Street lined with fire engines during Los Angeles Central Library fire It was the largest library fire in the history of the United States. 400,000 books were destroyed and over 700,000 were damaged by water or smoke. It took firefighters over seven hours to put out the fire with little flare ups continuing for several days. The epic blaze was the basis of Susan Orlean’s 2018 bestselling and New York Times Notable Book of the year, The Library Book. Here are some images of the fire gleaned from the digital collections of the UCLA library. They are all from the...
In the Stacks: Los Angeles Public Library
For this installment of In the Stacks we visit the vast online archive of the Los Angeles Public Library. Enjoy!A couple of Bookmobiles: Decorated Los Angeles Public Library Bookmobile, 1974. Photo by Joe FriezerBookmobile at Stonehurst School, 1957. Photo by Milton Martinez A few for the political crowd: Books for freedom, 1964. Photo by George Brich American Nazi party pickets bookshop, 1962Books for a Strong America" a right leaning display in a Northridge Hughes Market. 1962Some general book treats: Caption for this one: "Wrapped in Thought. Four-year-old Philip Ross finds "ABC Easter Bunny" more interesting than his guns and spurs, 1960 Mark Twain Branch book march and rally, 1971 Books and...
Urgent Dispatch to Oz: Emerald City Library Needs Cash
The Seattle Public Library, one of the crown jewels of "The Emerald City" will be closing its doors, both real and virtual, for an entire week beginning Monday, August 31. The fact that one of the most book-friendly cities in the United States cannot keep its libraries open due to lack of funding is distressing in the extreme, and does not bode well for other municipalities.Nationwide, public libraries are being used more than ever according to the American Library Association. The trend is evident at the San Francisco Public Library which reports increases of 30% in customers, and 15% in...