Melville Louis Kossuth "Melvil" Dewey was an influential American librarian and educator, inventor of the Dewey Decimal system of library classification, a founder of the Lake Placid Club, and a chief librarian at Columbia University. He was also a founding member of the American Library Association. Although Dewey's contributions to the modern library are widely recognized, his legacy is marred by allegations of sexual harassment, racism, and antisemitism.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly called Washington or D.C., is the capital city of the United States. The city is located on the east bank of the Potomac River, which forms its southwestern border with Virginia, and borders Maryland to its north and east. The city was named for George Washington, a Founding Father, commanding general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States, and the district is named for Columbia, the female personification of the nation.
The Librarian of Congress is the head of the Library of Congress, appointed by the president of the United States with the advice and consent of the United States Senate, for a term of ten years. The Librarian of Congress also appoints and oversees the Register of Copyrights of the U.S. Copyright Office and has broad responsibilities around copyright, extending to electronic resources and fair use provisions outlined in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. The librarian determines whether particular works are subject to DMCA prohibitions regarding technological access protection. In addition, the Librarian appoints the U.S. poet laureate and awards the Gershwin Prize for Popular Song.
The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit 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 49,727 members as of 2021.
The District of Columbia statehood movement is a political movement that advocates making the District of Columbia a U.S. state, to provide the residents of the District of Columbia with voting representation in the Congress and complete control over local affairs.
The Willard InterContinental Washington, commonly known as the Willard Hotel, is a historic luxury Beaux-Arts hotel located at 1401 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Downtown Washington, D.C. It is currently a member of Historic Hotels of America, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Among its facilities are numerous luxurious guest rooms, several restaurants, the famed Round Robin Bar, the Peacock Alley series of luxury shops, and voluminous function rooms. Owned jointly by Carr Companies and InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, it is two blocks east of the White House, and two blocks west of the Metro Center station of the Washington Metro.
Ainsworth Rand Spofford was an American journalist, prolific writer and the sixth Librarian of Congress. He served as librarian from 1864 to 1897 under the administration of ten presidents. A great admirer of Benjamin Franklin, he wrote a twenty-one page introduction in Franklin's autobiography, which he edited and published.
The County of Washington was one of five original political entities within the District of Columbia, the capital of the United States. Formed by the Organic Act of 1801 from parts of Montgomery and Prince George's County, Maryland, Washington County referred to all of the District of Columbia "on the east side of the Potomac, together with the islands therein." The bed of the Potomac River was considered to be part of Washington County as well.
The District of Columbia retrocession is the act of returning some or all of the land that had been ceded to the federal government of the United States for the purpose of creating its federal district for the new national capital of the United States, the City of Washington. The land was originally ceded to the federal government by Virginia and Maryland in 1790. After moving through various stages of federal and state approval, the Virginia portion was eventually returned in March 1847. The Maryland portion still constitutes the District of Columbia today, but at various times some have proposed retroceding it, in part or in whole, to address issues related to the voting rights of residents of the District of Columbia.
The 67th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1921, to March 4, 1923, during the first two years of Warren Harding's presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the 1910 United States census.
The 57th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from March 4, 1901, to March 4, 1903, during the final six months of William McKinley's presidency, and the first year and a half of the first administration of his successor, Theodore Roosevelt. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the 1890 United States census. Both chambers had a Republican majority.
Carla Diane Hayden is an American librarian and the 14th Librarian of Congress. Since the creation of the office of the Librarian of Congress in 1802, Hayden is both the first African American and the first woman to hold this post. Appointed in 2016, she is the first professional librarian to hold the post since 1974.
The Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the United States is the diplomatic mission of the People's Republic of China to the United States, located at Northwest Quadrant, Washington D.C.
Lucile M. Morsch was an American librarian who served as president of the American Library Association from 1957 to 1958. Morsch also worked as the Deputy Chief Assistant Librarian of Congress from 1953 to 1962.
Julius C. Jefferson Jr. is an American librarian who was president of the American Library Association for the 2020-2021 term. In 2022 President Joe Biden appointed him to the National Museum and Library Services Board which advises the agency on general policies with respect to the duties, powers, and authority of the Institute of Museum and Library Services relating to museum, library, and information services, as well as the annual selection of National Medals recipients.Jefferson is additionally a section head of the Congressional Research Service at the Library of Congress, and served as the president of the Freedom to Read Foundation from 2013 to 2016.
The New Mexico Library Association (NMLA) is a professional organization for New Mexico's librarians and library workers. It is headquartered in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It was officially founded on February 3, 1924. Evelyn Shuler, director of Raton Public Library and director for the ALA United War Work Campaign in New Mexico, was the organization's first president.
The Maryland Library Association (MLA) is a professional organization for Maryland's librarians and library workers. It is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded in November, 1923, in Baltimore, after a letter writing campaign by Charlotte Newell from the Maryland Public Library Advisory Commission. MLA's first president was Louis Dielman from the Peabody Institute. MLA was instrumental in supporting the creation of the graduate school of library science at the University of Maryland. The organization has been incorporated as a non-profit since 1974. The MLA's official newsletter is The CRAB. MLA has a reciprocal arrangement with DCLA whereby members can participate in each other's events and conferences at membership rates. In 1996, MLA created the Maryland Author Award was established to honor and promote local authors.
The Kansas Library Association (KLA) is a professional organization for Kansas's librarians and library workers. It was founded on December 27, 1900, in the office of the state librarian, after an earlier meeting organized by Anna LaPorte Diggs. James L. King of Topeka was elected the first president. KLA became an official state chapter of the American Library Association in 1922.
Blanche Pritchard McCrum was a librarian and the eighth president of the Association of College and Research Libraries, from 1945 to 1946. She served on the Council of the American Library Association from 1941 through 1942.
