut) provides an informative introduction and 
brief history o f the field.

W o m e n ’s S tu dies (ISBN 0-8389-7881-9, 456 
pages) is available for $45.50 ($38 for ACRL 
members). Both books may be ordered from 
ALA Order Fulfillment, 155 North W acker Dr., 
Chicago, IL 60606-1719, or by calling (800) 
545-2433, press 7.

O k la h o m a  State w in s  PR a w a r d
The Oklahoma State University (OSU) Library’s 
Plug into the World campaign w on the Jo h n  
Cotton Dana Public Relations Award given by 
the Library Administration and Management As­
sociation o f ALA.

OSU began the Plug into the World cam ­
paign to increase enrollment in its electronic 
training classes and to improve student and 
faculty knowledge o f the Internet. In 1995– 96 
m ore than 14,530 people attended the training 
sessions— a 97.8%  increase over the previous 
year. In addition to offering incentives, such as 
pentium  com puters donated by local bu si­
nesses, to students taking the training sessions, 
the library ran 32 quarter-page ads in the cam ­
pus newspaper. The ads highlighted the wide 
range o f information that can be found on the 
Internet such as job information, the 1996 elec­
tion, and how to shop in cyberspace.

The award jury recognized OSU for “forg­
ing an imaginative partnership with com m u­
nity business to promote faculty and student 
awareness and expertise in the use o f the In­
ternet. A creative incentive program and ongo­
ing training series reinforced the recognition 
o f libraries as electronic information special­
ists.”

C a ll fo r p a p e rs — p o p u la r culture
The Popular Culture Association seeks propos
als for papers for its April 8—11, 1998, meeting 
in Orlando, Florida. The library area’s theme 
for the conference is “The Image o f the Librar­
ian in Popular Culture,” but papers may relate 
to any aspect o f libraries and popular culture 
(research, collections, intellectual freedom, tech­
nical services, etc.).

Send a brief abstract (on e page maximum) 
by Septem ber 16, 1997, to Allen Ellis, Northern 
Kentucky University Library, Highland Heights, 
KY 41099-6101; fax: (606) 572-5390; phone: 
(606) 572-5527; e-mail: ellisa@nky.edu.

L ib ra ry  C o rp o ra tio n  p ro v id e s free 
a cc e ss to C a ta lo g e r’s R eferen ce Shelf
The Library Corporation (TLC) is making its 
Cataloger’s Reference Shelf (CRS) available free 
o f charge via the World Wide W eb (http:// 
www.TLCdelivers.com). This version will co n ­
tain the same information appearing on TLC’s 
ITS for Windows software, but without the co n
text-sensitive links to software that act as an 
editor.

Doug Storer, ITS product manager for TLC, 
said, “Catalogers have told us that the CRS has 
b een  an extremely valuable and com prehen­
sive resource for them. Now, by utilizing some 
o f our recent innovations in W eb publishing, 
w e are able to make these authoritative docu­
ments accessible on the Internet.”

CRS is based on the official Library o f Con­
gress (LC) publications addressing these top­
ics: USMARC Formats, USMARC Code Lists, Sub­
ject Cataloging Manuals, and other references 
including CONSER, classification, rare books, 
looseleaf, archival, maps, etc. ■

O ne o f  th e  lo g o s  f o r  O k lah o m a State U n iv e rs ity ’s Plug in to  th e  W o rld  ca m p a ig n , w h ic h  w as a w a rd ­
ed  th e  J o h n  C o tto n  D an a Pub lic R elatio n s A w ard  th is y e a r.

mailto:ellisa@nky.edu
http://www.TLCdelivers.com