<emph render="italic">Experiencing Albany: Perspectives on a Grand City's Past</emph>

]> UA-580.20.01 FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARIES RECORDS, (UA-580.20.01), 1981-2006 Katherine Demetri M. E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives

1400 Washington Avenue / Albany, New York 12222

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Descriptive Summary Friends of the Libraries Records 1981-2006 3.3 cubic ft. M. E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives, University at Albany, SUNY The Friends of the Libraries Records contain the day-to-day activities of this University at Albany organization comprised of faculty, staff, alumni, and community members. The collection includes agendas, minutes, correspondence, scrapbooks, and community outreach materials. The materials in the collection are in English. The materials are located onsite in the department. Access

Access to this record group is unrestricted.

The researcher assumes full responsibility for conforming with the laws of copyright. Whenever possible, the M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives will provide information about copyright owners and other restrictions, but the legal determination ultimately rests with the researcher. Requests for permission to publish material from this collection should be discussed with the Head of Special Collections and Archives.

Acquisition Information

Anne Roberts, University Library Liason to the Friends of the Library, initially donated the scrapbooks in 1989. Former President Ben-Ami Lipetz donated the majority of remaining materials in 2006.

Organizational History

In 1981, Anne Roberts, Assistant Director of Libraries at the University at Albany, brought together a group of faculty and staff interested in supporting the libraries and this group formally became the Friends of the Libraries the following year. The group welcomed alumni, community residents, current and retired faculty members, and anyone interested in the future of the University Libraries. The organization sponsored gifts and donations to the University Libraries. As part of its efforts, the Friends of the Libraries preserved Dewey Library's stained glass windows and murals in the downtown campus buildings. The Friends of the Libraries created the Alice Hastings Murphy Scholarship to provide for student library employees and full-time library staff members who want to become librarians and named it for the former Director of Libraries from 1956 to 1970. The Friends of the Libraries' annual book sale every fall funded student scholarships and awards.

The Friends of the Libraries also promoted community outreach. It held open talks called “Wednesday Wanderings” where professors and local, prominent figures spoke about Albany’s history, their own research, and other interesting topics. The organization also went on historic outings in the Capital District, Historic Hudson Valley and beyond, including Olana, Hyde Park, Mohonk Mountain House, Lake George, and the Glimmerglass Opera.

The Friends of the Libraries remained active until 2006. Presidents included: Alice Hastings Murphy (1982-1985, 1992-1999), Ruth Abele (1985-1986), Ben-Ami Lipetz (1986-1988, 2003-2006), Kenneth Doran (1988-1992), and Charles Ciaccio (1999-2003). The Library Liasons included Anne Roberts (1981-1986, 1988), Bonita Bryant (1986-1990), Dorothy Christiansen (1989-2002), Roberta Armstrong (2002-2006), and Geoff Williams (2006).

Scope and Content Information

This collection documents the administrative records and community outreach efforts of the Friends of the Libraries. It has the organization's monthly meeting agendas and minutes as well as fliers for monthly talks, annual book sales, and materials about community outings. There are VHS tapes with recordings of talks held in conjunction with the University's celebration of its sesquicentennial.

The collection also contains two large scrapbooks that President Anne Roberts created. The scrapbooks document the Friends of the Libraries’ outreach events. These include the annual book sale as well as academic talks with prominent professors of the University, such as the History Department’s Sung Bok Kim and the Atmospheric Science Department’s Bernard Vonnegut. The scrapbooks also contain information on Friends of the Libraries outings, with photos of Olana and Sagamor as well as fliers and RSVP forms. The scrapbooks also include information about donations and library support.

Archivists transfered a monograph <emph render="italic">Experiencing Albany: Perspectives on a Grand City's Past</emph>, edited by Anne Roberts and Judith VanDyk, to the book division of Special Collections. The catalogue record for the monograph is included in Minerva, the University Library Catalog.

Arrangement of the Collection

The collection is organized into the following series:

Series 1 - Administrative Records, 1981-2006 Series 2 - Community Outreach, 1982-2003

Series 1 and 2 are arranged alphabetically.

Subject and Genre Headings State University of New York at Albany. Friends of the Libraries State University of New York at Albany. University Libraries State University of New York at Albany Library fund raising--United States Library outreach programs--United States Friends of the library--United States Albany (N.Y.) Agendas (administrative records) Photographs Correspondence Files by subject Minutes Scrapbooks Budgets Fliers (printed material) Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Identification of specific item, series, box, folder, Friends of the Libraries Records, 1981-2006. M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University at Albany, State University of New York.

Container List Series 1: Administrative Records 1.72 cubic ft. 1981-2006, Undated

Arranged alphabetically.

This series contains agendas and minutes of the organization from 1981 to 2006. The organization for agendas and minutes is different from 2003 to 2006 because the material came to archives in its original order. In these files, there is supplemental material along with administrative records. There are also multiple agendas for some months because President Ben-Ami Lipetz took notes on his agenda copies (any of these will make note of it in the upper right hand corner).

1 1 Agendas and Minutes 1981 1 2 Agendas and Minutes 1982 1 3 Agendas and Minutes 1983 1 4 Agendas and Minutes 1984 1 5 Agendas and Minutes 1985 1 6 Agendas and Minutes 1986 1 7 Agendas and Minutes 1987 1 8 Agendas and Minutes 1988 1 9 Agendas and Minutes 1989 1 10 Agendas and Minutes 1990 1 11 Agendas and Minutes 1991 1 12 Agendas and Minutes 1992 1 13 Agendas and Minutes 1993 1 14 Agendas and Minutes 1994 1 15 Agendas and Minutes 1995 1 16 Agendas and Minutes 1996 1 17 Agendas and Minutes 1997 1 18 Agendas and Minutes 1998 1 19 Agendas and Minutes 1999 1 20 Agendas and Minutes 2000 1 21 Agendas and Minutes 2001 1 22 Agendas and Minutes 2002 1 23-24 Agendas, Minutes and Supplemental Materials 2003-2006 1 25 Alice Murphy Scholarship 1994 1998 2000 2001 1 26 Awards and Donations 1982-2001 1 27 Board Members 1986-2006 1 28 Book Bags 1989-2000 1 29 Book Marks-PR/Productions 1993-1996 1 30 "25 and Going Strong"-Booklet 2006 1 31 Budgets and Expenditures 1983-2002 1 32 Bylaws 1983 1987 1988 1992 1 33 Calendars 1990-2002 1 34 Campaign for the University Library 1998 1 35 Committee/Research Documents 1986 1 36 Correspondence 1981-2002 1 37 Grants, Supporting Programs 1983-1998 1 38 History 1969 1977 1980-1983 Undated 1 39 Mailing Lists 1987-2001 1 40 Member card 1985 1988-1989 1993-1998 1 New Hampshire Primary Talk, Kathleen Kendall February 22, 1996 1 41 Newsletter 1982 1 42 Notes from ACRL Session April 21, 1989 1 43 Potential Recruits 1998 1 44 Scrapbooks 1992 1 45 Sesquicentennial Historical Essay Contest-"The Residence Halls and their Impact on Student Life"-Mary Ellen Nankes 1993 1 46 Sesquicentennial Historical Essay Contest-"A Monoloth from Humble Origins"-Matthew Fredrick 1993 1 47 Sesquicentennial Historical Essay Contest-"The James Allen JR. Collegiate Center: An Experiment in Undergraduate Education"-Thomas Pullyblank 1993 1 48 Sesquicentennial Historical Essay Award 1991-1994 1 Sesquicentennial Program 1 February 24, 1994 Duplicate tape exists. Event also filmed from multiple camera angles. Additional video tapes depict this.

Program is "History of the University at Albany," led by Professor Kendall Birr, Faculty, Emeritus, Department of History.

2 Sesquicentennial Program 2 March 17, 1994 Duplicate tape exists. Event also filmed from multiple camera angles. Additional video tapes depict this.

Program is "New York State College for Teachers: The 1940s and and 1950s," led by Dr. Theodore Fossieck, Jacquelyn Mann Gavryck, Professor M.E. Grenander, Dr. Oscar E. Lanford, Professor Wallace Taylor, and Louise Hesnney Waterman.

3 Sesquicentennial Program 3 April 28, 1994 Duplicate tape exists. Event also filmed from multiple camera angles. Additional video tapes depict this.

Program is "State University of New York at Albany: Years of Growth and Change, 1960s" led by Professor Arthur Collins, Professor Randolph Gardner, Stuart Horn, Professor Mauritz Johnson, Dr. Elmer Mathews, Alice Hastings Murphy, and Judy A. Mysliborski.

4 Sesquicentennial Program 4 September 22, 1994 Duplicate tape exists. Event also filmed from multiple camera angles. Additional video tapes depict this.

Program is "Design and Construction of the Uptown Campus," led by Professor Raymond Bromley, Professor Edward Crowley, Professor Thomas H. Littlefield, Robert Ruckterstuhl, and Elwin Stevens.

5 Sesquicentennial Program 5 October 15, 1994 Duplicate tape exists. Event also filmed from multiple camera angles. Additional video tapes depict this.

Program is "The University at Albany: Changing for the 1970s and 1980s," led by Professor Mark Berger, Frederick K. Brewington, Gloria DeSole, Dr. David W. Martin, Professor Joan Schulz, and Victoria Zeldin.

6 Sesquicentennial Program 6 November 17, 1994 Duplicate tape exists. Event also filmed from multiple camera angles. Additional video tapes depict this.

Program is "Kate Stoneman, normal School Alumna and First Woman Lawyer in New York State," led by Geoffrey Williams, University Arvhivist and Campus Records Officer.

7 Sesquicentennial Programs, 1-3 February-April 1994 Duplicate tape exists. Events also filmed from multiple camera angles. Additional video tapes depict this. 8 Sesquicentennial Programs, 4-6 September-November 1994 Duplicate tape exists. Events also filmed from multiple camera angles. Additional video tapes depict this. 1 49 Source Guide 1994 1995 1 50 "Spinning Straw into Gold: A Look at Cuesta College's Friends of the Library" September 1999 1 51 Spring-Fall Letters 1989-2001 1 52 Student Achievement Award 1992-2001 1 53 Suggested Distribution List Undated 1 54 University at Albany Perspectives Undated Series 2: Community Outreach 1.58 ft. 1982-2003, Undated

Arranged alphabetically.

This series has annual book sale promotions, brochures, outing fliers, outing photos, and left over exhibit pieces on the Friends of the Libraries. This series also has information on monthly talks that the Friends sponsored. These are called Community Conversations or Wednesday Wanderings. Speakers of these talks included prominent professors and members of the community.

2 1 Booksale 1983-2002 2 2 Brochures 1989-1990 1999 2 3-4 Comment and Interest Summary Cards 1982 2 5-7 Community Conversations 1982-1994 2 8 Directions and Pamphlets Undated 2 9 Exhibit 1990 1993 1998 3 1 Exhibit 1994 3 2 Exhibit Undated 3 3 Glimmerglass Opera Outings 1999-2003 3 4 Library Hours 1983 3 5 Interactive Media Center-Information Sheet and Orientation September 1994 3 6 Outing Brochures Undated 3 7 Outings 1984-2002 1981-2006 3 8 Photographs of Outings and Lectures Undated 3 9 Photographs of Outings-Taken by Jacqueline A. Gavryck-Includes Letter Undated 3 10 Plaque 1984 1 Proclamation, Albany, New York-Mayor Jennings May 12, 2006 1 Scrapbook 1 1982-1983 2 Scrapbook 2 1984-1986 3 11 Library Tour 1997 3 12 University at Albany Libraries-Updates and Progress 1994 1996-1998 2001 3 13 Volunteers 1982