Library History

The library has been an integral part of Occidental College from its founding in 1887 when the first collections were housed in “an elegant, well-lighted room” in the sole building on the small campus in the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles. By 1905, after the move to Highland Park, Charles M. Stimson generously provided funds for an attractive, impressive structure to bear his name, the College’s first named library.

In the first decade after the College came to its present location in Eagle Rock in 1914, a large area of Fowler Hall of Science was designated as the library. Then in 1924, the Mary Norton Clapp Library was erected with a gift from Mrs. Matthew G. Norton, in memory of her daughter, Mrs. E. P. Clapp. The architect, Myron Hunt, designed a Mediterranean-style building. The library had a collection of 20,000 volumes and a staff of four and served the enrollment of 544 students.

As acquisitions continued, along with enrollment, expansion of the Mary Norton Clapp was inevitable. In 1955, the original building of 22,210 square feet was more than doubled. A 1970 addition brought the area to 107,000 square feet.

From a collection of 250,000 print volumes in 1970, the number has reached 500,000. Within that number are many special and distinctive named book collections. Materials in various media are available, including over 27,000 online books and journals.

The Mary Norton Clapp Library, which now houses Information Technology Services and the Center for Academic Excellence, has kept pace with the age of automation. Its history changes daily as more technological advances, as well as book acquisitions, are incorporated into services administered by a highly trained librarian staff addressing the needs of academically strong students and their faculty. Librarians teach information literacy classes and conduct individual research consultations with any student who requests it.

The first College Librarian was Anna C. Latimer, 1906-08. She was succeeded by Frances Rosanna Foote, 1908-11, George F. Cook, 1912-28, Elizabeth J. McCloy, 1928-57, Andrew H. Horn, 1957-59, Tyrus G. Harmsen, 1959-86, Jacquelyn McCoy, 1986-2001, Shirley Hallblade, 2002-2006, and Emily Bergman, Interim College Librarian, 2006-2008.

-Jean Paule, College Archivist

We welcome your Comments and Suggestions.

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