Library Bureau

What library equipment and supplies did our predecessors use? Some things have changed quite a lot while others remain somewhat similar. Let’s take a look at libraries from the past via this 1899 trade catalog.

With the beginning of a new semester, many students will resume research. Today we might be familiar with electronic resources and online library catalogs, but in the past people searched for and located library materials in a different way. Let’s take a look at the card catalog.

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.

Before we had online circulation systems, barcodes on books, and automated due date reminders, libraries used paper-based systems for everyday tasks. This required book cards, book pockets, charging trays, and the “ca-chunk” sound of a library date stamp.

It seems as if libraries have always had the challenge of shelving more books in less space. How did libraries in the late 19th century deal with space constraints? One possibility involves motion.