College and Research Libraries B y H A R O L D L . L E U P P Library Service on the Berkeley Campus, University of California Mr. Leupp is librarian of the University of California Library, Berkeley. TH E U N I V E R S I T Y O F C A L I F O R N I A pursues its m u l t i f o r m activities on seven campuses. E a c h campus has its o w n l i b r a r y , administered l o c a l l y in accordance w i t h l o c a l requirements. T h e t w o large units, in B e r k e l e y and L o s A n g e l e s , render assistance, w h e n desired, t o the smaller ones and also cooperate w i t h each other in m a n y m a t t e r s w h e n the five hundred miles s e p a r a t i n g them does not impose independent action. T h e largest campus is that of the parent institution at B e r k e - ley, w h i c h also possesses the largest li- brary, w i t h holdings of about 1 , 1 9 5 , 0 0 0 v o l u m e s at present. It is w i t h the rather c o m p l e x o r g a n i z a t i o n of l i b r a r y service on the B e r k e l e y campus that this paper deals. T h e campus is a r o u g h l y o b l o n g t r a c t of about 593 acres, on w h i c h the buildings are f a i r l y w e l l distributed, A s in most universities w h i c h f o l l o w a b u i l d i n g plan, the older buildings antedate the plan, w h i l e those erected subsequently h a v e been located, and in most cases constructed, w i t h o u t m u c h r e f e r e n c e to the need or possibility of l i b r a r y service to the depart- ments w h i c h occupy them. A s a result, u n t i l recently, l i b r a r y facilities in build- ings at a distance f r o m the G e n e r a l L i - b r a r y usually have " j u s t g r o w e d , " like T o p s y , w h i l e in other cases they have mushroomed into sizable if not a l w a y s v e r y healthy g r o w t h f r o m artificial stimuli of v a r i o u s kinds, such as g i f t s f o r specific purposes, f e d e r a l appropriations, f o u n d a t i o n g r a n t s , etc. Separatist tenden- cies, t r a d i t i o n a l in some departments and in others d e r i v i n g f r o m the influence of some strong-minded i n d i v i d u a l on the f a c u l t y , also h a v e c o n t r i b u t e d to the picture. T h e S t a n d i n g O r d e r s of the B o a r d of R e g e n t s make the f o l l o w i n g p r o v i s i o n s : The General Library and the several departmental libraries together shall consti- tute the university library. . . . Depart- mental libraries shall be considered part of the working equipment of the departments to which they are attached, to be provided in the same manner as other equipment, viz., by purchase with funds allowed the depart- ments in the annual budget or with special funds otherwise available for the use of the departments. D e p a r t m e n t a l libraries are u n d e r the c o n t r o l of their respective departments, not u n d e r that of the G e n e r a l L i b r a r y . G e n e r a l L i b r a r y f u n d s m a y not be used t o purchase books f o r them, a l t h o u g h the l i b r a r i a n may deposit in a d e p a r t m e n t a l l i b r a r y , s u b j e c t to recall, G e n e r a l L i b r a r y books w h i c h " m a y be required exclusively in the w o r k of the d e p a r t m e n t c o n c e r n e d . " T h e l i b r a r i a n is also instructed to " r e c o r d " all books acquired by a depart- 212 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES mental library, w h i c h in practice means that all departmental books are entered in the G e n e r a l L i b r a r y catalog. Since the G e n e r a l L i b r a r y is the purchasing agent for all books ordered by any library on the campus, cataloging for these li- braries is a simple matter of routine, which includes furnishing copies of the catalog cards for their books, at cost, to any libraries w h i c h may w a n t them. I t w i l l be noted that the standing orders recognize only a General L i b r a r y and an unspecified number of depart- mental libraries. Some of the latter w i t h - out material change have evolved into col- lege or school libraries, as engineering, architecture, and jurisprudence libraries. W h e n the library of one department, agri- culture, merged w i t h the G e n e r a l L i - brary some years ago, it retained certain divisional collections, notably entomology and landscape design. A l l of these, for practical purposes, are regarded as depart- mental libraries. Special Libraries A very important group of libraries has come into being, all but one w i t h i n recent years, the existence of which is not recognized in the standing orders at all. T h e s e are known collectively as "special libraries." T h e i r distinguishing charac- teristic is that they are not organically connected w i t h any department but are independently administered, w i t h budgets of their o w n . T h e most important are the B a n c r o f t L i b r a r y of material relating to the W e s t Coast, the Bureau of Public Administration and L i b r a r y of Economic Research, and the L i b r a r y of the G i a n - nini Foundation for A g r i c u l t u r a l Re- search. T h e first t w o are housed (and very much cramped) in the G e n e r a l L i - brary b u i l d i n g ; the Giannini Foundation occupies a building of its o w n . T h e G e n e r a l L i b r a r y purchases and catalogs the books ordered for the special libraries as it does for the departmental libraries. W h e n ' in 1 9 1 1 the General L i b r a r y w a s moved to the building it now occupies, the departmental library situation w a s very unsatisfactory. Conditions which developed during and immediately fol- l o w i n g W o r l d W a r I made it worse. N e a r l y every department had its library, v a r y i n g in size from a dozen or t w o books in a department office or seminar room to collections of several hundred volumes in chemistry or mining or to libraries embracing almost everything possessed by the university in their fields, such as l a w and architecture. Because of inadequate facilities, sometimes from plain cussedness, a would-be reader not con- nected w i t h a department often w a s made to feel distinctly unwelcome if he ventured into the departmental library. Some de- partments limited access to their books to members of their o w n faculties and favored graduate students; in some, even members w e r e excluded unless the head happened to be around and had the key in his pocket. In most departments in w h i c h supervision w a s attempted at all, it w a s made the responsibility of a clerical as- sistant or stenographer w i t h other and invariably more pressing duties. F e w departments attempted systematically to keep their collections abreast of the times; those w h i c h did, notably the premedical departments, were continually in a state of exasperation arising f r o m conflicting demands for the same expensive books and periodicals and insufficiency of funds for the extensive duplication which seemed to offer the only remedy. JUNE, 1943 20 7 A s the situation w a s studied, certain phenomena emerged. T h e scientific and technical departments w e r e the principal sufferers from the existing inadequacies. W i t h o u t exception, they occupied build- ings at a distance from the G e n e r a l L i - brary building. M u c h of their w o r k w a s done in laboratories or w i t h machines and tools fixed as to location. T h e s e phe- nomena w e r e common to the departments in these groups and w e r e not found to any extent in other departments. M o r e o v e r , the literature of interest to these depart- ments, w h i l e in large part common to t w o or more of them, w a s little in demand by members of other departments or by general readers, differing therein f r o m the literature of, say, the social sciences or the humanities. T h e s e considerations led to the conception of still another type of library not recognized by the standing orders, which, in the one group w h e r e it has been in operation for nearly thirteen years, has proved so remarkably successful that its extension to other groups of scientific and technical departments is assured. T h i s is the "branch l i b r a r y . " Biology Group In 1930 the departments constituting the biology group abandoned the tempo- rary buildings in which they had been distributed over the campus and came to- gether in a building especially designed for them, the L i f e Sciences Building. T h e r e are ten of these departments, plus certain related entities such as the M u - seum of V e r t e b r a t e Z o o l o g y and the H e r - barium. N e a r l y every department had its departmental library. W h e n the build- ing w a s planned the G e n e r a l L i b r a r y asked for and obtained an assignment of space, centrally located, for a branch li- brary to serve the group. Some of the assigned space w a s w i t h d r a w n before the building w a s finished, diminishing the projected reading room facilities uncom- f o r t a b l y ; but enough w a s l e f t to provide a stack area w i t h a capacity of about 100,000 volumes and facilities, in reading rooms and stack area, for 180 readers. T h e departments pooled their libraries; the books and periodicals in corresponding classifications were transferred en masse f r o m the G e n e r a l L i b r a r y (except mul- tiple copies in the rental-reserve service), and the G e n e r a l L i b r a r y provided the staff. W i t h minor variations due to local conditions, the hours are the same as those of the G e n e r a l L i b r a r y . T h e branch li- brarian is advised by a faculty committee selected f r o m the biology group and ap- pointed by the chairman of the L i b r a r y Committee of the G e n e r a l L i b r a r y . T h e branch committee is always represented by at least one member on the parent committee. Education Collection T h e r e is one other branch library, in the department of education. W h e n the department occupied its present building in 1924, the G e n e r a l L i b r a r y w a s asked to take jurisdiction of and to administer the departmental library. T h e G e n e r a l L i b r a r y did so, largely as an experiment. T h e experiment w i l l not be repeated. A single department is too small a unit to j u s t i f y the cost of branch organization, and the literature of education, even if room could be found in the branch for the G e n e r a l L i b r a r y holdings, is not the kind w h i c h should be separated f r o m the main collection. A good deal about the prin- ciples underlying partial decentralization by branch libraries w a s learned f r o m this mistake. T h e next branch library undoubtedly 214 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES w i l l be opened in the engineering group. T h e program has been approved, but nothing can be done until the second and main building of the group is erected. T h e plans for this provide an entire floor for a library. T h e departmental library, which consists of the merged libraries of the three engineering departments, occu- pies an insufficient area in a badly over- crowded building, and funds are lacking to keep it open on f u l l schedule. T h e much larger technical collection in the G e n e r a l L i b r a r y cannot be merged w i t h the departmental collection until more space is available and w o u l d not be in any case until a f u l l schedule of hours is assured. Branch Library Purposes O t h e r departmental groups seem to offer opportunity for extension of the branch library program, though definite planning has not been carried beyond an engineering branch. In general, the tests applied to any proposed grouping of de- partments for branch library purposes w i l l be these: Is a considerable body of litera- ture common to t w o or more of them, and is each of them included in one or more such groupings? C a n the common litera- ture and the literature of the individual departments be separated from the main collection w i t h o u t interfering materially w i t h other departments or individuals? Is the w o r k of the departments so related to laboratories, shops, or d r a f t i n g rooms, or their equivalents, or is the time of stu- dents so scheduled w i t h respect to labora- tory periods, etc., that a considerable body of literature close at hand is a necessity? Distance f r o m the G e n e r a l L i b r a r y build- ing, unless excessive, w o u l d not in itself be held to j u s t i f y the expense of branch library installation and maintenance. O f the departmental libraries which still exist, f e w are important. T h e smaller ones have become mere office or seminar room collections which, for the most part, duplicate material in the main collection. O f those in departmental buildings, the l a w library has but a fraction of the space it needs but is w e l l administered. A r c h i - tecture is fairly w e l l housed, less w e l l administered. Both the l a w and archi- tecture departments have independent funds for library maintenance. T h e chem- istry, physics, and mining libraries are adequately administered. T h e chemistry and physics departments are interested only in the latest literature of their sub- jects, which they obtain largely f r o m the General L i b r a r y on deposit, and their needs conflict to some extent. Fortunately the libraries are close together. Neither has much room, and neither is hospitable to visitors. T h e libraries of geological sciences and of mining are almost w h o l l y duplicated in the General L i b r a r y . I t has been the policy of the mining and engi- neering libraries to order for the G e n e r a l L i b r a r y , f r o m its allotment, a copy of every significant book purchased f r o m de- partmental funds for its o w n library. T h e departmental library of agriculture was discontinued in 1 9 1 9 , and most of its books w e r e transferred to the General L i - brary, which agreed to maintain an agri- cultural reference librarian and provide certain reading room space for agriculture students, w i t h adjoining shelving for ref- erence books, journals, etc., of interest to them. T h e plan has not worked w h o l l y to the satisfaction of the department, as increasing demand for reading room facili- ties makes it difficult for the agriculture students to maintain their segregated area. A g r i c u l t u r e w o u l d like to move from the General L i b r a r y building to the biology JUNE, 1943 20 7 K) ON A s s i s t a n t L i b r a r i a n L i b r a r i a n A s s i s t a n t to the L i b r a r i a n E q u i p m e n t and Supplies P e r s o n n e l P h o t o g r a p h i c S e r v i c e C a t a l o g D e p a r t m e n t B i n d e r y G i f t s and E x c h a n g e s A c c e s s i o n s D e p a r t m e n t A s s o c i a t e L i b r a r i a n M o r r i s o n M e m o r i a l L i b r a r y B r a n c h L i b r a r i e s T B i o l o g i c a l Sciences D o c u m e n t s D i v i s i o n R e f e r e n c e D i v i s i o n L o a n and Shelf D i v i s i o n [ ~ R e n t a l - R e s e r v e S e r v i c e E d u c a t i o n O R G A N I Z A T I O N C H A R T OF T H E U N I V E R S I T Y OF C A L I F O R N I A L I B R A R Y , B E R K E L E Y library, w h e r e material related to its o w n is now housed and which is considerably nearer the agriculture group. W h i l e the books could be cared for in the biology library, there is, unfortunately, no room for the students. General Services T u r n i n g now to the G e n e r a l L i b r a r y , the loan desk, on the second or main floor at the entrance to the stack enclosure, is the headquarters of the loan and shelf division. T h i s division handles all loans, including interlibrary loans, except those of unbound periodicals and material in pamphlet form, maps, and rare or re- stricted books. T h e handling of these is a function of the reference division, which is responsible for both the reference and the periodical desk. T h e loan division also administers the rental-reserve service on the ground floor just inside the main entrance of the building. T o many under- graduate and most l o w e r division students this service is the most, if not the only, important part of the library. In normal times the rental-reserve service does a greater volume of business than the loan and periodical desks together. N o w it is barely active, a minor casualty of the w a r . F a c i n g the rental-reserve room across the entrance hall is the A . F . M o r r i s o n M e - morial L i b r a r y , a room for recreational reading, beautifully and comfortably f u r - nished and equipped w i t h books by M a y T r e a t M o r r i s o n of the class of '78 in memory of her husband, a classmate. Dedicated in 1928 to the use of registered students of the university, it has g r o w n steadily in popularity. In the last year before w a r altered the picture, the 15,000 books on its open shelves had more than 59,000 readers. T h e room is now open to men in uniform, and many come in to read and relax in its atmosphere of repose. A l l of these services, together w i t h the documents division, are under the super- vision of Associate Librarian Jerome K . W i l c o x , w h o also keeps a fatherly eye on the t w o branch libraries. U n d e r Assistant Librarian Jens N y h o l m ' s supervision fall the accessions and catalog departments, the division of g i f t s and exchanges, and all bindery w o r k , including both preparation of material for the university bindery and the newspaper and pamphlet binding, re- pair w o r k , etc., done on the premises. T h i s organization divides library opera- tions into the services of acquisition and preparation on the one hand and the pub- lic services on the other, each under a coordinating and supervisory head re- sponsible directly to the librarian. Its effect has been to break down the invisible but effective w a l l s which independent de- partments so often tend to erect about themselves and to insure harmonious ac- tion w i t h i n each group, reducing friction, duplication of effort, and lost motion. Staff Meetings A r t i c u l a t i o n between the groups is in- sured by frequent meetings w i t h the libra- rian of w h a t may be termed the general staff of the l i b r a r y : M r . W i l c o x , M r . N y - holm, and the assistant to the librarian, M r s . Elinor H a n d H i c k o x . M r s . H i c k o x combines in herself the functions of per- sonnel officer, manager of the photographic services (photostat, microfilm, and dexi- g r a p h ) , and supervisor of w o r k centering in the librarian's office, such as preparation of pay rolls, ordering and issuing of sup- plies, looking a f t e r repairs to building and furnishings and upkeep of equipment, maintenance of correspondence files, etc. M a n y difficulties have been ironed out in (Continued on page 232) JUNE, 1943 22 7 sponsibility for such internal activities as the selection of part-time and student as- sistants, building maintenance, the vaca- tion schedule, and supplies and equipment. Prospects for full-time appointments are interviewed jointly. Aside from the coordination secured through the reporting of one unit to a superior officer, horizontal coordination of activity is sought by means of a fort- nightly library council, meeting with the librarian and associate librarian, whose members comprise all those responsible for important units of work. Staff meet- ings held independently by departments or work units are infrequent since the number of individuals in such groups is small and because, for the most part, they work at adjacent desks. T h e absence of adjacency, however, has prompted those in charge of loan work (in branches, loan department, periodical room, etc.) to meet together from time to time to discuss related problems. Recommendations pro- ceed from this body to the librarian, to the associate librarian, or to a department head, depending on the nature of the prob- lem. Library Service on the Berkeley Campus (Continued, from page 2ij) these conferences, many ways and means devised, and many undertakings initiated and planned in detail before being launched. In particular, and this has proved important in this time of frequent emergencies and constant unprecedented demands upon resources and personnel, they have insured a thorough understand- ing by the executives of the aims and the policies of the library, both in its capacity as a vital organ of the university, neces- sary to its proper functioning, and as an agency active in forwarding the country's war effort. T h a t has meant teamwork. 232 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES