THE DEVELOPMENT OF REFERENCE SERVICES IN THE AMERICAN LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGE, 1876-1976

Reference services in American liberal arts college libraries are rooted in concerns that developed in the last quarter of the 19th century for the promotion of efficient study techniques, discrimination in reading material, and the production of scholarly writing. "Reference work" originally meant "the intelligent use of the library's resources for specific purposes"; it was something the user did, not the librarian. Prior to the second quarter of the 20th century, selective liberal arts colleges largely ignored reference servces as a regular feature of their mission. A few pioneering librarians, notably William I. Fletcher of Amherst, Charles Henry Burr of Williams, George Little of Bowdoin, and William N. C. Carlton of Trinity and Williams, had the vision to experiment, and attempted to establish reference services on a permanent basis. But the fulfillment of this goal had to wait for changes in college teaching methods brought about by the infusion of the spirit of the "new learning" in American higher education. The development of independent study programs and honors programs was especially important. Other positive influences included the development of sophisticated tools of bibliographic control, and the effect of accrediting agencies in encouraging colleges to improve the quality and size of their library collections and staffs. Against these were negative influences such as faculty reliance on the reserved book system, which obviated the need to learn how to use the rest of the library, or faculty refusal to allow librarians a direct role in teaching; and college personnel practices which often left the library seriously understaffed, or placed unqualified persons in control of the library, or burdened the library staff with tasks unrelated to library service. Regular provision of reference services did not become a generally accepted feature of selective liberal arts colleges until after World War II.;This study involved a comprehensive survey of published material in the literatures of librarianship and of higher education, the examination of unpublished reports and papers from the libraries and archieves of seven liberal arts colleges, and personal interviews with several librarians from those colleges whose experiences went back to 1918.