Series IV. Friends of the Library records, 1933-2018

The concept for the organization of the Friends of the Library originated in 1934, first under the name of the Wellesley College Library Associates. The 1933-1934 President’s Report, given in June 1934, states: “It is a pleasure to call attention to the organization of the Library Associates, a group who contribute annually not less than five dollars to the Library for the purchase of rare or unusual books. It is hoped that the number of these associates will increase with the years and form a group, similar to the groups which contribute to the libraries of Oxford, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth, and other colleges and universities, for the systematic enrichment of the Library” (page 12). The Report of the Librarian goes on to outline plans for the formalization of the group, and recruitment of members: “By Commencement time folders setting forth the plan to form a group to be known as the Wellesley College Library Associates had been printed and were ready for distribution, and it is hoped that a committee who will consider how best to distribute the folders among the friends who might be willing to be enrolled as Associates will be appointed early next fall" (page 43). By 1937, the Library Associates had undergone reorganization and a name change to the current "Friends of the Library." The Report of the Librarian in the 1936-1937 President's Report elaborates on these developments: "With Mr. Frederic H. Curtiss as Chairman, the newly reorganized association of Friends of the Library shows promise of being of great assistance to the library as it grows in numbers and contributions" (page 34). In 1954 the Friends of the Library dissolved, but it was reestablished in 1982 upon the recommendation of then-College Librarian, Eleanor Gustafson.

[See also: Friends of the Library History and Milestones, at URL: https://www.wellesley.edu/alumnae/give/friends/library/about/history]