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 1875 1925 
 
 AUGUST TENTH 
 
 FTIETH 
 
 FREE PUBLIC LIBRARY 
 
 or 
 
 DECATUR ILLINOIS 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 
 in 2011 with funding from 
 
 University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/fiftiethanniversOOdeca 
 
BY A FRIEND 
 
 
MRS. ALICE GLORE EVANS 
 
 FOR FIFTY VKAIIS WITH THK PUBLIC LIBRARY AS ASSISTANT 
 AND LIBRARIAN 
 
"The Leader of the Deed Was 
 a Woman" 
 
 In an age that demands standardization , 
 the romance of things often is in their be- 
 ginnings. 
 
 Decatur still preserves the story of hoiv 
 its honored Mrs. Jane M. Johns appeared on 
 a rainy night at the home of Mayor Meri- 
 weather, begging that he accompany her at 
 once in her carriage to the council chamber. 
 
 The Mayor arrived in time to break a tie 
 in the board of aldermen. His vote made 
 possible the Free Public Library. The date 
 was August 3, 1875. On August 10 the Li- 
 brary was organized. 
 

 V9 
 
 Progenitors 
 
 W70MEN of Decatur had demonstrated their leadership 
 ™ before this. In 1867 a little group, inspired by the same 
 Mrs. Johns, had organized the Ladies' Library association, 
 supported out of membership dues, lecture courses, and 
 oyster suppers. It brought to Decatur for the first time 
 Mark Twain, Wendell Phillips, John G. Saxe, Blind Tom and 
 Susan B. Anthony. Its life was a 
 struggle. The courage and faith of 
 Mrs. A. A. Powers, one of the noblest 
 of Decatur's pioneer women, and her 
 associates on the board kept it going. 
 
 One year the men agreed to pro- 
 vide the means, and came up to the 
 end with a deficit of $312. It was 
 almost a death blow. A play given 
 by the Winter Evening club, a group 
 of amateurs, saved it. 
 
 Seven years after the Ladies' Li- 
 brary association was organized the 
 Reading Room association was 
 formed with the idea of supplying a 
 place where the young people partic- 
 ularly, could pass their evenings with 
 good periodical literature. Mrs. 
 Johns raised $720 in a day's time. E. A. Gastman was its 
 first president. 
 
 The combined assets of the two associations became the 
 property of the Free Public Library, when it was organized 
 under the laws of Illinois. 
 
 The first board contained names of men and women who 
 have been among the history makers of Decatur : Joseph 
 Mills, president, J. L. Peake, William A. Barnes, W. H. 
 Ennis, W. W. Foster, W. L. Hammer, Mrs. S. F. Greer, Mrs. 
 B. F. Sibley, and Mrs. C. A. Ewing. It was provided that 
 a third of the board should always be women. 
 
 (/' 
 
 MRS. ALMIRA A. POWERS 
 
 50481 
 
The Man for the Job 
 
 There was only one thought in the minds of the board 
 regarding librarian. 
 
 Richard L. Evans, a graduate of Asbury University, now 
 De Pauw, had served in the navy during the Civil war, had 
 traveled extensively, and was well read. He had married 
 Miss Alice Glore of Decatur. His fondness for books and 
 
 knowledge of literature, combined 
 with his likable qualities, made him 
 the choice of the trustees. 
 
 With a little more than 1600 
 books, a few monthly magazines, a 
 weekly or two, and several daily 
 papers, Mr. Evans started in the 
 rooms in the Schroeder building in 
 Prairie street. 
 
 From a circulation and use stand- 
 point the Library was a success. 
 Those early reports of half a century 
 ago, written in Mr. Evans' clear 
 hand, the ink still unfaded, are 
 studies in enthusiasm. "And the 
 famous Boston public library," an- 
 nounced Mr. Evans to his board in 
 making some comparisons, "with 236,777 volumes, 124 times 
 greater than this library, issues daily less than ten times 
 as many (books)." 
 
 There were no library schools in those days; library 
 science was unknown, but there were great librarians. 
 Richard Evans was one. Many a man and woman, now in 
 the sunset of life, will testify to the inspiration given him 
 by "Uncle Dick" as he was known to the boys and girls. 
 
 If his quarters were cramped, it brought him closer to 
 the public that he served. "In my daily association with 
 the numerous patrons of the Library," he writes, "it has 
 ever been my custom to cater to the good taste of the public 
 
 RICHARD L. EVANS 
 
as far as I may by suggesting books that will benefit, as 
 well as inti rest the reader. To this end I always make it a 
 point to persuade the young, when I can, to read something 
 better and more useful than novels, such as travels, biog- 
 raphy, history, etc., and the changes in taste thus brought 
 about by a kindly word and a timely hint are often quite 
 remarkable." 
 
 Remarkable enough, unquestionably, in view of what 
 the librarian had to offer. By his own admission his pupils 
 had to take "extraordinary literary leaps" at times when 
 the books they wanted and needed were not to be obtained 
 from the scanty supply. 
 
 The Library, indeed, had exceptional circulation from 
 the start. Decatur people were book hungry, and they could 
 get books by merely signing a card. Borrowers leaped from 
 1,524 in the first year to 2,100 in the second, and at the end 
 of the second year Mr. Evans was able to report 55,153 
 visitors registered although many had come and gone with- 
 out giving their names. 
 
 Because of its effect upon the subsequent history of the 
 Library there is a passage from Mr. Evans' first report 
 that should be quoted: 'The labor devolving upon me, as 
 librarian, which in the beginning was quite sufficient to 
 employ my whole time, has been for months beyond my 
 strength. Indeed since the first week of the opening I have 
 been obliged to have my wife's assistance every evening, 
 and for upwards of four months she has aided me, both 
 afternoons and night, in supplying the people with books." 
 
 Mrs. Evans accordingly was made assistant librarian. 
 
 After six years of service Mr. Evans died Nov. 17, 1881. 
 Mrs. Evans was chosen as his successor. 
 
 The Library's Golden Jubilee marks the 50th year of 
 this woman's faithful service. 
 
A Book Fund and a Fire 
 
 In some of the older books one finds even now a plate 
 with the legend: "Presented by the Public Library Book 
 Fund." 
 
 The meager appropriation barely sufficed to meet run- 
 ring expenses. More books were vitally needed. Again 
 the indefatigable Mrs. Johns was called upon. In her judg- 
 ment nothing less than $3,000 
 was worth striving for. She 
 offered to try to raise this sum 
 if she could have the assistance 
 of Mrs. R. L. Walston. In the 
 face of predictions that six 
 months would be required for 
 the task, the two women started 
 out. 
 
 Public spirit in Decatur is 
 not a recent development. Some 
 of the men of the '70's gave 
 amounts that would be credit- 
 able to men of today. The result 
 was that in six weeks' time the 
 whole of the $3,000 had been 
 subscribed. A committee headed 
 by E. A. Gastman was named to select the books. The 
 additions gave the library a new prestige and value. 
 
 By this time the rooms in the Schroeder building had 
 been outgrown. On Oct. 5, 1881, the Library made the first 
 of its series of moves, going to the old Orlando Powers 
 building at Water and East Main streets, and occupying 
 rooms on the second floor. This remained its home for 
 eight years. 
 
 Having completed their building at Main and William 
 streets, the late T. T. Roberts and O. Z. Greene were so 
 anxious to have the Library as a tenant that they offered 
 rooms on the second floor rent free. The move was made 
 in 1889. The building became known henceforth as the 
 
 MRS. JANE M. JOHNS 
 
Library Block, by which it is still known to older residents. 
 
 "The Library Block is on fire" was the word that went 
 over the city on the night of Feb. 21, 1892. Starting in a 
 bakery on the east end of the building, the flames crept 
 toward the Main street side. A fire wall was supposed to 
 give protection to the Library, but the fire followed the 
 roof. Under the direction of the librarian, who had been 
 hastily summoned, volunteers 
 carried out 5,000 books. Time 
 did not permit of the removal of 
 the furniture. Some rare loaned 
 volumes and the records of the 
 Ladies' Library association were 
 overlooked. 
 
 When morning dawned the 
 Library Block was in ruins. A 
 heap of 5,000 books piled in the library block fire 
 
 Herald-Despatch and Starr 
 
 buildings represented all that remained of the Public Li- 
 brary. The board held two meetings that day. The old 
 First Presbyterian church where the Y. M. C. A. now stands 
 was vacant and available. Here the books were taken and 
 arranged by Mrs. Evans and her assistant, Miss Alice Tyler, 
 now head of the Library School of the Western Reserve 
 University. Insurance amply covered the loss of books and 
 fixtures. Soon the Library was in business again. By 
 October the restored Library Block was ready for occu- 
 pancy, and here the Library remained until it was removed 
 to the fifth floor of the new r Powers building in 1897. 
 
 It was a notable event in the library history when Miss 
 Dill returned from a year in the Pratt Institute Library 
 School and reorganized the Library. The Dewey decimal 
 system of classification was adopted, and the printed finding 
 list gave way to the dictionary card catalog. At the same 
 time the Newark charging system was adopted. This work 
 modernized the Library. The public quickly appreciated 
 the changes and adapted itself to them. Quick ordering of 
 popular and significant books with their early accession has 
 since been a cardinal principle. 
 
A Gift from Carnegie 
 
 The rooms in the fifth floor of the Powers building, 
 made easily available by elevator, were the most convenient 
 and spacious that the library had known up to that time. 
 But already the board was beginning to talk about a build- 
 ing of its own. 
 
 In its 25th report to the city council the board speaks 
 of a need of a library building, for by 1900 the Library had 
 18,338 books and more than 96,000 circulation. Special 
 accommodations for children were vitally needed. 
 
 About this time an old iron founder, his vaults laden 
 with United States Steel Corporation first mortgage bonds, 
 conceived the idea, never realized, of dying poor. 
 
 "I think," said the late C. M. Hurst on the return from 
 one of his visits in the East where he had met James Bert- 
 ram, "that Andrew Carnegie could be persuaded to give 
 Decatur a library building." Mr. Hurst, as many will re- 
 member, had a genius for seeing possibilities. 
 
 The library board agreed with Mr. Hurst. Mayor 
 George E. Stadler, Mr. Hurst and Mrs. Evans were sent 
 to New York in January, 1901. Mr. Stadler was the only 
 one of the three to see Secretary Bertram, who represented 
 Mr. Carnegie in negotiations for libraries. 
 
 The generous support of the library by the council, and 
 its increasing patronage and usefulness were pointed out 
 by Mr. Stadler. 
 
 Mr. Bertram did not commit himself, but gave encour- 
 agement. The committee returned, and Decatur waited. 
 but not for long. On Feb. 8 Mayor Stadler received a letter 
 announcing that Mr. Carnegie would give $60,000 for a 
 library building. 
 
A Controversy on Site 
 
 Decatur immediately plunged into a controversy as to 
 a site. It raged long and sometimes bitterly in the news- 
 papers. Advocates of this location and that were not wholly 
 disinterested. Sectionalism was rampant. Many wanted 
 the building to stand in Central park. Other sites were 
 suggested. 
 
 When Orlando Powers offered the southwest corner of 
 Wood and Water streets as a gift, some chose to regard 
 the matter as settled. The library board, however, selected 
 the Bartholomew property owned by the heirs of Mrs. A. 
 A. Powers at North Main and Eldorado streets. A lot 190 
 by 190 assured setting, and the opportunity to expand. 
 Its cost was $15,000. Hurriedly secured legislation settled 
 all questions of the legality of the city giving assistance in 
 the purchase. 
 
 First bids on the building according to plans submitted 
 by Mauran, Russell & Garden of St. Louis were all more 
 than $60,000. But rather than have the beauty and con- 
 venience of the library marred the city agreed to be re- 
 sponsible for the difference between Mr. Carnegie's gift and 
 the contract price. In another letting Jobst & Son of 
 Peoria were the successful bidders. 
 
 Mrs. Evans turned the first shovelful of earth with 
 ceremony March 27, 1902. On July 2 of the following year 
 the new building was thrown open to the public. 
 
 Brick had been first suggested as building material, 
 but the board having in mind architectural ornament as 
 well as utility chose Bedford stone. Interior finish was in 
 oak. The building was excellently built, as the small cost of 
 repairs necessitated in the last 20 years testifies. 
 
 Had more money been available the book space would 
 have been made larger, but in all other respects the build- 
 ing has answered its purpose admirably. 
 
Ill the New and Spacious Home 
 
 In its new home the Library had something more than 
 21,000 books and more space than it could utilize. In fact 
 the whole of the second floor was to remain for ten years 
 unoccupied, save as it was loaned to organizations. Cir- 
 culation for the preceding year had been 85,000. The staff 
 consisted of Mrs. Evans and five assistants, Miss Minnie 
 Dill, Miss Mabel Wayne, Miss Charlotte Hawes, Miss Mary 
 Harry, and Miss Clara Abel. 
 
 The board was headed by W. J. Quinlan, associated 
 with whom were Mrs. Ira N. Barnes, secretary, E. P. Vail, 
 R. R. Montgomery, O. B. Gorin, Patrick Hunt, Frank 
 Shlaudeman, Mrs. B. O. McReynolds, and Mrs. J. E. King. 
 
 From the first the shelves, which heretofore had been 
 closed to the public, were thrown open to all. The largest 
 freedom was tolerated. The Library never has had to check 
 conversation or obstruct the vision of its patrons with 
 "silence" signs. 
 
 Growth was to have been expected. Four years after 
 the opening a second floor of shelving was added to the 
 stacks. 
 
 Children had been served in their own room in the south- 
 east corner of the building, but the growth of the juvenile 
 collection and patronage, together with the necessity for 
 more study and reference work space, caused the children's 
 department to be transferred in 1914 to the second floor, 
 where it occupies a large, sunny, well-lighted room, for- 
 merly used for exhibitions. Four years later the cataloging 
 department followed it. 
 
 In 1921 Miss Jane Hamand of Schaller, Iowa, well known 
 to many old Decatur residents, gave to the library her col- 
 lection of Lincolniana, which has filled its allotted space 
 and overflowed into the hall. No price could be put upon 
 this collection, or on the Kirkham grammar, studied by 
 Abraham Lincoln and Ann Rutledge, for which it is the 
 repository. The collection gives the Decatur Library a 
 distinction not possessed by many of its size. 
 
Going Out to the People 
 
 Decatur's growth was reflected in the circulation of 
 books, each year showing an increase. It was not enough 
 that the Library should be available to every person of read- 
 ing age that wished to come to its doors. It began the policy 
 of going out to the people, first through the school libraries, 
 established first in the Durfee school in 1908, and extended 
 until 10 schools were provided 
 for. 
 
 A branch library followed 
 logically. It occupied the new 
 addition to the Durfee school in 
 1916, and in the same year an 
 east side deposit station was 
 opened. Book collections were 
 sent out to factories. 
 
 The Library's second build- 
 
 J . ALICE G. EVANS BRANCH LIBRARY 
 
 ing enterprise was completed in 
 
 1922 when there was dedicated and opened to the public the 
 handsome little brick building, comprising a part of a minor 
 civic center in the northeast part of the city. It was named 
 the Alice G. Evans branch. It continues to furnish library 
 facilities to one of the largest schools in the city, and to a 
 rapidly growing industrial neighborhood. 
 
 While Mrs. George R. Bacon was chairman of the library 
 committee of the State Federation of Woman's clubs the 
 library served as the distributing center for scores of little 
 libraries that were sent out to the small villages. 
 
 When the state took over the extension work Mrs. Bacon 
 was made a member of the commission, and the distribution 
 of books continued to be directed from the Decatur library 
 by Miss Eugenia Allin, secretary, until the extension col- 
 lection was removed to Springfield. 
 
 Co-operation with the public schools, the James Millikin 
 university and study organizations always has characterized 
 the library. As far as its means permit it is glad to secure 
 books needed, and always invites suggestions from groups 
 and individuals. 
 
Some Accomplishments 
 
 To a greater extent perhaps than most libraries, the 
 Decatur Public Library has lent itself to artistic, civic and 
 patriotic enterprises. For many years it was the exhibition 
 center for the Municipal Art League. It has held a loan 
 exhibit of old books which brought out scores of ancient 
 volumes, some of them precious. Of its many war accom- 
 plishments, one undertaking 
 stands out. It assisted a county 
 committee in collecting and pre- 
 serving the war records of Ma- 
 con county. One feature of this 
 collection housed in the Library, 
 is a set of scrap books, made up 
 of clippings from the Decatur 
 papers, of stories relating to lo- 
 
 DECA m"x , e B U L I I L C W "a RARY cal war activities. 
 
 The number of card holders 
 and the number of books circulated are not in themselves 
 conclusive indices of a library's worth to its community. 
 The Public Library has never gone on the mere quantitative 
 theory. 
 
 Much of its most useful work is of such a character that 
 it cannot be measured or checked. The Library answers 
 hard questions, furnishes information wanted quickly by 
 telephone, helps club members find material for papers, and 
 assists thousands of students through its reference depart- 
 ment. 
 
 It organizes reading clubs, holds story hours, recom- 
 mends reading matter that has a periodic or seasonable in- 
 terest and strives in every way to be helpful and human. 
 
 The needs of gardeners, radio amateurs, and boy chem- 
 ists have to be its concern. Books bearing upon industries 
 represented in Decatur form a nucleus of a technical library. 
 
Alice G. Evans 
 
 They have been pleasant years, the first half hundred. 
 No scandal or unpleasantness has ever marred the Library. 
 Politics never has entered in to demand appointments or 
 dictate policies. On the other hand there has been from 
 the city council the finest co-operation and the most gener- 
 ous financial support. Boards have been content to help 
 and encourage, and to leave all administrative matters to 
 the librarian. 
 
 In the "fifty folios bound and set by Time, the great 
 transcriber," the name of Mrs. Evans is written large. 
 While she is known and admired in library circles through- 
 out the country, she has received her most prized honors 
 from the community of which she has been so vital a part. 
 Her cheerfulness, her fine enthusiasms and personal charm 
 have been reflected in the library atmosphere. She has been 
 more than an efficient executive ; she has been a counselor 
 and friend to her staff and to patrons. 
 
 The year's leave of absence which the board voted her 
 as the Library's anniversary gift, and which came wholly 
 unexpectedly, is not a reward but a tribute to a beautiful 
 gentlewoman. Decatur will unite in wishing for her a 
 happy holiday. 
 

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UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS-URBANA 
 027 22D291E C001 
 
 1875-1925. AUGUST TENTH; FIFTIETH ANNIVE 
 
 3 0112 
 
 025273803