Research On The Establishment And Influence Of The Agricultural Research Library Of The University Of Nanking

In the early twentieth century,China’s agricultural history research began to sprout.The Agricultural Research Library of the University of Nanking was an important agricultural history research center during this period.The Agricultural Research Library of University of Nanking can be traced back to the Agricultural Book Cooperation Department of the University of Nanking,which was established in 1920.Since its establishment,it has begun to conduct basic agricultural history research,including the compilation of ancient agricultural book indexes.This article is mainly based on the archives of University of Nanking in the archives of Yale University Theological Seminary Library and the archives of the university of Nanking in the Second Historical Archives of China,and attempts to restore the creation process,institutional changes,scientific research personnel,and main work of the Agricultural Research Library of the University of Nanking.After the Opium War,a large number of missionaries poured into China,desperately hoping to spread the gospel in China.Due to the poor results of direct missions,missionaries tried to provide indirect missions through the provision of educational services.As a result,a large number of ecclesiastical schools emerged.The University of Nanking was one of them and was originally created to cultivate Christian spirit.At the same time,with the continuous development of rural agricultural missionary work,in order to better cooperate with agricultural missionaries and cultivate specialized agricultural talents,church schools began to attach importance to agricultural education.In 1914,The University of Nanking officially added agricultural sciences,introduced the American higher agricultural education system,and launched a series of exchanges and cooperation with the United States Department of Agriculture.In 1918,the Department of Agriculture and Forestry of the University of Nanking and the United States Department of Agriculture launched cotton breeding cooperation.The Dean of the department,Reisner,had contact with the US Department of Agriculture official Swingle.Swingle was interested in ancient Chinese books and was helping the Library of Congress to purchase Chinese ancient agricultural books,and the library of the University of Nanking was in need of a professional talents in book management,so Swingle and Reisner had an intention to cooperate.From 1920 to 1921,the two parties conducted detailed consultations on the specific issues of cooperation through letters.Finally,Ms.Wead confirmed that she had come to Nanjing to serve as director of the Agricultural Book Cooperation Department for one year,and assisted the University Library to index and collect the ancient agricultural books at the same time.In 1923,the Department of Agricultural Book Cooperation was funded by American Famine Fund Committee and expanded to the Agricultural Research Library.In 1932,it was reorganized into the Agricultural History Research Team.Staff of the Agricultural Research Library has increased.Under the direction of Wan Guoding,the department continued to compile the index of ancient agricultural books,and carried out the indexing of agricultural papers.In 1925,Wan Guoding put forward a plan to compile Agricultural Encyclopedia Sinica,and collected a large amount of data for this purpose.The major publications of the Agricultural Research Library of the University of Nanking include:the index of Nan Fan Ts’ao Mu Chuang,Yu Hai and Shih Huo,Shou Shih T’ung K’ao,Si Ku Quan Shu,the Catalogue of Chinese Agricultural Book,Catalogue of Chinese Geographical Works in the university of Nanking Library,Agricultural Index to periodicals and bulletins in Chinese and in English principally published in China,Nongshu Kao,Fang Zhi Kao and so on.The agricultural history research in the University of Nanking has collected a wealth of agricultural historical data,cultivated agricultural history research talents represented by Wan Guoding,and carried out international academic exchange activities.The Agricultural Research Library of the University of Nanking is based on the Cooperation and communication with the United States,it has carried out basic agricultural history research work mainly on collecting and indexing ancient agricultural books,laid the academic foundation for the establishment and development of the Chinese Agricultural Cultural Heritage Research Laboratory,laid the main research direction for the study of Chinese agricultural history,and cultivated a group of leading figures in agricultural history research,which has a profound impact on the development of Chinese agricultural history.