Library History Today Blog

In the early stage of the public library movement in Ontario after the Free Libraries Act came into force in 1882, there were no standalone public library buildings. The concept of the Canadian public library as a public building—a building type in its own right—was in its infancy. Of course, architects and librarians could refer to purpose-built American or British buildings, but these normally were in metropolitan cities supported by sufficient private philanthropy and ongoing municipal tax support. The four 'large' populated Ontario cities in the census of 1891 were Toronto (181,220), Hamilton (48,980). Ottawa (44,154). and London (31,977). Of these smaller cities, three would undertake to establish a separate building before 1895. These communities would generally follow Anglo-American ideas concerning library purpose, public access, book storage, and user needs (such as separate reading rooms) within a single structure. The proper arrangement of space for the needs and p...

Henry Pearson Gundy was a prominent scholar-librarian who made important contributions to Canadian literature, printing, and publishing as well as library services. After commencing his career in 1931 at the new campus of McMaster University in Hamilton, Gundy taught for a short time at the University of Chicago before becoming an English professor and eventually head of the English Department at Mount Allison University in New Brunswick. Then, towards the end of WW II, Gundy's career track changed after he completed a summer course in library studies at Columbia University, a prestigious library school many Canadians attended to further their careers. In 1947, he was appointed chief librarian of Queen's University, succeeding the retiring incumbent, E. C. Kyte. Under his leadership for almost two decades the Queen's library expanded its services, staffing, and collections, notably the Lorne Pierce collection of Canadiana. By the time he relinquished his office, in 1966, th...

The Town of York was founded in 1793 by Lieutenant-Governor John Graves Simcoe as the capital of Upper Canada. York replaced Newark (Niagara-on-the-Lake), the capital from 1791-93. The town was an established frontier trading site with indigenous people and possessed a good harbour for transport and farmland that attracted settlers. About 1,000 people—settlers, traders, officials, and soldiers—populated the settlement in 1800. With increasing growth over the next quarter century, York became the centre of Ontario government, business, and cultural life. It was renamed Toronto in 1830 in recognition of its indigenous roots and incorporated as a small city in 1834 with a population of about 9,000. Books and the value of literacy in a colonial setting were important elements in cultural life that were fostered by the Upper Canadian elite—Loyalists, government and church officials, wealthy merchants and investors, and emerging career professionals such as lawyers and doctors. Jointly, th...

Canada was a pioneer in the development of radio. As early as May 1920, the Montreal station XWA (later CFCF) went on the air delivering a short concert broadcast to an audience as far away as Ottawa. Listeners initially utilized crystal sets, simple radio receivers. Eventually, these devices were superseded by many types of vacuum tube receivers that became standard for consumers to purchase as less expensive tabletop models by the 1930s. Even so, Canadian audiences were limited in scope to major cities before the electrification of rural areas.For most of the 1920s, there were few Canadian stations and radio enthusiasts along the southern border, especially in Ontario, who often listened to American stations, such as KDKA in Pittsburgh, which began operating at the end of 1920. This station offered library storytelling for children, such as popular short fairy tales and animal stories. The Golden Age of Radio and Libraries In 2008, at the Ontario Library Association Super Conferen...