William Barrow
Encyclopedia
William James Barrow was an American
chemist
and paper
conservator, and a pioneer of library and archives conservation. He introduced the field of conservation to paper deacidification through alkalization.
and conservation of historical documents. He was an innovator and entrepreneur. Barrow was at one time considered by many authorities to be the leading independent scientific center for research into paper and the deterioration of paper.
William J. Barrow developed the first practical roller-type laminator. With this lamninator, Barrow developed a process for laminating brittle documents between tissue and cellulose acetate film, as well as a highly effective means of deacidifying paper. He demonstrated the facts of paper stability over the past four centuries and developed a durable paper having a high degree of permanence.
Barrow was also a part of a team of paper manufacturers, partially supported by the paper industry, which developed a large-scale process to manufacture alkaline or permanent-durable paper from wood fiber. He was also involved in other investigations connected with paper and ink for a period of more than 30 years, and was probably the most important single contributor to the knowledge of methods of achieving permanence and durability of archival materials.
William Barrow had a thorough knowledge of both library
and archival practices, a long record of published research, and a command of his technical specialty . In honor of William J. Barrow's contributions to the library and archival professions, he was recognized as one of the "100 of the most important leaders we had in the 20th Century" according to the American Libraries
.
William James Barrow became interested in the problems of paper deterioration while investigating the history of his family. Even though Barrow did not have a formal education in the field of Chemistry
, the mystery of paper deterioration became his passion. This passion became his life's work to determine what the causes were and to slow the deterioration process down or eliminate it altogether. W. J. Barrow Research Laboratory ceased operations in 1977, ten years after his death on August 25, 1967.
Before the 1850s, linen
and cotton rag were the primary material source for papermaking
, but a shortage drove the market to develop the notoriously acidic wood-pulp alternative. With the advent of steam-driven paper making machines such as the Fourdrinier
in the 19th century, in conjunction with the advent of the steam driven rotary printing press
, wood based paper caused a major transformation of the 19th century economy and society in industrialized countries. The wide availability of cheap wood based paper can be credited with the birth of ephemera
, and consequently with the birth of modern paper preservation, as large quantities of rapidly deteriorating materials needed the attention of science.
Barrow published an article in the 1930s that introduced librarians, archivists, and other restorers with chemical means of controlling the acid deterioration of paper. While he is widely considered to be the first promoter of acid paper issues, his earliest published work on this topic goes somewhat unheeded until the 1950s when he began to receive grants from the Council on Library Resources (CLR) and the American Library Association
(ALA), among others. The delay in addressing these issues could be largely due to the onset of the Depression
, and the following paper-hungry war
which pushed the acid paper problem to the back of scientists' minds.
Barrow's greatest significance is perhaps as an aggressive promoter of paper preservation, as in retrospect his scientific discoveries have not been entirely sound. For example, his tests to accelerate the natural aging of paper samples at elevated temperatures have since proven to be erroneous, and modern scholars doubt his importance as an original chemical researcher.
, April, 1976. The criticisms were stating that the Barrow lamination process had some harmful effects caused by heat. Frazer G. Poole, the assistant Director for Preservation for the Library of Congress
authored the article. Upon further investigation by The Preservation for the Library of Congress into the allegations, they found Poole's report to be lacking in hard scientific data because the report consisted of broad observations, undocumented generalizations, and inferential statements.
Several of Barrows' major conclusions are heavily questioned in the course of Nicholson Baker
's book Double Fold
. Additionally, according to the Library of Congress
Barrows' works on accelerated aging "have since proven to be erroneous."
, born December 11, 1904.
He graduated from Randolph-Macon Academy and later attended Randolph-Macon College. Although Barrow never completed his undergraduate education, he was awarded an honorary doctorate by his alma mater, Randolph-Macon college a year before his death. Lacking extensive formal training, he overcame this deficit and became an able and serious researcher. Through assiduous home study, discussions with recognized experts through apprenticeship with professional paper chemists from the National Bureau of Standards and the National Printing Office, and daily hands-on work in the laboratory.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
chemist
Chemist
A chemist is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density and acidity. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms...
and paper
Paper
Paper is a thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon, drawing or for packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets....
conservator, and a pioneer of library and archives conservation. He introduced the field of conservation to paper deacidification through alkalization.
Overview
An American document restorer and former director of the W. J. Barrow Research Laboratory located in Richmond, Virginia, where he became highly recognized for his pioneering achievements in the preservationPreservation
Preservation may refer to:* Heritage preservation:** Historic preservation, of buildings, monuments, etc.** Preservation , of books, recordings, etc.** Conservation , of the natural environment...
and conservation of historical documents. He was an innovator and entrepreneur. Barrow was at one time considered by many authorities to be the leading independent scientific center for research into paper and the deterioration of paper.
William J. Barrow developed the first practical roller-type laminator. With this lamninator, Barrow developed a process for laminating brittle documents between tissue and cellulose acetate film, as well as a highly effective means of deacidifying paper. He demonstrated the facts of paper stability over the past four centuries and developed a durable paper having a high degree of permanence.
Barrow was also a part of a team of paper manufacturers, partially supported by the paper industry, which developed a large-scale process to manufacture alkaline or permanent-durable paper from wood fiber. He was also involved in other investigations connected with paper and ink for a period of more than 30 years, and was probably the most important single contributor to the knowledge of methods of achieving permanence and durability of archival materials.
William Barrow had a thorough knowledge of both library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
and archival practices, a long record of published research, and a command of his technical specialty . In honor of William J. Barrow's contributions to the library and archival professions, he was recognized as one of the "100 of the most important leaders we had in the 20th Century" according to the American Libraries
American Libraries
American Libraries is the official news and features magazine of the American Library Association. Published six times per year, along with four additional digital-only supplements, it is distributed to all members of the organization...
.
William James Barrow became interested in the problems of paper deterioration while investigating the history of his family. Even though Barrow did not have a formal education in the field of Chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
, the mystery of paper deterioration became his passion. This passion became his life's work to determine what the causes were and to slow the deterioration process down or eliminate it altogether. W. J. Barrow Research Laboratory ceased operations in 1977, ten years after his death on August 25, 1967.
Significance to preservation
Linen
Linen is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant, Linum usitatissimum. Linen is labor-intensive to manufacture, but when it is made into garments, it is valued for its exceptional coolness and freshness in hot weather....
and cotton rag were the primary material source for papermaking
Papermaking
Papermaking is the process of making paper, a substance which is used universally today for writing and packaging.In papermaking a dilute suspension of fibres in water is drained through a screen, so that a mat of randomly interwoven fibres is laid down. Water is removed from this mat of fibres by...
, but a shortage drove the market to develop the notoriously acidic wood-pulp alternative. With the advent of steam-driven paper making machines such as the Fourdrinier
Fourdrinier machine
This article contains a glossary section at the end.Most modern papermaking machines are based on the principles of the Fourdrinier Machine. It has been used in some variation since its inception...
in the 19th century, in conjunction with the advent of the steam driven rotary printing press
Printing press
A printing press is a device for applying pressure to an inked surface resting upon a print medium , thereby transferring the ink...
, wood based paper caused a major transformation of the 19th century economy and society in industrialized countries. The wide availability of cheap wood based paper can be credited with the birth of ephemera
Ephemera
Ephemera are transitory written and printed matter not intended to be retained or preserved. The word derives from the Greek, meaning things lasting no more than a day. Some collectible ephemera are advertising trade cards, airsickness bags, bookmarks, catalogues, greeting cards, letters,...
, and consequently with the birth of modern paper preservation, as large quantities of rapidly deteriorating materials needed the attention of science.
Barrow published an article in the 1930s that introduced librarians, archivists, and other restorers with chemical means of controlling the acid deterioration of paper. While he is widely considered to be the first promoter of acid paper issues, his earliest published work on this topic goes somewhat unheeded until the 1950s when he began to receive grants from the Council on Library Resources (CLR) and 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....
(ALA), among others. The delay in addressing these issues could be largely due to the onset of the Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, and the following paper-hungry war
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
which pushed the acid paper problem to the back of scientists' minds.
Barrow's greatest significance is perhaps as an aggressive promoter of paper preservation, as in retrospect his scientific discoveries have not been entirely sound. For example, his tests to accelerate the natural aging of paper samples at elevated temperatures have since proven to be erroneous, and modern scholars doubt his importance as an original chemical researcher.
Critical Reputation
Barrows' innovations did not move forward in history without some controversy or challenges. Some doubts arose in the mid 1970's concerning document conservation practices. These criticisms were being directed at the Barrow process of lamination and deacidification. The doubts appeared in a summary in the American ArchivistAmerican Archivist
The American Archivist is the official publication of the Society of American Archivists . The American Archivist seeks to reflect thinking about theoretical and practical developments in the archival profession, particularly in North America; about the relationships between archivists and the...
, April, 1976. The criticisms were stating that the Barrow lamination process had some harmful effects caused by heat. Frazer G. Poole, the assistant Director for Preservation for the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
authored the article. Upon further investigation by The Preservation for the Library of Congress into the allegations, they found Poole's report to be lacking in hard scientific data because the report consisted of broad observations, undocumented generalizations, and inferential statements.
Several of Barrows' major conclusions are heavily questioned in the course of Nicholson Baker
Nicholson Baker
Nicholson Baker is a contemporary American writer of fiction and non-fiction. As a novelist, he often focuses on minute inspection of his characters' and narrators' stream of consciousness, and has written about such provocative topics as voyeurism and planned assassination...
's book Double Fold
Double Fold
Double Fold: Libraries and the Assault on Paper is a non-fiction book by Nicholson Baker that was published in April, 2001. An excerpt appeared in the July 24, 2000 issue of The New Yorker, under the title "Deadline: The Author's Desperate Bid to Save...
. Additionally, according to the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
Barrows' works on accelerated aging "have since proven to be erroneous."
Authorship
William J. Barrow wrote several articles and publications documenting his work and findings. One of those articles was the "500 Book Paper", written in 1957. In this article, Barrow documented the findings of some physical tests performed in the Rare Book Room of the Virginia State Library. In 1959 he wrote the "Deterioration of Book Stock Causes and Remedies". This book was written documenting two studies he performed. The first, to determine the physical strength of non-fiction book papers from 1900-1949, and the second, to determine the stabiliazation of modern book papers. In 1960, William Barrow wrote "The Manufacture and Testing of Durable Book Papers" which he takes his findings from his 1959 publication and demonstrate that it was possible to treat newly manufactured papers with solutions of magnesium and calcium bicarbonates, thus neutralizing acidity and prolonging the life of such papers materially.Education and career
Barrow was a native of Brunswick County, VirginiaBrunswick County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 18,419 people, 6,277 households, and 4,312 families residing in the county. The population density was 32 people per square mile . There were 7,541 housing units at an average density of 13 per square mile...
, born December 11, 1904.
He graduated from Randolph-Macon Academy and later attended Randolph-Macon College. Although Barrow never completed his undergraduate education, he was awarded an honorary doctorate by his alma mater, Randolph-Macon college a year before his death. Lacking extensive formal training, he overcame this deficit and became an able and serious researcher. Through assiduous home study, discussions with recognized experts through apprenticeship with professional paper chemists from the National Bureau of Standards and the National Printing Office, and daily hands-on work in the laboratory.
Selected bibliography
- Barrow, W. J. 1939. The Barrow method of laminating documents. Journal of Documentary Reproduction, 2 (June): 147-151.
- Barrow, W. J. 1954. Migration of impurities in paper.
- Hummel, R. O., Jr. and W. J. Barrow. 1956. Lamination and other methods of restoration. Library Trends, 4 (January): 259-268.
- Barrow, W. J. 1957. Physical strength of non-fiction book papers, 1900-1949: A preliminary report to Council on Library Resources, Inc.
- Barrow, W. J. and R. C. Sproull. 1959. Permanence in book papers. Science, 129 (24 April): 1075-1084.
- Barrow, W. J. 1959. A sample of strong and stable book paper.
- Barrow, W. J. 1959. Deterioration of book stock, causes and remedies: Two studies on the permanence of book paper (Virginia. State Library, [Richmond] Publications).
- Barrow, W. J. Manuscripts and Documents, Their Deterioration and Restoration, Charlottesville, The University Press of Virginia, 1955
- Barrow, W. J. 1959 The Barrow method of restoring deteriorated documents
- Church, R. W., ed. 1960. The manufacture and testing of durable book papers. Studies conducted by W. J. Barrow. (Virginia State Library Publications, no. 13). Richmond, Virginia: Virginia State Library.
- Barrow, W. J. 1964. An accelerated aging study of several writing papers: Re-evaluation of data. Tappi. 47 (February): 105-107.
- Barrow, W. J. and A. M. Carlton. 1967. Durability of three current laminating tissues. American Archivist. 30 (July): 526-529.
See also
- Acid paper
- Archival scienceArchival scienceArchival science is the theory and study of storing, cataloguing, and retrieving documents and items. Archival science evolved from mankind's need to classify the world around them...
- Brittle Books ProgramBrittle Books ProgramThe Brittle Books Program is an initiative carried out by the National Endowment for the Humanities at the request of the United States Congress...
- Library and Information ScienceLibrary and information scienceLibrary and information science is a merging of the two fields library science and information science...
- Mass deacidificationMass deacidificationMass deacidification is a term used in Library and Information Science for one possible measure against the degradation of paper in old books . The goal of the process is to increase the pH of acidic paper on a large scale...
- Preservation survey
- Preservation: Library and Archival Science
External links
- The Virginia Historical Society in Richmond, Virginia houses the William James Barrow Papers.