| Homer Babbidge Library | |
|---|---|
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| 41°48′24″N72°15′06″W / 41.8066°N 72.2516°W | |
| Location | Storrs, Connecticut, United States |
| Type | Academic library |
| Established | 1978 |
| Architect(s) | Robert S. McMillan |
| Collection | |
| Size | 3.2 million volumes |
| Other information | |
| Director | Anne Langley |
| Parent organization | University of Connecticut |
| Website | lib |
The Homer D. Babbidge Library (HBL) is the main library on the University of Connecticut campus in Storrs, Connecticut.
In December 1962 University of Connecticut President Homer D. Babbidge Jr. went before the Connecticut Legislature to advocate for a stronger research-oriented institution in Storrs. When compared to its peers, UConn spent less on bookbinding, periodicals, collections development, and had an overall smaller inventory of books. UConn spent $30 per student on the library at a time when its peers were spending close to $70. [1]
Only ten years later, near the end of his term, the university's library passed the one million volume mark, joining only 58 other American Universities (out of 2,200 total) that had a collection of 1 million or more volumes. Prior to Babbidge being built, the Wilbur Cross Library housed the university's books and volumes. That building has now been turned into the Wilbur Cross Building, which houses various administrative offices.
Regarding the naming of the university's new library, Bruce M. Stave writes that "Homer Daniels Babbidge, Jr., died of cancer at age 58 in March 1984. Shortly after his death, the University of Connecticut Board of Trustees, in a memorial tribute, named the university's new library, which stands central to the campus, in his honor." [2]
While under construction, the new main library had been named the Nathan Hale Library [3] [4] at the urging of trustees appointed by Gov. Thomas Meskill, whose UConn budget cuts earlier prompted Babbidge to retire and run for governor against him. [5]
Philip E. Austin is an American economist who served as the 13th president of the University of Connecticut from October 1, 1996 to September 14, 2007. He returned to serve as interim president in May 2010 following the abrupt departure of Michael J. Hogan. Prior to UConn, Austin served as president of Colorado State University (1984–1989) and chancellor of the University of Alabama System (1989–1996).
Glenn Walker Ferguson was an American diplomat and university president. He served as United States Ambassador to Kenya (1966–1969), chancellor of Long Island University (1969–1970), and president of Clark University (1970–1973), the University of Connecticut (1973–1978), and the American University of Paris (1992–1995).
Homer Daniels Babbidge Jr. was an American historian who served as president of the University of Connecticut (1962–1972) and the Hartford Graduate Center (1976–1984). At age 37, he was the youngest state university president in the United States.
George Washington Flint was an American educator and academic administrator who served as the second president of Storrs Agricultural College, now the University of Connecticut, from 1898 to 1901.
Edwina Maud Whitney was an American librarian and educator who served as one of the earliest librarians at the Connecticut Agricultural College from 1900 to 1934. She also served as a German instructor from 1901 to 1926 and an assistant professor of German from 1926 to 1934.
Albert Nels Jorgensen was an American academic administrator who served as the seventh president of the University of Connecticut (1935–1962). Its longest-serving president and its youngest at age 36 at the time of his appointment, Jorgensen led UConn's transformation from a sleepy agricultural college to a major modern university. UConn came into existence by renaming Connecticut State College in 1939. Student enrollment rose from 844 in 1935 to 11,877 in 1962—an increase of over 1,400%. Opened in 1955, the Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts on the university's Storrs campus was named in Jorgensen's honor. The Harriet Jorgensen Theatre is named after his wife.
Charles Chester McCracken (1882–1957) was an American academic administrator who served as the sixth president of the University of Connecticut (1930–1935).
George Alan Works (1877–1957) was an American academic administrator who served as the fifth president of the University of Connecticut from 1929 to 1930. His papers are held in the university archives at the Dodd Research Center.
Mary Estella Sprague was an American home economics professor and academic administrator at the University of Connecticut, then Connecticut Agricultural College. She served as dean of women from 1917 to 1926 and as the first dean of the Division of Home Economics from 1920 to 1926.
Bruce M. Stave was an American historian specializing in oral history and urban history. He was a Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor of History Emeritus at the University of Connecticut, where he taught for decades.
Harry J. Hartley was an American educator and academic administrator who served as the 12th President of the University of Connecticut (1990–1996). Prior to his presidency, Hartley had served twice as UConn's acting president, vice president for finance and administration, and dean of the UConn School of Education (1972–1975).
Benjamin Franklin Koons was an American natural historian who served as second Principal of Storrs Agricultural School (1883–1893) and first President of Storrs Agricultural College (1893–1898), now the University of Connecticut.
Charles Storrs and Augustus Storrs were American business partners and brothers who played a key role in establishing the Storrs Agricultural School in 1881.
Walter Campbell Stemmons (1884–1965) was an American writer who served as Professor of Journalism and University Editor at the University of Connecticut from 1918 to 1954. He wrote Connecticut Agricultural College: A History (1931), published on the 50th anniversary of UConn's founding.
Albert Edmund Waugh was an American economist and long-time academic administrator at the University of Connecticut (UConn) from 1924 to 1965. He served as provost from 1950 to 1965. Waugh's journal, which he kept daily from 1941 to 1974, gave unique insight into the history, academics, and life of the university and was an important primary source for historians such as Bruce M. Stave.
Walter Childs Wood (1864–1953) was an American surgeon, state legislator, and long-time trustee of the University of Connecticut. He served as a representative in the Connecticut General Assembly from 1923 to 1931 and was a member of the UConn Board of Trustees from 1922 to 1942. Wood's obituary in the Hartford Courant described him as "one of the state's leaders in the dairy and agricultural circles."
John PeterMcDonald (October 17, 1922 – November 19, 1993) was an American librarian. McDonald served as university librarian and director at the University of Connecticut and executive director of the Association of Research Libraries (1974–76).
Lewis "Lew" B. Rome was an American attorney and politician who served in the Connecticut State Senate and ran unsuccessfully as the Republican Party nominee in the 1982 Connecticut gubernatorial election.
Annie E. Vinton was an American postmistress, politician, and dignitary of Mansfield, Connecticut. She served in the Connecticut House of Representatives. A local elementary school and University of Connecticut dormitory are named in her honor.
The Storrs Agricultural Experiment Station (SAES) is an American agricultural experiment station operated by the University of Connecticut and founded in 1887. Part of UConn's College of Agriculture, Health, and Natural Resources, the SAES directs agriculture-related research while the university's Cooperative Extension Service engages in community education and outreach. Kumar Venkitanarayanan is the Station's associate director. Its offices are located in the W. B. Young Building on the main UConn campus in Storrs.
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