seminal monograph on the development of public libraries in New
England and Phyllis Dain's comprehensive study of the New York
Public Library.13 Both works were exhaustively researched.
Other works on the history of individual public libraries found
in my literature review were much shorter, less detailed, and
less scholarly than these two monographs. Yet these lesser works
tell the story of individual community libraries and help insure
that such history is not forgotten. Often these short articles
seem to be written to commemorate an anniversary in the history
of the 11brary itself. Examples of these studies include
"Dallas Public Library: A Reputation for Excellence," "Keeping in
the Mainstream: Houston Public Library," and "Jersey City Pl's
100th Anniversary - wel11, almost." 13 Three more recent studies
on individual libraries include "The Lafayette Public Library: Its Origin and Development," a Master's Research Paper entitled
"The History of the Kent Free Library, Kent, Ohio 1958 - 1992, "
and a Master's Thesis entitled "The Lincoln Public Library: A
Historical Study of a Carnegie Public Library."14
Several reference works provided an overview of the subject
of library history and biographies of some past and present
librarians who have written on the subject of public library
history. The 1994 Encyclopedia of Library History gave a short