THE GENESIS OF CHILDREN'S SERVICES IN THE AMERICAN PUBLIC LIBRARY: 1875-1906

What were the elemental factors in the development of children's services as it evolved into a formal entity within the American public library? This study analyzes the genesis of children's work as consisting of five components: (1) the emergence of the separate juvenile book collection; (2) the appearance of the separate children's room; (3) the designation of the children's librarian as a specialist within the profession of librarianship; (4) the mechanisms for interagency cooperation; and (5) the development of the techniques of readers' services to children. The period covered is 1875 to 1906 by which time children's services as a professional entity was fully evolved. Libraries studied included: The Boston Public Library; the Brookline Public Library; the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh; the Cleveland Public Library; the Denver Public Library; the Hartford Public Library; the Milwaukee Public Library; the New York Public Library; the Pawtucket Public Library; the Pratt Institute of Brooklyn; the Providence Public Library; and the Worcester Public Library.