Ralph R. Shaw (librarian)
Encyclopedia
Ralph R. Shaw was a librarian
, a publisher, and an innovator in library science
.
He married his first wife Viola Susan Leff in 1929 and married his second wife, Mary McChesney Andrews in 1969.
Kenneth F. Kister
, in his biography of Eric Moon
describes as “dynamic…a polymath who had more irons in the fire than any librarian since Melvil Dewey
”. And Moon himself, considered a “radical” in the library world, had once warned a researcher that “interviewing Ralph Shaw in the morning was like having “six martinis for breakfast”. Eventually, Moon replaced Shaw as chief editor of Scarecrow press as he faced his battle with cancer and treatment and they had conflicts in the interim. The company still publishes for the academic community. It “was purchased in 1995 by University Press of America and moved from its Metuchen, New Jersey, headquarters to Lanham, Maryland, where it is now a member of the Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group
".,
. He obtained his BA in 1928 from the Adelbert College Western Reserve University
and then subsequently a library science bachelor’s degree from the library school at Columbia University
in 1929. He then went on to obtain his Master’s Degree from the library school at Columbia University in 1931 and his PhD from the University of Chicago
in 1950. By the time Shaw had earned his PhD he had already served as senior assistant and chief bibliographer of the Engineering Society’s Library, served as the director of the Gary Public Library in Indiana, and had been appointed the Director of the U.S. National Agricultural Library
in 1940.
United States National Agricultural Library - (1940–1954)
Shaw served as the department librarian for the United States National Agricultural Library (NAL) from 1940-1954.
Rutgers University - Faculty 1954, Dean 1959-1961
University of Hawaii – 1964 – 1969
Shaw was the Dean of Library Activities 1966 to 1969 at the Hamilton Library at the University of Hawaii
at Manoa
.
saved more money than the “door-to-door deliveries” version that was in place previously.
had developed the “microfilm storage and information retrieval device that he expanded - in theory, anyway - with his plans for the ‘Memex
’ machine, a futuristic device that foreshadowed the modern computer and hypertext linking”. “With Dr. Bush’s permission, Ralph used his concepts to develop a more effective and commercially viable machine” , however, “nothing ever came of the Rapid Selector”.
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...
, a publisher, and an innovator in library science
Library science
Library science is an interdisciplinary or multidisciplinary field that applies the practices, perspectives, and tools of management, information technology, education, and other areas to libraries; the collection, organization, preservation, and dissemination of information resources; and the...
.
He married his first wife Viola Susan Leff in 1929 and married his second wife, Mary McChesney Andrews in 1969.
Scarecrow Press
Ralph Shaw founded a publishing company called the Scarecrow Press in 1950 in the basement of his Alexandria, Virginia home, “assisted only by his wife Viola”. Shaw wanted to establish a publishing company that would publish scholarly and academic work, unlikely to capture the attention from most companies that were more concerned with making money than the distribution of scholarly ideas. He started the Scarecrow Press with “author and editor Earl Schenk Miers”., The website for the company describes how the company name came out of this idea that this new company was not concerned with making money. “Shaw knew that costs would have to be kept in control because he envisioned publishing scholarly books that were intellectually important, yet economically marginal. As Shaw described a company that would avoid excessive office costs, excessive editorial costs, general trade advertising, and the building up a staff, Miers broke in, saying, "You're talking about a scarecrow: it has no overhead, it pays no rent, it is not responsible for anybody's future clothing and shelter. It's a scarecrow!",Kenneth F. Kister
Kenneth Kister
Kenneth F. Kister is an academic, professor of library science and authority in the field of reference and information sources.As an academic he taught in the 1960s on "Intellectual Freedom and Censorship"...
, in his biography of Eric Moon
Eric Moon
Eric Edward Moon is a librarian and editor who had a shaping influence on American librarianship in the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s as editor-in-chief of Library Journal, as President of the American Library Association, and as chief editor at Scarecrow Press...
describes as “dynamic…a polymath who had more irons in the fire than any librarian since Melvil Dewey
Melvil Dewey
Melville Louis Kossuth Dewey was an American librarian and educator, inventor of the Dewey Decimal system of library classification, and a founder of the Lake Placid Club....
”. And Moon himself, considered a “radical” in the library world, had once warned a researcher that “interviewing Ralph Shaw in the morning was like having “six martinis for breakfast”. Eventually, Moon replaced Shaw as chief editor of Scarecrow press as he faced his battle with cancer and treatment and they had conflicts in the interim. The company still publishes for the academic community. It “was purchased in 1995 by University Press of America and moved from its Metuchen, New Jersey, headquarters to Lanham, Maryland, where it is now a member of the Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group
Rowman & Littlefield
Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group is an independent publishing house founded in 1949. Under several imprints, the company offers scholarly books and journals for the academic market, as well as trade books. The company also owns a book distributor, National Book Network...
".,
Career and Education
Ralph Shaw had is first job in a library at the age of 16 when he worked as a page at the Cleveland Public LibraryCleveland Public Library
The Cleveland Public Library was founded in 1869 and is located in Cleveland, Ohio. It operates the Main Library on Superior Avenue in downtown Cleveland, 28 branches throughout the city, a mobile library, a Public Administration Library in City Hall, and a library for the blind and physically...
. He obtained his BA in 1928 from the Adelbert College Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University is a private research university located in Cleveland, Ohio, USA...
and then subsequently a library science bachelor’s degree from the library school at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in 1929. He then went on to obtain his Master’s Degree from the library school at Columbia University in 1931 and his PhD from the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
in 1950. By the time Shaw had earned his PhD he had already served as senior assistant and chief bibliographer of the Engineering Society’s Library, served as the director of the Gary Public Library in Indiana, and had been appointed the Director of the U.S. National Agricultural Library
United States National Agricultural Library
The United States National Agricultural Library is one of the world's largest agricultural research libraries, and serves as a National Library of the United States and as the library of the United States Department of Agriculture...
in 1940.
United States National Agricultural Library - (1940–1954)
Shaw served as the department librarian for the United States National Agricultural Library (NAL) from 1940-1954.
Rutgers University - Faculty 1954, Dean 1959-1961
University of Hawaii – 1964 – 1969
Shaw was the Dean of Library Activities 1966 to 1969 at the Hamilton Library at the University of Hawaii
University of Hawaii
The University of Hawaii System, formally the University of Hawaii and popularly known as UH, is a public, co-educational college and university system that confers associate, bachelor, master, and doctoral degrees through three university campuses, seven community college campuses, an employment...
at Manoa
Manoa
thumb|240px|right|Vintage shot of University of Hawaii, Manoa240px|thumb|right|Vintage photo of Manoa ValleyMānoa is a valley and a residential neighborhood of Honolulu CDP of the City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii, United States; the community is approximately three miles east and inland from...
.
Innovations and Inventions
Ralph Shaw was said to have been “anti-machine” when it came to libraries. But through the administrative advances and use of technology, Shaw “adapted and invented machines to do library work” because “by completing routine tasks of librarianship more efficiently, machines could enable professional librarians to devote more time to the intellectual aspects of their work”.Bookmobile
While he was the director at the Gary Public Library in Indiana, Shaw “purchased small house trailers, redesigned their interiors, and transported them with a single truck cab to specified stations throughout Gary on a regular schedule”. This version of the bookmobileBookmobile
A bookmobile or mobile library is a large vehicle designed for use as a library. It is designed to hold books on shelves so that when the vehicle is parked the books can be accessed by readers. It usually has enough space for people to sit and read books inside. Mobile libraries are often used to...
saved more money than the “door-to-door deliveries” version that was in place previously.
Transaction Card Charging
Also, while at the library in Gary, Shaw improved the process by which libraries tracked books that were over due. It used to be that many librarians, when books were returned, were having to look through cards, to find the date due and identify late returns. Transaction cards were placed in books and were “numbered in serial order” by date so when books were returned, any missing books prompted a late notice.Photo-Clerk
The Photoclerk was used in the transaction card charging system to make copies of the due date cards. Shaw also experimented with the Photo-Clerk at the Department of Agriculture Library.Rapid Selector
The rapid selector was a device used to quickly search microfilm. Vannevar BushVannevar Bush
Vannevar Bush was an American engineer and science administrator known for his work on analog computing, his political role in the development of the atomic bomb as a primary organizer of the Manhattan Project, the founding of Raytheon, and the idea of the memex, an adjustable microfilm viewer...
had developed the “microfilm storage and information retrieval device that he expanded - in theory, anyway - with his plans for the ‘Memex
Memex
The memex is the name given by Vannevar Bush to the hypothetical proto-hypertext system he described in his 1945 The Atlantic Monthly article As We May Think...
’ machine, a futuristic device that foreshadowed the modern computer and hypertext linking”. “With Dr. Bush’s permission, Ralph used his concepts to develop a more effective and commercially viable machine” , however, “nothing ever came of the Rapid Selector”.
Additional References
- Hines, Theodore C. "Shaw and The Machine." Essays For Ralph Shaw. Ed. Norman D.Stevens. Metuchen, NJ: The Scarecrow Press, 1975.
- Kent, Allen, Harold Lancour, and Jay Elwood Daily. "Shaw, Ralph Robert." Encyclopedia of Library and Information Science:. 27. CRC Press, 1979
- Martin, Lowell. "A Tribute To Ralph Shaw." Essays For Ralph Shaw. Ed. Norman D. Stevens. Metuchen, NJ: The Scarecrow Press, 1975.