Scholarly Religious Libraries in North America : A Statistical Examination / Edition 1

by John F. Harvey, Jo Ann Mourides

Overview

Few scholars of library science, theology, or popular culture know that 27% of all the libraries in the U.S. and Canada have some form of religious affiliation. John Harvey, a noted international library consultant and former dean of the library school at Drexel, has spent years compiling an exhaustive analysis of these collections, an analysis that will provide the framework for further study of the religious library world as it exists in these two countries. Scholarly Religious Libraries contains comparative data for colleges, universities, seminaries, convents and monasteries, religious archives, and the libraries located in the headquarters of hundreds of denominations on the continent. This extraordinary range of statistics provides the tools to analyze these libraries and their collections relative to other types of libraries in the U.S. and Canada. The author compares geographic and demographic settings, and, in separate sections, presents statistics on library personnel, management, material, expenditures, and use. Each section also includes figures from the prior ten years for longitudinal analysis.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780810833418
Publisher:	The Scarecrow Press, Inc.
Publication date:	11/13/1998
Pages:	672
Product dimensions:	5.94(w) x 8.70(h) x 1.54(d)

About the Author

John F. Harvey (Ph.D., University of Chicago) has had several careers in his fifty years of library and information service — academic library director, library school dean and professor, international consultant, writer and editor. He is a frequent book reviewer and a member of seven religious library associations. He has published ten books and contributed to many professional papers and book reviews.

Editorial Reviews

The author states that these pioneering studies are designed to analyze the fundamental characteristics of prominent groups of North American.

Lisca

The book is interesting in that it provides information that hitherto would not be available, at least not in this form, and...it is very readable.

Bulletin Of ABTAPL

...an astounding amount of information for anyone interested in theological or religious libraries or the field of libraries itself. These volumes are highly recommended. Future generations of researchers will depend on these titles for a long time to come.

Catholic Library World

The Pitt Theological Library is one of the handful of religious libraries that benefit from being part of a larger institution which sets professional standards and quite possibly, provides the automated system which helps them to operate efficiently.

Journal Of Documentation

The book is interesting in that it provides information that hitherto would not be available, at least not in this form, and...it is very readable.

Bulletin of ABTAPL

Drawing on data from the 1978 and 1988 annual surveys by the American Library Directory, presents comparative profiles of colleges, universities, seminaries, convents and monasteries, religious archives, and libraries located in the headquarters of hundreds of Christian and Jewish denominations in the US and Canada. Includes basic institutional and library information, geographic and demographic factors, library type, founding date personnel, finances, collections and extended collections, and service. A companion treats popular religious libraries. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

Booknews