William B. Brahms

William B. Brahms
Brahms in 2008
Born	1966 (age 58–59) Camden, New Jersey
Occupation(s)	Founder and president of Reference Desk Press, [1] encyclopedist, reference book author, historian and librarian
Website	William B. Brahms Profile

William Bernard Brahms (born October 1, 1966) is an American librarian, encyclopedist, author and historian best known for his encyclopedic works on historical "lasts" (as opposed to "firsts"), in particular, the reference works Notable Last Facts: A Compendium of Endings, Conclusions, Terminations and Final Events Throughout History (2005) and Last Words of Notable People: Final Words of More than 3500 Noteworthy People Throughout History (2010). "Last words" and "last facts" are subjects for which his works are cited as an authoritative resources. ^{[2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7]}

Life and work

Brahms was born in Camden, New Jersey, and was raised and still lives in Haddon Township, New Jersey, ^[8] graduating in 1985 from Haddon Township High School. ^[9] He graduated as a member of Phi Beta Kappa and Cap and Skull from Rutgers College with a B.A. and from Rutgers University Graduate School of Communication Information and Library Studies with an M.L.S. He has spent his entire career working in public libraries in New Jersey. Currently he manages and is Chief Librarian at the Camden County Library. He is also President of Reference Desk Press, Inc. ^{[10] [11]} and has published seven books, including the major library reference works Notable Last Facts which was selected as an "Achievement in Publishing" in Booklist's 2005 Editor's Choice issue ^[12] and the Last Words of Notable People" which was profiled in Kirkus author Q & A in Kirkus Reviews ^[13] and Reader's Digest Recommends" ^[14] and cracked the Amazon.com Top 100 Best Seller list in 2011. ^[15] Brahms has also written several books on regional history. In particular, his books on Franklin Township, Somerset County, New Jersey ^[16] including: Franklin Township Somerset County, NJ: A History, and Images of America: Franklin Township. His book on the historic Westmont Theatre in Westmont, New Jersey is a tie-in to the film The Grand Old Lady ^[17] directed by Brent J. Donaway; a film in which Brahms also appears. ^[18] He is also co-author of another title in the national Image of America series, Images of America: Haddon Township. about Haddon Township, New Jersey. ^[19]

External links

• Brahms, William (1997). Images of America: Franklin Township. Dover, New Hampshire: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN   0-7524-0938-7.
• Brahms, William (1998). Franklin Township, Somerset County, NJ: A History. Franklin Township, New Jersey: FTPL. ISBN   0-9668586-0-3.
• Brahms, William (2000). Cap & Skull Centennial History and Biographical Directory. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Cap and Skull Society.
• Brahms, William (2005). Notable Last Facts – A Compendium of Endings, Conclusions, Terminations and Final Events Throughout History. Haddonfield, New Jersey: Reference Desk Press, Inc. ISBN   0-9765325-0-6.
• Brahms, William (2007). Brent J. Donaway's the Grand Old Lady. Haddonfield, New Jersey: Reference Desk Press, Inc. ISBN   978-0-9765325-1-4.
• Brahms, William (2010). Last Words of Notable People – Final Words of More than 3500 Noteworthy People Throughout History. Haddonfield, New Jersey: Reference Desk Press, Inc. ISBN   978-0-9765325-8-3.
• Brahms, William; Sandra White-Grear (2011). Images of America: Haddon Township. Mount Pleasant, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN   978-0-7385-7650-3.
• Franklin PhotoArchive co-designed by William B. Brahms
• Franklin NewsArchive designed by William B. Brahms

References

1. Reference Desk Press, Inc.
2. Chris Higgins (October 11, 2012). "The Surprising Last Words of 11 Entertainers". Mental Floss. Archived from the original on November 27, 2012. Retrieved December 13, 2012.
3. "'Surprise Me': Legendary Entertainers' Last Words". The Atlantic . October 12, 2012.
4. American Reference Books Annual-ARBA (2006, 2011)
5. Reference Sources for Small and Medium-Sized Libraries, ed. by Jack O'Gorman, 7th Edition, 2008, American Library Association
6. Public Library Catalog 12th Edition, 2006, H. W. Wilson Company
7. Senior High School Catalog 16th Edition, 2006, H. W. Wilson Company
8. Brahms, William B.; White-Grear, Sandra. Haddon Township, p. 34. Arcadia Publishing, 2011. ISBN   9780738576503. Accessed April 16, 2022. "The Haddon Hills Estates were single-family, colonial-style homes built in the early 1950s and stretched from Crystal Lake Avenue down to Crestwood Avenue. Author William B. Brahms is shown in front of his house on the 300 block of Briarwood Avenue, a few years after his family moved there in the late 1960s from the Haddon Hills Apartments."
9. Alumni Profiles, Haddon Township High School Alumni Association. Accessed October 17, 2025. "William Brahms Class of '85 Historian, Author, Publisher, Librarian, noted speaker"
10. Who's Who in America, Marquis Who's Who, LLC., 58th ed. (2004), 60th ed. (2006), 61st ed. (2007), 62 ed. (2008), 63 ed. (2009), 64 ed. (2010), 65 ed. (2011), 66 ed. (2012); Who's Who in the World, Marquis Who's Who, LLC., 27th ed. (2010), 28th ed. (2011), 29th ed. (2012)
11. "Haddon Township High School Alumni Association – Profiled Alumnus-- William B. Brahms'85 Historian, Author". Archived from the original on April 25, 2012. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
12. "Booklist 2005 Editors' Choice Issue", January 1 & 15, 2006; p. 159.
13. "Kirkus Q & A: William Brahms", Kirkus Reviews, February 2011, p.228
14. Chuck Davis (November 15, 2012). "Reader's Digest Recommends – Not-So-Famous Last Words".
15. Amazon.com: Last Words of Notable People: Final Words of More than 3500 Noteworthy People Throughout History. Reference Desk Press. October 19, 2012.
16. Franklin Township, Somerset County, New Jersey
17. "The Grand Old Lady in IMDb". IMDb .
18. "William B. Brahms in IMDb". IMDb .
19. Who's Who in America, Marquis Who's Who, LLC., 58th ed. (2004), 60th ed. (2006), 61st ed. (2007), 62 ed. (2008), 63 ed. (2009), 64 ed. (2010), 65 ed. (2011), 66 ed. (2012); Who's Who in the World, Marquis Who's Who, LLC., 27th ed. (2010), 28th ed. (2011), 29th ed. (2012)