Records of Milner Library, 1890-Present

The Records of Milner Library is arranged into ten series by material type. Series I contains the papers of Milner Library's Directors and Deans (links to separate finding aids. Series II contains the administrative information including mission statements, policies and procedures, and correspondence. Series III holds information on the Milner faculty and staff. Series IV contains the meeting minutes, correspondence, and information on the various committees and councils. Series V includes the financial information for the library operations and events. Series VI contains holds facility information including remodeling and construction. Series VII contains information on the various departments inside Milner Library. Series VIII includes meeting minutes and event information on the Friends of Milner Library. Series IX contains Marketing and Publicity materials. Series X holds the various ephemera and memorabilia from Milner Library.

The Records of Milner Library holds administrative documents, photographs, ephemera, and memorabilia on the development and operations of the library of Illinois State University. The records include accession lists, operational documents, meeting minutes of various departments, committees and working groups, staff and faculty manuals, library financial information, facilities information, Friends of Milner Library, and collections of library-themed memorabilia and ephemera.

Milner Library (1890-)

Since its start in 1857, Illinois State Normal University has had some form of the library. At the time, books were an expensive purchase for both professors and students. Literary societies such as the Philadelphian and Wrightonian societies purchased books for use by society sponsors and members. These growing collections moved to different locations on campus, making it hard to keep accurate inventories and use records. In 1889, in an agreement with then-president Dr. Edwin C. Hewett, the literary societies combined their scattered book collections into one collection in one location. In return, Dr. Hewett agreed to hire a librarian to manage and develop the collection. One year later, Dr. Hewett hired Angeline Vernon Milner, the university's first librarian. Under Milner's leadership, the collection was both cataloged and expanded to include informational sources for subjects being taught on campus. Milner first managed the collection in Old Main, its first home, and later oversaw the collection's move to its second home, North Hall. After Milner's retirement in 1927, Eleanor Weir Welch was hired as the new University Librarian. Welch's tenure modernized both the physical collection and the librarian profession. Welch instituted new acquisition and cataloging procedures for the collection and pushed for library service courses to be taught on campus by library staff. Welch was also integral to the development and construction of a new library building (now Williams Hall), the library's first building on campus specifically built for the library collection. In 1940, that building was completed and dedicated as Milner Library in honor of Ange Milner. The collection remained in that building until it was moved to a new building in 1976. Author: the Class of Spring 2013 HIS390, Archives and Manuscripts; April Karlene Anderson. The collection was reorganized in the Spring of 2018 by Julie Neville. Author: the Class of Spring 2013 HIS390, Archives and Manuscripts; April Karlene Anderson

Academic libraries--Illinois.
Illinois State Normal University.
Illinois State Normal University. Milner Library
Illinois State University
Illinois State University. Milner Library
Milner Library

Janet Jonson Papers