Oberlin College Library
Encyclopedia
The Oberlin College Library is a library located in Oberlin, Ohio
. The recipient of the ACRL
Excellence in Academic Libraries Award in 2002, the Oberlin College Library is recognized for superior collections and services. The library system has more than 2.4 million items of print and media materials, as well as extensive online journals and research databases. The library is a member of the OhioLINK
consortium which provides rapid access to an additional 46 million volumes from colleges and universities across Ohio.
, opened in 1908 and served both the college and the town of Oberlin for almost seven decades. The current main library in Mudd Center opened in 1974. The Oberlin College Library, under the direction of Library Director William Andrew Moffett
, was a founding member of OCLC
and also the first independent college library to join the OhioLINK
consortium. The library directors of the Oberlin Group
, a national consortium of selective liberal arts college libraries, first met at Oberlin College
in 1986.
Oberlin, Ohio
Oberlin is a city in Lorain County, Ohio, United States, to the south and west of Cleveland. Oberlin is perhaps best known for being the home of Oberlin College, a liberal arts college and music conservatory with approximately 3,000 students...
. The recipient of the ACRL
Association of College and Research Libraries
The Association of College and Research Libraries , a division of the American Library Association , is a professional association of academic librarians and other interested individuals...
Excellence in Academic Libraries Award in 2002, the Oberlin College Library is recognized for superior collections and services. The library system has more than 2.4 million items of print and media materials, as well as extensive online journals and research databases. The library is a member of the OhioLINK
OhioLINK
The Ohio Library and Information Network, OhioLINK, is a consortium of Ohio’s college and university libraries and the State Library of Ohio. Serving more than 600,000 students, faculty, and staff at 88 institutions, OhioLINK’s membership includes 16 public universities, 23 community/technical...
consortium which provides rapid access to an additional 46 million volumes from colleges and universities across Ohio.
History
Under the leadership of college librarian Azariah Smith Root (1887–1927), the Oberlin College Library grew by the end of his tenure to the sixteenth largest academic library in the nation. The former central library, which was funded by Andrew CarnegieAndrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, and entrepreneur who led the enormous expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century...
, opened in 1908 and served both the college and the town of Oberlin for almost seven decades. The current main library in Mudd Center opened in 1974. The Oberlin College Library, under the direction of Library Director William Andrew Moffett
William Andrew Moffett
-Introduction:William Andrew Moffett was a historian and librarian who placed on the 1999 American Libraries list of "100 of the Most Important Leaders We Had in the 20th Century"...
, was a founding member of OCLC
OCLC
OCLC Online Computer Library Center, Inc. is "a nonprofit, membership, computer library service and research organization dedicated to the public purposes of furthering access to the world’s information and reducing information costs"...
and also the first independent college library to join the OhioLINK
OhioLINK
The Ohio Library and Information Network, OhioLINK, is a consortium of Ohio’s college and university libraries and the State Library of Ohio. Serving more than 600,000 students, faculty, and staff at 88 institutions, OhioLINK’s membership includes 16 public universities, 23 community/technical...
consortium. The library directors of the Oberlin Group
Oberlin Group
The Oberlin Group is an "informal consortium of the libraries of approximately 80 selective liberal arts colleges in the United States. The group developed as a result of conferences held in 1984-85 at Oberlin College when the presidents of 50 colleges met to discuss the role of science...
, a national consortium of selective liberal arts college libraries, first met at Oberlin College
Oberlin College
Oberlin College is a private liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio, noteworthy for having been the first American institution of higher learning to regularly admit female and black students. Connected to the college is the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, the oldest continuously operating...
in 1986.