John Cotton Dana
Encyclopedia
John Cotton Dana was an American
librarian
and museum
director whose main objective was to make the library relevant to the daily lives of the citizens and to promote the benefits of reading. He was a public librarian
for forty years and achieved a great deal in his field.
where he studied law
. In 1880 he went to Denver, Colorado
where he passed the Colorado bar and began to practice. In 1889 became director of the Denver
Public Library until 1898. While there, he pioneered the patron's right to open stacks, allowing them to browse for themselves instead of having a librarian monitoring their every request. He wanted to update libraries into the 20th century by making them vibrant community centers instead of collections of relics that only appealed to a small segment of the community. He also organized the first-ever children's library room. He was personally opposed to the concept of storytime, preferring for his children's library to focus on the continuing education of school teachers.
Dana moved to New York where he was admitted to the New York Bar in 1883. In 1885, Dana moved to Minnesota, to take up a position as the editor of the Ashby Avalanche and practice law. Soon after arriving in Minnesota, however, Dana returned again to Colorado to do more surveying and construction work. Because of the reputation he cultivated as a learned man and his connections in the Denver Public Schools, the superintendent of Denver Public Schools, Aaron Gove, nominated Dana as the director of the Denver Public Library upon its inception in 1890. In 1895, Dana left the Colorado Library when the city began discussing the lowering of his salary. Apparently, public controversy had arisen over a city tax levied for the school district and, by extension, the library. Dana also drew criticism for circulating "gold bug" literature at the library. Colorado was economically dependent on mining silver and the gold standard was a political issue. Dana felt that library patrons should have information on both sides of an issue.
Back east again, he served as a librarian at the Springfield, Massachusetts
public library from 1898 - 1902. He continued many of his Denver policies there. One of the changes Dana implemented at the Springfield library was to the physical building itself. He had workers tear down many of the railings and generally open the floor plan. Although these terms were not invented until nearly a century later, Dana concerned himself heavily with the ergonomics and usability of his collections and facilities. He left Springfield after refusing to become involved in a power struggle with the library's patrons.
In 1902 Dana became employed at the Newark Public Library
in Newark, New Jersey
from until his death in 1929. He established foreign language collections for immigrants and also developed a special collection for the business community. This "Business Branch" was the first of its kind in the nation.
He also founded the Newark Museum
in 1909, directing it until his death. The Museum was exceptional because it included contemporary American commercial products as folk art. John C. Dana personally did not like modern art, but he believed in the principle of a universal museum and thus ordered purchases of art associated with the Ashcan School
. Cotton also began the Newark Museum's notable Tibetan collection.
After his death, his successor at the Newark Public Library referred to him as “The First Citizen of Newark”. Six years after his death, the city of Newark appointed October 6, 1935 as John Cotton Dana Day. Rutgers-Newark's main library is named for John Cotton Dana.
Dana was quoted as saying, “A great department store, easily reached, open at all hours, is more like a good museum of art than any of the museums we have yet established” (Hadley, 68).
Dana served as president of the American Library Association
, which today gives out the John Cotton Dana Public Relations Award to libraries with exceptional public relations. The NJ Associations of Museums has an annual award in his name, presented to an individual "for outstanding contributions to the New Jersey museum profession." John Cotton Dana was also the first president and founder of the Special Libraries Association
. Dana is a member of the Library Hall of Fame
. Also, New Jersey Law School renamed their college Dana College when it transitioned from a two year to a four year school (Watkins 2006, 2).
John Cotton Dana married, but his wife (Adine Rowena Wagener), whom he married in 1888 was not healthy, and they had no children.
One of his biographers said of him, “He would have found a library school curriculum intolerable, and doubtless a library school would have found him intolerable”.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
librarian
Librarian
A librarian is an information professional trained in library and information science, which is the organization and management of information services or materials for those with information needs...
and museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
director whose main objective was to make the library relevant to the daily lives of the citizens and to promote the benefits of reading. He was a public librarian
Public library
A public library is a library that is accessible by the public and is generally funded from public sources and operated by civil servants. There are five fundamental characteristics shared by public libraries...
for forty years and achieved a great deal in his field.
Biography
In 1878 Dana graduated from Dartmouth CollegeDartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
where he studied law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
. In 1880 he went to Denver, Colorado
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
where he passed the Colorado bar and began to practice. In 1889 became director of the Denver
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
Public Library until 1898. While there, he pioneered the patron's right to open stacks, allowing them to browse for themselves instead of having a librarian monitoring their every request. He wanted to update libraries into the 20th century by making them vibrant community centers instead of collections of relics that only appealed to a small segment of the community. He also organized the first-ever children's library room. He was personally opposed to the concept of storytime, preferring for his children's library to focus on the continuing education of school teachers.
Dana moved to New York where he was admitted to the New York Bar in 1883. In 1885, Dana moved to Minnesota, to take up a position as the editor of the Ashby Avalanche and practice law. Soon after arriving in Minnesota, however, Dana returned again to Colorado to do more surveying and construction work. Because of the reputation he cultivated as a learned man and his connections in the Denver Public Schools, the superintendent of Denver Public Schools, Aaron Gove, nominated Dana as the director of the Denver Public Library upon its inception in 1890. In 1895, Dana left the Colorado Library when the city began discussing the lowering of his salary. Apparently, public controversy had arisen over a city tax levied for the school district and, by extension, the library. Dana also drew criticism for circulating "gold bug" literature at the library. Colorado was economically dependent on mining silver and the gold standard was a political issue. Dana felt that library patrons should have information on both sides of an issue.
Back east again, he served as a librarian at the Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield is the most populous city in Western New England, and the seat of Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers; the western Westfield River, the eastern Chicopee River, and the eastern...
public library from 1898 - 1902. He continued many of his Denver policies there. One of the changes Dana implemented at the Springfield library was to the physical building itself. He had workers tear down many of the railings and generally open the floor plan. Although these terms were not invented until nearly a century later, Dana concerned himself heavily with the ergonomics and usability of his collections and facilities. He left Springfield after refusing to become involved in a power struggle with the library's patrons.
In 1902 Dana became employed at the Newark Public Library
Newark Public Library
The Newark Public Library is the public library system for the city of Newark, New Jersey.-History:In 1902 John Cotton Dana became employed at the Newark Public Library in Newark, New Jersey from until his death in 1929. He established foreign language collections for immigrants and also developed...
in Newark, New Jersey
Newark, New Jersey
Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
from until his death in 1929. He established foreign language collections for immigrants and also developed a special collection for the business community. This "Business Branch" was the first of its kind in the nation.
He also founded the Newark Museum
Newark Museum
The Newark Museum is the largest museum in New Jersey, USA. It holds fine collections of American art, decorative arts, contemporary art, and arts of Asia, Africa, the Americas, and the ancient world...
in 1909, directing it until his death. The Museum was exceptional because it included contemporary American commercial products as folk art. John C. Dana personally did not like modern art, but he believed in the principle of a universal museum and thus ordered purchases of art associated with the Ashcan School
Ashcan School
The Ashcan School, also called the Ash Can School, is defined as a realist artistic movement that came into prominence in the United States during the early twentieth century, best known for works portraying scenes of daily life in New York's poorer neighborhoods. The movement grew out of a group...
. Cotton also began the Newark Museum's notable Tibetan collection.
After his death, his successor at the Newark Public Library referred to him as “The First Citizen of Newark”. Six years after his death, the city of Newark appointed October 6, 1935 as John Cotton Dana Day. Rutgers-Newark's main library is named for John Cotton Dana.
Dana was quoted as saying, “A great department store, easily reached, open at all hours, is more like a good museum of art than any of the museums we have yet established” (Hadley, 68).
Dana served as president of the American Library Association
American Library Association
The American Library Association is a non-profit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 62,000 members....
, which today gives out the John Cotton Dana Public Relations Award to libraries with exceptional public relations. The NJ Associations of Museums has an annual award in his name, presented to an individual "for outstanding contributions to the New Jersey museum profession." John Cotton Dana was also the first president and founder of the Special Libraries Association
Special Libraries Association
Special Libraries Association is an international professional association for library and information professionals working in business, government, law, finance, non-profit, and academic organizations and institutions....
. Dana is a member of the Library Hall of Fame
Library Hall of Fame
The Library Hall of Fame is a list of 40 leaders of the modern library movement. The list appeared in the March 15, 1951, issue of Library Journal. That issue of Library Journal celebrated the 75th anniversary of the American Library Association...
. Also, New Jersey Law School renamed their college Dana College when it transitioned from a two year to a four year school (Watkins 2006, 2).
John Cotton Dana married, but his wife (Adine Rowena Wagener), whom he married in 1888 was not healthy, and they had no children.
One of his biographers said of him, “He would have found a library school curriculum intolerable, and doubtless a library school would have found him intolerable”.
Selected publications
- A Library Primer, 1896.
- The New Museum, by John Cotton Dana. ElmTree Press, Woodstock, Vermont, 1917.
- The Gloom of the Museum, by John Cotton Dana, ElmTree Press, Woodstock, Vermont, 1917.
- Installation of a Speaker, by John Cotton Dana, ElmTree Press, Woodstock, Vermont, 1918.
- A Plan for a New Museum by John Cotton Dana, ElmTree Press, Woodstock, Vermont, 1920.
- American Art: How it can be made to Flourish by John Cotton Dana, ElmTree Press, Woodstock, Vermont, 1929.
- "The Museum as an Art Patron" by John Cotton Dana. Creative Art, March 1929.
- "Art is all in Your Eye" by John Cotton Dana. The Museum, January 1927.
- "In a Changing World Should Museums Change?" by John Cotton Dana. The Museum, September 1926.
- Dana, John Cotton, and Henry W. Kent, eds. Literature of Libraries in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries. Chicago: A. C. McClure, 1906-07; reissued Metuchen: The Scarecrow Reprint Corporation, 1967.
Sources
- John Cotton Dana: The Centennial Convocation, Rutgers University Press, New Brunswick, New Jersey, 1957.
- Cahill, Edgar Hoger, "The Life and Work of John Cotton Dana". Americana Illustrated, January 1930, volume XXIV, Number 1, pages 69-84, The American Historical Society.
- Hadley, C. (1943). John Cotton Dana: A Sketch. Chicago: American Library Association.
- Hanson, C. A. (Ed.) (1991). Librarian at Large: Selected Writings of John Cotton Dana. Washington DC: Special Libraries Association.
- Chalmers Hadley. John Cotton Dana — A Sketch (1943).
- Mattson, Kevin. 2000. The librarian as secular minister to democracy: the life and ideas of John Cotton Dana. Libraries & Culture. Volume 35, Number 4.
- The Museum, Volume II, Number 10: October 1929, tribute to John Cotton Dana. (Various authors.)
- Grove, Richard. Pioneers in American Museums: John Cotton Dana. Museum News, Volume 56, Number 5, May–June 1978, pages 32–39 & 86–88.
- Watkins, Ann. John Cotton Dana — Newark's First Citizen. http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu/rul/libs/dana_lib/danabio.shtml (accessed March 12, 2008).