History of Russell Library, Part III

Part 1 of this history covered the period from the establishment of Russell Library in 1876 to the resignation of its second Director, Willis K. Stetson, in 1887.  Part II covered the Library from 1887 to 1926, under the leadership of Laura F. Philbrook and Edna H. Wilder. Part III covers the administrations of Nathaly E. Newton and William Van Beynum, extending over 50 years from 1926 to 1978.

Nathaly E. Newton, 1926 – 1963

Nathaly Newton at the Reference Desk, 1926

Nathaly Newton holds the distinction of being Russell Library’s longest-serving Director.  In her 38 years as head of Russell Library, Director Newton recreated Library spaces and collaborated with other local organizations to meet community needs.  In 1930 the City helped fund the addition of the Hubbard wing, and in the 1940s the Middletown Garden Club undertook the care of the grounds.  As is usual in hard economic times, the Depression led to a great increase in the popularity of Russell Library.  The Library reached out to the community in a variety of ways.  Russell lent books to the five CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) camps around the City, and during the 1936 and 1938 floods the Library provided books to people who were driven out of their homes and temporarily housed in the Armory. 

The Library continued to struggle to meet its obligations, and explored a new ways to fund operations.  One experiment was a rental service for new fiction, started in the early 1940s.  By 1948, shortly before the program was discontinued, most new fiction was only available for a rental fee—which was not popular with the public or the Russell Library Company Board of Trustees.  Despite this short-lived program, Russell’s collections grew from approximately 30,000 in 1930 to 80,000 in the early 1960s. The Library began offering phonograph records and films in the 1940s, with a screen and projector available to view films.  This led to regular film showings that continue to this day. In 1957 a project began to microfilm Middletown’s newspapers, and as a result Russell acquired its first microfilm reader. 

In 1963 Nathaly Newton retired, and William Van Beynum became Librarian.

William Van Beynum, 1963 - 1978

William Van Beynum (center)

Shortly after William Van Beynum became Librarian, Russell purchased its first Docustat photocopier.  In 1967 the Board approved funds for a bookmobile, so that the South Farms and Westfield branches could be closed while the Library continued to provide services to the entire City.  The Bookmobile began operation in 1969, stocked with books from the recently-closed South Farms branch.

In 1972 the new Children’s Library was created in the former First Federal Savings and Loan Association of Meriden, next door to the Library. In 1975 Russell Library celebrated its 100th anniversary, and as part of the celebration the building was designated an historic landmark by the Greater Middletown Preservation Trust.

The staff was changing as well.  In 1971 the Board proposed to the staff a 4-day, 40-hour work week, which the staff rejected.  In 1976 non-administrative staff began discussing the creation of a bargaining unit, and in March of 1977 the Board voted to recognize the Russell Library Staff Association as the bargaining unit for Library employees. 

In 1978, after a period of ill-health, William Van Beynum retired, and Arlene Bielefield was named Director.

--End of Part III--

History of Russell Library, Part II

Part 1 of this history covered the period from the establishment of Russell Library in 1876 to the resignation of its second Director, Willis K. Stetson, in 1887.  Part II covers the Library from 1887 to 1926, under the leadership of its third and fourth Directors.

Laura F. Philbrook, 1887-1917

Laura Philbrook

Laura F. Philbrook was appointed Director in 1887 and led the Library through an extended period of expansion and growth.  Her tenure began inauspiciously; the Russell Library Company’s endowment income had never been adequate to support library operations.  Until her death in 1883 Frances Russell had regularly contributed funds to make up the shortfall.  

In 1895 the City of Middletown began providing financial support to the Library in the amount of $1,000 to help provide books for elementary school children.  Perhaps connected to this was the decision in 1896 to reduce from 14 to 10 the minimum age to use the Library.  Russell began to send rotating collections to the schools in 1911.  To serve Middletown’s many ethnic communities, books in Italian, Polish, and Swedish were added to the collection.  By the end of 1917, the collection had grown to 20,000 volumes.

South Farms branch

For the first 20 years of the Library’s existence, the Library staff consisted solely of the Director and the Custodian; in 1898 the first Library Assistant was hired. Two new branches were established--the South Farms branch in 1908 and the Westfield branch in 1911.  From 1908-1909 the Library underwent its first major renovation, and the grand lecture hall was converted into working space to service the branches.  The Library installed its first telephone in 1912.

During World War I, Russell Library did its bit for the war effort, helping in campaigns to support food aid, the Red Cross, United War Work and Liberty Bonds. The Library collected and donated 3,000 books to Camp Meade in Maryland, which opened in 1917 to train troops before deployment in Europe.  

In 1917 Miss Philbrook resigned, and Edna Wilder was appointed Director of Russell Library.

Edna H. Wilder, 1917-1926

Edna Wilder

Shortly before Edna Wilder became Director, the Connecticut Public Library Commission conducted a survey of Russell Library and recommended major changes, including a new classification system for adult and children’s books and the withdrawal of books that were out-of-date or in poor condition.

Miss Wilder implemented these changes and many more.  In 1917 a separate Children’s Department was established.  A new, streamlined checkout system was established and Library hours increased from 45 hours to 60 hours per week.  In 1918 a circulating framed print collection was begun, followed by a musical score collection in 1921.  

The City of Middletown had continued to provide some financial support since 1895, but in 1921 the ties between the Library and the City were strengthened with an amendment to the Charter that provided for City participation in the administration of the Library. 

In the summer of 1925 Wilder's health began to fail.  She suffered a nervous breakdown in December and was admitted to the Connecticut State Hospital.  Sadly, on March 8, 1926, Edna Wilder took her own life. 

Later that year, Nathaly E. Newton became Director of the Russell Library.

--End of Part II--

History of Russell Library, Part I

Photo by Jason Neely.

Russell Library is in transition.  Russell Library Director Arthur S. Meyers retires on February 19, and Matthew Poland steps into the role on February 22.  It is a time to look forward, but also to look back. With this post we begin a short history of Russell Library and its first ten Directors.

 

Introduction

Frances Russell established Russell Library in 1876 in memory of her husband Samuel, Middletown native and founder of Russell & Company, the largest and most important trading house with China in the last half of the nineteenth century. In 1834, the Episcopal Church of the Holy Trinity was built on the corner of Broad and Court Streets in the Roman Gothic style, but in the early 1870s the congregation moved to its present location on Main Street.  Mrs. Russell purchased and remodeled the Broad Street church building as a public library.  The Russell Library Company was incorporated by a special act of the Legislature in 1875, "as a public library and a depository for such pictures and other works of art as might from time to time be given to the company ..."  William Isaac Fletcher, Librarian of the Watkinson Library in Hartford,selected the books in the initial collection, mostly works of history, biography and travel.

 

George F. Winchester, 1876-1884

Russell Library opened on April 5, 1876 with a free public reading room, 3,300 books, and a hall that seated 400-500 people. It was open to everyone over the age of 14, and the hours were Monday through Saturday from 3-6pm and 7-9pm. The Library struggled financially in its early years, and Mrs. Russell regularly contributed money to its operations.  However, the financial constraints led in part to Winchester's resignation in 1884.

 

Willis K. Stetson, 1884-1887

Willis K. Stetson was a graduate of Wesleyan University, and became Russell Library Director just after receiving his master's degree in 1884.  Stetson's tenure as Director was short-lived--in 1887 he accepted a position at New Haven Public Library where he remained until 1927. But the collection grew to 8,000 books under his leadership, and in 1886 the first branch library opened at Staddle Hill.

--End of Part I-- 

Click here for Part II