Timeline of women in library science

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This is a timeline of women in library science throughout the world.

1796: Cecilia Cleve became the first female librarian in Sweden.Du Rietz, Anita, Kvinnors entreprenörskap: under 400 år, 1. uppl., Dialogos, Stockholm, 2013

1852: The first female clerk was hired for the Boston Public Library.{{cite journal |last1=Garrison |first1=Dee |date=1972–1973 |title=The Tender Technicians: The Feminization of Public Librarianship, 1876-1905 |journal=Journal of Social History |volume=6 |issue=2 |pages=131–159 |doi= 10.1353/jsh/6.2.131|jstor=3786606 }}

1858: The first female library clerk was appointed to the Smithsonian Institution in 1858, and was also the Smithsonian's first female employee.{{Cite web |last=Henson |first=Pamela M. |date=2014-03-27 |title=The Smithsonian’s First Woman Employee: Jane W. Turner, Librarian |url=https://siarchives.si.edu/blog/smithsonian%E2%80%99s-first-woman-employee-jane-w-turner-librarian |access-date=2023-12-19 |website=Smithsonian Institution Archives}}

1880: Mary Foy became the first woman head librarian of the Los Angeles Public Library.{{cite web|url=http://www.scgsgenealogy.com/LAHighSchool.htm |title=Los Angeles High School Graduates 1875 to 1885 |accessdate=2006-09-06 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20061031231719/http://www.scgsgenealogy.com/LAHighSchool.htm |archivedate=2006-10-31 }}

1890: Elizabeth Putnam Sohier and Anna Eliot Ticknor became the first women appointed to a United States state library agency—specifically, the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners.

1911: Theresa Elmendorf became the first female president of the American Library Association.Thomison, Dennis (1993). "Elmendorf, Theresa West". In Robert Wedgeworth (ed.). World Encyclopedia of Library and Information Services (3rd ed.). Chicago: ALA Editions. {{ISBN|0-8389-0609-5}}., p. 280, The death of her husband had forced Theresa Elmendorf to end her unpaid status, and for the next 20 years she held the position of vice-librarian at the Buffalo Public Library. Her new role also meant an increased participation in the American Library Association; in 1911–12 she served as its President, the first woman to hold that position.

1912: Lillian Helena Smith became the first trained children's librarian in Canada.{{cite web|url=http://famouscanadianwomen.com/famous%20firsts/Academics%20and%20Librarians.htm |title=Famous Canadian Women's Famous Firsts - Academics and Librarians |publisher=Famouscanadianwomen.com |date= |accessdate=2016-08-10}}

1916: Margaret Duncan became one of the first librarians, and later director, at the Clearwater Public Library in Clearwater, Florida. During World War I, Duncan became the Pinellas County Director for the American Library Association in the United War Campaign."The Florida Library History Project. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED422005. 8 August 1998.

1921: Alice Dugged Cary served as the first nonprofessional librarian and branch head of the Auburn Branch of the Carnegie Library, the first branch to serve Atlanta's African American citizens under segregation.{{cite journal |last1= Nosakhere|first1= Akilah S.|last2= Robinson|first2= Sharon E.|date= July 15, 1998|title= Library Service for African Americans in Georgia: A Legacy of Learning and Leadership in Atlanta|url= http://www.libsci.sc.edu/histories/georgia/statehistory/Service_For_African_Americans.pdf|journal= Georgia Library Quarterly|volume= 35|issue= 2|pages= 9–12|doi= |access-date= March 16, 2022}}

1921: Pura Belpré became the first Puerto Rican librarian to be hired by the New York Public Library System.{{Cite web|last=Rivas|first=Librarian Vianela|date=2016|title=How NYC's First Puerto Rican Librarian Brought Spanish To The Shelves|url=https://www.npr.org/2016/09/08/492957864/how-nycs-first-puerto-rican-librarian-brought-spanish-to-the-shelves|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2020-10-24|website=NPR.org|language=en}}

1923: Virginia Proctor Powell Florence became the first black woman in the United States to earn a degree in library science.175 Years of Black Pitt People and Notable Milestones. (2004). Blue Black and Gold 2004: Chancellor Mark A. Norenberg Reports on the Pitt African American Experience, 44. Retrieved on 2009-05-22. She earned the degree (Bachelor of Library Science) from what is now part of the University of Pittsburgh.{{cite web |url=http://www.nwhm.org/online-exhibits/africanamerican/25.html |title=Claiming Their Citizenship: African American Women From 1624–2009 |publisher=Nwhm.org |accessdate=2012-08-20 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120227155748/http://www.nwhm.org/online-exhibits/africanamerican/25.html |archivedate=2012-02-27 }}{{cite web|author=Celeste Kimbrough |url=http://www.news.pitt.edu/news/university-pittsburgh-honor-first-african-american-librarian-plaque-dedication-ceremony-april-2 |title=University of Pittsburgh to Honor First African American Librarian In Plaque Dedication Ceremony April 2 | University of Pittsburgh News |publisher=News.pitt.edu |date=2004-03-18 |accessdate=2012-08-20}}{{cite web|url=http://www.oberlin.edu/library/friends/perspectives/32.pdf |title=05-3180-Oberlin-Issue No.32 |date= |accessdate=2016-08-10}}

1940: Eliza Atkins Gleason became the first black American to earn a doctorate in library science, which she did at the University of Chicago.{{Cite web|last=Smith|first=Katisha|date=2020-05-08|title=13 Pioneering Black American Librarians You Oughta Know|url=https://bookriot.com/pioneering-black-american-librarians/|access-date=2020-10-24|website=BOOK RIOT|language=en-US}}

1946: Mary Ellinor Lucy Archer became the first Chief Librarian of the CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation) in Australia.

1947: Freda Farrell Waldon became the first president of the Canadian Library Association, and thus, as she was female, its first female president.{{cite web|url=http://www.hpl.ca/waldon-freda-farrell |title=Waldon, Freda Farrell | HPL |publisher=Hpl.ca |date= |accessdate=2016-08-10}}{{cite web|url=http://cla.ca/cla-at-work/ |title=CLA AT WORK |publisher=cla.ca |date= |accessdate=2016-08-10}}

1949: Christine Wigfall Morris became the first African American to work as a librarian in Clearwater, Florida. She later became the director of the "Negro Library", which opened in 1950.“NEWSMAKER: CHRISTINE WIGFALL MORRIS.” American Libraries, vol. 42, no. 3/4, 2011, pp. 18–18. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/23025353. Accessed 26 June 2024.

1963: Shanti Mishra became the first Nepali female librarian. She was appointed as the chief librarian in Tribhuvan University Central Library, after returning from the United States with a Master of Arts in library science. She was the first female librarian of Tribhuvan University Central Library.{{Cite web |date=2020-09-08 |title=Tribhuvan University Central Library and Shanti Mishra |url=https://www.peoplesreview.com.np/2020/09/08/tribhuvan-university-central-library-and-shanti-mishra/ |access-date=2022-03-29 |website=People's Review |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=एक 'पुस्तकालय'को अवसान |url=https://www.himalkhabar.com/news/12705 |access-date=2022-03-29 |website=Himal Khabar |language=ne}}

1963: Marianne Scott was the first president of the Canadian Association of Law Libraries, which became a formal association on July 5, 1963.{{cite web|last=Canadian Association of Law Libraries|title=Administrative History of the Canadian Association of Law Libraries|url=http://umanitoba.ca/libraries/units/archives/collections/complete_holdings/ead/html/canadian_associaton_of-law_libraries.shtml|publisher=University of Manitoba|accessdate=31 October 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171104005232/http://umanitoba.ca/libraries/units/archives/collections/complete_holdings/ead/html/canadian_associaton_of-law_libraries.shtml|archive-date=4 November 2017|url-status=dead}}

1970: Clara Stanton Jones became the first woman (and the first African American) to serve as director of a major library system in America, as director of the Detroit Public Library."Clara Stanton Jones interviewed by Marva DeLoach," in Women of Color in Librarianship, pp.29- 57. ed. by Kathleen McCook, Chicago: American Library Association Editions, 1998.{{Cite web|url=https://diversity.umich.edu/news-features/news/trailblazing-librarian-u-m-alumna-clara-stanton-jones-elected-to-michigan-womens-hall-of-fame/|title=Trailblazing librarian, U-M alumna Clara Stanton Jones elected to Michigan Women's Hall of Fame |publisher=Diversity, Equity & Inclusion: University of Michigan |author= |date=n.d. |access-date=January 20, 2025}}

1970: The American Library Association's Social Responsibilities Round Table Feminist Task Force (FTF) was founded in 1970 by women who wished to address sexism in libraries and librarianship.{{cite web|url=http://libr.org/ftf/ |title=The Feminist Task Force }}

1971: Effie Lee Morris became the first woman and black person to serve as president of the Public Library Association.

1972: Zoia Horn, born in Ukraine, became the first United States librarian to be jailed for refusing to share information as a matter of conscience (and, as she was female, the first female United States librarian to do so.){{cite web|last=Egelko |first=Bob |url=http://www.sfgate.com/nation/article/Zoia-Horn-1st-U-S-librarian-jailed-over-alleged-5624023.php |title=Zoia Horn, librarian jailed for not testifying against protesters |publisher=SFGate |date=2014-07-15 |accessdate=2016-08-04}}

1973: Page Ackerman became University Librarian for the University of California, Los Angeles, and thus became the United States' first female librarian of a system as large and complex as UCLA's.{{cite web |url=http://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/Obituary-Page-Ackerman-Former-6884 |title=Obituary: Page Ackerman, Former UCLA University Librarian |accessdate=2006-12-13 |author=Setzer, Dawn |date=2006-03-09 |work=UCLA News }}

1976: Mary Ronnie became the first female national librarian in the world, due to becoming New Zealand's first female National Librarian.{{Cite web |url=https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/41646/mary-ronnie-national-librarian-1978 |title=Mary Ronnie, National Librarian, 1978 |last=Millen |first=Julia |date=22 October 2014 |website=Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand |access-date=28 June 2019}}

1976: The Council of the American Library Association passed a "Resolution on Racism and Sexism Awareness" during the ALA's Centennial Conference in Chicago, July 18–24, 1976.{{Cite web|url=https://alair.ala.org/bitstream/handle/11213/11821/1201011a_Box01_ResolutiononRacismandSexismAwareness_1976.pdf?sequence=1|title=American Library Association Institutional Repository, News Release: American Library Association, Public Information Office, American Library Association, 50 East Huron Street, Chicago, Illinois 60611, 12 944-6780, From: Peggy Barber, Director, Public Infonnation Office, FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, Resolution on. Racism and Sexism Awareness}}

1976: The Committee on the Status of Women in Librarianship (COSWL) of the American Library Association{{cite web|url=http://www.ala.org/offices/hrdr/abouthrdr/hrdrliaisoncomm/statusofwomen/committeestatus |title=American Library Association, Committee on the Status of Women in Librarianship |date=26 July 2006 }} was founded in 1976.Kathleen M. Heim and Katharine Phenix, On Account of Sex: An Annotated Bibliography on the History of Women in Librarianship, 1977–1981 (Chicago: ALA, 1984) Katharine Phenix and Kathleen M. Heim (1982–1986) (Chicago: ALA, 1989); later years by Lori A Goetsch; Sarah Watstein (1987–1992) (Metuchen: Scarecrow Press, 1993) Betsy Kruger; Catherine A Larson; Allison A Cowgill (1993–1997) Metuchen: Scarecrow Press, 2000).

1978: Margaret Shaw was appointed as the first Chief Librarian of the National Gallery of Australia Research Library.{{Cite journal |last=Currie |first=Gillian |date=Autumn 2005 |title=What takes up a third of a kilometre of shelving, and is stored in 3,000 archive boxes? |journal=artonview |volume= |issue=41 |pages=48 |issn=1323-4552}}

1985: Susan Luévano-Molina became the first female president of REFORMA.{{cite book|author=REFORMA (Association). National Conference|title=The Power of Language: Selected Papers from the Second REFORMA National Conference|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8AsjZnhRnMUC&pg=PA45|year=2001|publisher=Libraries Unlimited|isbn=978-1-56308-945-9|pages=44, 45–}}

1993: Jennifer Tanfield became the first female Librarian of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom.{{cite web|author=((Department of the Official Report (Hansard), House of Commons, Westminster))|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm199899/cmhansrd/vo990721/debtext/90721-21.htm |title=House of Commons Hansard Debates for 21 Jul 1999 (pt 21) |publisher=Publications.parliament.uk |date= |accessdate=2016-08-12}}

1999: Elisabeth Niggemann became the first female director general of the German National Library.{{cite web|url=http://www.dnb.de/EN/Wir/Geschichte/geschichte_node.html|title=History|publisher=Deutsche National Bibliothek|accessdate=14 August 2016 |language=}}

2000: Lynne Brindley was appointed as the first female chief executive of the British Library.{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2000/feb/09/3|title=Woman to head British Library|newspaper=The Guardian|date=9 February 2000|accessdate=14 August 2016 }}

2002: Inez Lynn was appointed as the first female librarian in the London Library's history.{{cite web|author=yesterday |url=http://www.londonlibrary.co.uk/about-us/historyofthelondonlibrary |title=History of The London Library |publisher=Londonlibrary.co.uk |date= |accessdate=2016-08-10}}

2004: Anjana Chattopadhyay became the first Director of the National Medical Library in India.

2009: Anne Jarvis became the first female librarian in Cambridge University's 650-year history.{{Cite news|last=Healy|first=Alison|date=2009|title=Cambridge library's first female librarian|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/cambridge-library-s-first-female-librarian-1.1237072|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2020-10-24|newspaper=The Irish Times|language=en}}

2012: Sonia L'Heureux became the first female Parliamentary Librarian of Canada."Meet Canada’s first female Parliamentary librarian: Sonia L’Heureux". The Hill Times, July 9, 2012.

2016: Laurence Engel became the first female head of the French National Library.{{cite news|url=http://www.lefigaro.fr/culture/2016/04/06/03004-20160406ARTFIG00175-laurence-engel-nommee-a-la-tete-de-la-bnf.php|title=Laurence Engel nommée à la tête de la BnF|newspaper=Le Figaro|date=6 April 2016|accessdate= 14 August 2016|language=French}}

2016: Carla Hayden became the first female Librarian of Congress.{{cite web|url=https://www.vox.com/2016/9/14/12916522/carla-hayden-librarian-of-congress |title=Carla Hayden is officially sworn in as the first woman and African-American librarian of Congress |publisher=Vox |date=2016|accessdate=2016-09-14}}

2019: Leslie Weir became the first female Librarian and Archivist of Canada.{{cite web|url=https://librarianship.ca/news/leslie-weir-lac/ |title=Leslie Weir appointed as Librarian and Archivist of Canada |publisher=Librarianship.ca |date=2019|accessdate=2021-02-18}}