Librarian of Congress- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Librarian_of_Congress 1. Jefferson's Legacy: A Brief History of the Library of Congress -- LIBRARIANS OF CONGRESS
This is definitely a high quality source as it is an official government website. The Library of Congress manages this website so it is reliable for this subject. It’s useful because it discusses the history of the Librarian of Congress, which isn’t covered very much on the Wikipedia page. It’s not opinionated, but rather strictly factual. It goes into how the position was created by President Jefferson and what the roles of the position entail.
2. 101 Bill Profile H.R. 1255- Appointment of the Librarian of Congress. Sponsor: Major Robert Odell Owens (D- NY). March 02, 1989, Congress Session 101-1
This source is a congressional bill to require that the Librarian of Congress be appointed from individuals with specialized training or significant experience in the field of library and information science. This is a reliable source because it is an official bill that was proposed in Congress and I found it on our library’s database. The bill proposes the Librarian of Congress ought to be appointed from individuals with specialized training or experience in the field of library. This is interesting because it’s quite possibly the only legislation that would actually create rules around who could be appointed. This bill was not passed and the tradition continued that the President could appoint whomever they see fit. This is useful for the Wikipedia page because it discusses more recent history about the position.
3. Vitz, Carl. (1945). Re: Librarian of Congress. ALA Bulletin, 39(2), 62.
American Library Association president writes his opinion about what qualities the Librarian of Congress should have. The position was newly vacant and he was giving suggestions for who should be appointed. This is opinionated but it’s legitimate because the writer is a leading librarian in the United States. He says the position “requires a top flight administrator, a statesman-like leader in the world of knowledge, and an expert in bringing together the materials of scholarship and organizing them for use.” This is another source for history on the position, as well as details as to how the librarian should be selected.
4. Harris, Michael H. (1978). Advances in Librarianship. Lexington, Kentucky: Academic Press.
This is a book about librarians in general in the United States and features a chapter that focuses strictly on the librarians of Congress. This is a reliable source because it is a published book. The chapter on the librarians of Congress also contains history on the appointment of the librarian. It gives more information as to how the process came to be, such as when the President was given the power to appoint the librarian and when Congress was given the power to approve the appointment. It will be useful for the history of the librarian of Congress.
5. Library of Congress. (1977) Librarians of Congress: 1802-1974. Washington: Library of Congress.
This book gives brief biographies of the librarians of Congress from 1802 to 1974. It covers the first librarian ever to the most recent one, as of 1977. It explains each librarian’s background and how they came to be the librarian of Congress. There is information in here, especially about the first librarian, that further explains the process of appointment and what makes a person technically qualify to be the librarian of Congress.
OUTLINE
History/Background
-Explain how/why/when the office was created
o What the library of congress entails
o Why a librarian was needed
o When Congress was given power to approve the appointment
-Who the first President was that appointed a librarian
o Jefferson’s appointment of the first librarian
o Brief history/explanation of it
-Explain what the president of the ALA believes requirements should be
o “Requires a top flight administrator, a statesman-like leader in the world of knowledge, and an expert in bringing together the materials of scholarship and organizing them for use.”
-Explain the proposed bill for the requirements for future librarians
o Who proposed it
o How members of Congress responded to it
DRAFT The History of the Librarian of Congress: In 1802, two years after the creation of the Library of Congress, President Thomas Jefferson appointed the very first Librarian of Congress. The law created in regards to this position gave the power of appointment to the President of the United States. It was not until 1897 that Congress was given the power to confirm the President’s nominee. This same law gave the Librarian the sole power for making the institution’s rules and appointing the Library’s staff.
There is very little legislation for the Library of Congress. However, in 1989 Major Robert Odell Owens (D- NY) proposed a bill in Congress that would set stricter requirements for whom can be appointed as the Librarian. It argues appointed Librarians need to have specialized training and backgrounds in the field of libraries. However, the bill did not pass and the tradition continued of Presidents appointing their friends and colleagues.
Term of Office- (should this be a different section or included in history?): There is no official term limit for the Librarian of Congress. Laws have been created regarding the appointment process but no law indicates the term of office. However, in the twentieth century the precedent was established that Librarians of Congress is appointed for life. Therefore, most librarians have served till death or retirement.