Beginnings

It was on November 10, 1854 that a Legislative Select Committee on the Geological Survey voted upon a motion and subsequently ordered that ".... the following sums appear to be required annually, beyond the present appropriation ... to maintain the Museum and Library on an efficient footing" and thus with £250 was born the oldest scientific library in the nation at the Geological Survey of Canada (GSC). "Hitherto" it was argued, "all the books, and almost all the instruments, used by the survey, have been the private property of Mr. Logan and his assistants, but in so important a public institution, a library should be kept up, containing the best standard works and books of reference connected with geology and the allied sciences, and the necessary instruments should be provided by the government."¹ The ensuing years have seen the library, now known as the Earth Sciences Information Centre (ESIC) at Natural Resources Canada, grow to more than 1 million items including books, journals, maps, images and an expanding digital collection.

A search through the archives reveals a fascinating story of buildings and books, people and personalities, the development of librarianship as a profession, and the early the co-operative agreements by which libraries have developed world-class collections. Interwoven are details of difficulties in organizing a rapidly growing collection, pressures of space and funding and occasional political interference, echoes of which still resound in our modern age.

The early librarians

The first reference to a librarian occurs in testimony given to a parliamentary committee in 1884 and mentions that Mr. D'Urban was nominally librarian in the early years of the Survey.² It was not a full time occupation since it was also stated that he also did a great deal of work in the field. He later went on to teach science in England and to manage the Science Museum at Exeter. Following Mr. d'Urban, it was Mr. T. C. Weston who assumed responsibility for the collection: "About this time, [1868] Sir William appointed me Librarian to the Survey. I was to spend a short time every morning, before going to my more important duties, in recording the various publications purchased and presented, and attending to the distribution of Survey reports, etc. "³

Weston continued these duties for six years until he was relieved by Mr. Joseph White in 1872 , hired as Librarian and janitor at a salary of $550 per year.⁴ In September 1881 Mr.A .B. Perry, a graduate of Kingston Military College, was temporarily appointed for four months as acting Librarian on a salary of $300. During that time he arranged, labelled and numbered nearly all the books in the library, and made very considerable progress in the preparation of the catalogue.⁵

By 1882, the collection had grown to some 12,000 volumes and an Order in Council appointed Dr. John Thorburn as Librarian & Curator. Described as a "gentleman of ripe experience and scholarship", Dr. Thorburn had been headmaster at Ottawa Collegiate Institute. The salary for librarian was now $600 per year. Records show that by 1897 Dr. Thorburn had two lady assistants, one of whom was Mrs. J. Alexander hired at $1.50 per day. Her duties as assistant librarian included cataloguing, shelf arrangement and reference. In1908 Mrs. Alexander became acting Librarian, a post she held until her death in 1912. Miss Barry was responsible for the distribution of GSC publications, and for filing and monitoring attendance. A typist had been added to the staff in 1905, and in 1911 a Miss Calhoun was to attend a cataloguing course at McGill University summer school. Miss Calhoun was Acting Librarian from 1912 to 1918.

Establishing the collection

Prior to the allocation of funds to formally create a library, Sir William Logan had "been under the necessity of supplying at my own expense nearly all the scientific books indispensable for the proper prosecution of the survey."⁶ A report of 1873-74 described the library as containing "Upwards of 2000 volumes, comprising standard works of reference on Geology, Mineralogy, Metallurgy, Chemistry and Natural History." ⁷ Additions to the collection were made by purchase and presentation, and valuable reports from surveys in the United States and overseas as well as publications from scientific societies, were received in exchange for publications of the Canadian geological survey. Fifteen years later it was exclaimed that "every year, the list of our exchanges is increasing, so that, as a consequence of this, the operations of the Survey are being more widely known and its publications more sought after."⁸ The exchange program, though reduced in recent years, is still in existence today.

The GSC had its first home in Montreal and moved to Sussex Drive in Ottawa in 1881. A description from the Ottawa Citizen reads:

"The ground floor, which is reached by the main entrance from Sussex Street is provided with a spacious hallway ....passing through an archway to the George Street wing on the same floor, the library is reached, the area of which is sixteen by twenty-eight feet and which will be filled up to its full height with handsomely finished shelving with sliding glass fronts, while a neat gallery hung by rods from the ceiling will give ready access to the upper portion of the cases."⁹

The move to Ottawa also necessitated the purchase of the books which Logan had provided with his own funds. For the sum of $2092.72, 715 volumes and 41 maps were purchased from the Logan Estate. The resource library was expanding steadily and the idea of developing the collection as a resource for public consultation was first suggested in 1884: "There should also be a library, not merely of scientific and theoretical books, but a library where any person could go and consult the works which would give them to information which they required."¹⁰

By 1888 the collection was outgrowing the available space. It was reported "For a considerable time past the space allotted to the Library has been found to be altogether insufficient, and, consequently, many of the books, which are frequently required for reference, have had to be stored away in other parts of the building, to the great inconvenience of those wishing to consult them."¹¹ This was a yearly refrain. In 1891 there was a complaint that "The cases are all filled, and a large portion of the books are piled up round the library floor and in other parts of the building."¹² An annex to the library was added but by 1892 was nearly filled. It was with a tone of exasperation that the government was reminded of a potential fire hazard: "The attention of the government has, on more than one occasion, been called by the director to the ever present risk of the whole Museum, with its immensely valuable treasures, being destroyed by fire."¹³ This sentiment was echoed five years later in an article published in The Gazette: " We may close with reference to one lack, which requires immediate attention; since the priceless collections of the library are stored in a building which an hour might destroy, and thus deprive the Dominion of treasures, many of which could never be replaced."¹⁴

In 1903 an additional room was built to accommodate the collection which had grown to 14,000 volumes, making it possible "for the first time in twenty years to spread out the books in duly classified, orderly arrangement"¹⁵ By 1910 preparations were underway to move the library to new quarters in the Victoria Memorial Museum. In her report of 1910, Mrs. Alexander estimated that 4,500 feet of shelving would be required to provide for present needs and future expansion. A sense of relief and anticipation is evident in Mrs. Alexander's letter in 1911 to J. A. Lapp, Managing Editor of Special Libraries: "We have just moved from the very cramped and inconvenient quarters which we have occupied for many years, to a fine new building and are anxious in re-organizing to do so in the best way."¹⁶

Part of the reorganizing involved weeding the collection and material was offered to other Ottawa libraries and there where several requests to be removed from mailing lists included in Mrs. Alexander's letters. During her tenure, she also attempted to fill gaps in the collection as well as to replace some European journals which were lost on the Titanic.

Progress in Librarianship

In an effort to ensure a successful reorganization of the collection, Miss M. Calhoun, the library assistant, had been spending time with Miss Masson, the cataloguer at the Ottawa Public Library. She had read John Dana's A Library Primer and Miss Theresa Hitchler's Cataloging for Small Libraries, and corresponded with C. H. Gould, the University Librarian at McGill University, with respect to Summer School programmes. "With our removal to new and more commodious quarters, it is felt that there should be an almost entire rearrangement and reclassification of our Library, our inadequate equipment for years past having led to great confusion along some lines, and it is in regard to the cataloguing especially that I hope to profit greatly by the proposed course."¹⁷ After the death of Mrs. Alexander, Miss Calhoun became acting Librarian and reported that the rearrangement of the collection according to the Cutter classification scheme was completed and a modern dictionary catalogue of all the volumes in the library was being compiled.

In 1914 attention was turned to the care of the map collection: "Up to the present year, the library had no facilities for filing and storing the numerous maps in its possession. It is a pleasure to state that horizontal steel map cases have now been installed, and all maps will be arranged, and made available for use by the staff of the Survey, in the near future."¹⁸ By 1916, in consultation with the library committee, a classification scheme for the maps had been worked out.

During the First World War Miss Calhoun left the Survey to work in the Voluntary Aid Detachment, and upon her return and subsequent marriage to a geologist she resigned her position. Mrs. F. E. Forsey, who was hired as a cataloguer in 1913, then became acting Chief Librarian. Upon the departure of Miss Calhoun, Mrs. Forsey was recommended for promotion to the position of Librarian by the Library Committee, the two Directors and the Deputy Minister, but the Civil Service Commission insisted she write the examination used for the post of librarian in the Public Archives. Months later, an appointment had still not been made and it was the action of Mr. Tom Tweedie, M.P. who eventually forced a decision:

"He went to see Dr. Roche, Chairman of the Civil Service Commission, and put the facts of mother's case before him. Roche said he could do nothing at the moment. "Very well. I shall sit outside until you make the appointment.'.... after a time Roche appeared. "What, Tom! Are you still here?' "I am. I meant exactly what I said. Here I sit till you make that appointment.' this scene was re-enacted several times. Finally Roche caved in."¹⁹

By all accounts it was an excellent decision, for Mrs. Forsey not only did German, Spanish and Italian translations, she helped compile a catalogue of scientific periodicals in Canadian libraries with a colleague at McGill University. An active member of the Ottawa Library Association, and vice-Chair of the Museums Group of the Special Libraries Association, Mrs. Forsey prepared bibliographies and wrote papers on library work and made the GSC library the " best equipped scientific reference library in Canada."²⁰ Mrs. Forsey ran the library until her retirement in 1941.

Between the wars

Notwithstanding her professionalism and expertise, it is evident that Mrs. Forsey was required to defend her activities and decisions and there appears to have been a growing strain on her relationship and that of some of the scientists, with the Chief Geologist of the Survey, Dr. G. A. Young. It had been Mrs. Forsey's practice to check periodicals, book reviews and the Library of Congress catalogue for titles of interest and then to furnish recommendations to the library committee. Concerns were expressed that the needs of the whole Survey were not being met and there was favouritism towards mineralogy and physical chemistry. In consequence, Dr. Young wished to establish a more rigorous process and disbanded and then re-formed the library committee in 1937. Henceforth, lists of suggested purchases were to be circulated to staff which were then to be sent back with recommendations and reasons for purchase to be reviewed by the library committee and sent to the Chief Geologist for final approval. Memoranda indicate that, despite recommendations from scientific staff, Dr. Young was not afraid to use his veto. Perhaps this was the reason so little was spent on developing the collection during this period. A comparative analysis of library spending in Federal Science departments revealed that the Agriculture Library spent $28.57 per staff officer, National Research Council, $53.84 per staff officer, while the Geological Survey spent only $1.68 per officer.²¹

With growing hostilities in Europe, the necessity of continuing subscriptions to German periodicals was also questioned. Mrs. Forsey wisely consulted her colleagues in other departments and reported that neither the National Research Council, nor the Dept. of Agriculture were required to suspend German periodical subscriptions which were pertinent to the current research activities. Mrs. Forsey would have been well supported by a statement released some 30 years later by the National Librarian that "A librarian, who is presumably employed because of special skills and knowledge, should have an adequate status and should have authority to act in accordance with a determined policy and within the limits of a distinct library budget."²²

In 1941 Mrs. N. I. (Wills) Kummerman became librarian and had to deal with Dr. Young's interference. One can assume that, despite controversies, ultimately Dr.Young was concerned about the quality and reputation of the library. Questioned by the Director as to the value of the collection, he responded "I told the Director that I believed he was mistaken, the amount of useless material would be found to be surprisingly small. I pointed out to him that it was within the experience of all of us that from time to time it was most important to be able to investigate statements in old reports, in old textbooks which might perhaps be thought to have lost all value."²³

Reorganization

From 1842 to 1946 part of the functions of the GSC were of a museum character. However, in the mid 1940s plans were developed to transfer the museum work to the Department of Resources and Development, and subsequently divide the library collection. The material was classified according to the Cutter system. It was proposed to transfer to the National Museum that part of the library which dealt exclusively with archaeology, ethnology and the flora and fauna of Canada. Other material of primarily museum interest was also to be transferred provided it did not contain material of geological interest or cause the dismemberment of periodical sets. Works dealing with invertebrate palaeontology were to be retained by the Geological Survey, while vertebrate palaeontology collections would be transferred to the Museum.²⁴ Undoubtedly there was much detailed discussion over works which contained material of common scientific interest and it was decided to deal with reference material, such as legislation, dictionaries and directories, at a later date.

In 1959, the GSC Library was relocated along with the laboratories and offices to the Booth Street complex, where it remains to this day. (The official opening by the Honourable Paul Comtois, Minister of Mines and Technical Surveys, took place on May 18, 1960.) The library was closed for only 4 days while the move supervised by Mrs. Kummerman, took place. There were now approximately two miles of shelving, in accommodation that was described as "spacious, bright and airy."²⁵ Efforts were made throughout the next year to properly arrange and store the collection of U.S. Geological Survey topographic maps and weeding of the collection and card catalogue continued.

Mrs. Doreen Sutherland was appointed Head Librarian in 1966 and the following years saw the geological collection develop in both quality and quantity. The report of the National Librarian in 1968 stated that the GSC Library contained more than 100,000 volumes and was the most comprehensive collection of geological publications in Canada.²⁶ As evidence of the success of the exchange program, initiated by the 1870s and particularly strengthened by Mrs. Forsey, it was recognized that the collection was particularly rich in complete runs of geological journals and publications issued by government geology departments and geological societies throughout the world. Demand for loans to other libraries was high throughout the 1960s. This decade also saw the creation of a library in Calgary at new regional headquarters which supported the work in the sedimentary basins of the western interior and Arctic Islands.

Library automation

The GSC Library was early in adopting automated procedures. The first project began in 1968 and was a periodical finding aid entitled "PERFIND". The same year, selective dissemination of information began in conjunction with Canada Institute of Scientific and Technical Information (CISTI) CAN/SDI service. It was remarked in the Annual Report of 1970 that the service had led to a significant increase in the demand for interlibrary loans. By 1975 the PEBILL system was inaugurated by CISTI and the CAN/OLE enquiry system was in use. However, the rapid growth in the collection in these years, the transition towards automation and staff illnesses combined to create sufficient pressure that there was a deterioration in both the organization of the collection and the efficiency of the services, providing impetus for a library study which took place in 1975/1976. There were now more than 150,000 volumes and as a result of the study recommendations, new shelving was purchased, a library committee was re-established and additional staff were hired.

After the arrival of Ms. Annette Bourgeois as Head Librarian in 1978, further renovations were completed. The necessary shift in the collection also favoured the consideration of a new classification system and, with an eye to complete library automation, Ms. Bourgeois led the conversion from the Cutter to the Library of Congress cataloguing system. The UTLAS cataloguing module was fully implemented by 1979 during which year the AACR2 cataloguing standard was adopted. A few years later, the local implementation of MINISIS to replace remote use of UTLAS was begun; this was ultimately to be replaced in 1994 by the Innovative Interfaces system, which is still used .

Changes in technology have allowed for improved coordination of the network of libraries now serving the Earth Sciences Sector. The common catalogue is shared with GSC libraries in Québec, Calgary and Vancouver and there is continuing dialogue to ensure that collections and technologies are developed to the benefit of all.

Consolidation

With the program review of the 1990s, further changes were implemented. The Observatory collection, which traced its origins to the Earth Physics Branch and amalgamated with the GSC in 1986, was consolidated with the geology collection on Booth Street. At the same time, with the formation of the new Earth Sciences Sector, the library of Geomatics Canada was merged with the GSC Library to form the Earth Sciences Information Centre. The Geomatics Canada library had been established in the 1960s as part of the Surveys and Mapping Branch and had developed an extensive collection of topographic maps and materials on cartography, surveying and remote sensing. The Earth Sciences Information Centre now holds close to one million items consisting of journals, books, maps and photographs as well as digital files. The generosity of donors to the Logan Legacy Fund has allowed the preservation of rare material from the early years. Certainly the collections and services will continue to evolve to meet changing needs, yet the rich heritage of earth science knowledge so carefully tended over the years, is indeed a national treasure of enduring value that continues to serve the nation.

End notes:

1. Canada. (Province of, 1841-1866) Geological Survey. Select Committee on the Geological Survey. - Report of the Select Committee on the Geological Survey : printed by order of the Legislative Assembly : Quebec, 1855.

2. Canada. Parliament. House of Commons. Select Committee on Geological Surveys. Report of the Select Committee appointed by the House of Commons to obtain information as to Geological Surveys, &c, &c. Ottawa : Maclean, Roger & co., 1884, p. 96

3. Weston, Thomas Chesmer. Reminiscences among the rocks in connection with the Geological Survey of Canada. Toronto : T. C. Weston : printed by Warwick Brothers & Rutter, 1899. p. 58.

4. List of members of the Geological Survey of Canada. Library and Archives of Canada. RG45. Geological Survey of Canada, v. 78. Director's Letterbook, October 5, 1880 - December 22, 1882, p. 129. Microfilm c14441

5. Selwyn, Alfred R. C. Summary reports of the operations of the Geological Corps to 31^st December 1881 and to 31^st December, 1882. Report of Progress / Geological Survey of Canada ; 1880-82. [ Montreal. : Dawson Brothers., 1882], p. 11.

6. Canada. (Province of, 1841-1866) Geological Survey. Select Committee on the Geological Survey. - Report of the Select Committee on the Geological Survey : printed by order of the Legislative Assembly : Quebec, 1855.

7. Selwyn, Alfred R. C. Summary report of geological investigations [1873-74]. Report of Progress / Geological Survey of Canada ; 1873-74. [Montreal. : Dawson Brothers, 1874], p. 5.

8. Geological and Natural History Survey of Canada. Summary reports on the operations of the Geological Survey for the years 1888 and 1889. Montreal : William Foster Brown & Co., 1890.

9. Ottawa Citizen, Monday, May 2, 1881, [p.4].

10. Canada. Parliament. House of Commons. Select committee to obtain information as to geological surveys. Report of the Select Committee appointed by the House of Commons to obtain information as to geological surveys, &c, &c. Ottawa : Maclean, Roger & co. 1884, p. 102.

11. Geological and Natural History Survey of Canada. Summary reports on the operations of the Geological Survey for the years 1888 and 1889. Montreal : William Foster Brown & Co., 1890.

12. Geological Survey of Canada. Summary reports on the operations of the Geological Survey for the year1891 : Ottawa : Queen's Printer, 1892. p. 91

13. Geological Survey of Canada. Summary report on the operations of the Geological Survey for theYear 1892. Annual report, v. 6 1892, pt. A, p. 92-93 .

14. The Gazette, (Montréal, Québec), Saturday, April 4, 1897, p. 4.

15. Bell, Robert. Report of a Committee of the Geological Survey Staff in regard to the Library. Library and Archives of Canada. Robert Bell Papers. MG29-B15. v.42, no. 5 [1903].

16. 16. Alexander, Jane. [Geological Survey of Canada. Office of the Librarian 1910-1912]. Library & Archives of Canada. R. 45, v. 287, p. 28, no. 208.

17. Alexander, Jane. [Geological Survey of Canada. Office of the Librarian 1910-1912]. Library & Archives of Canada. R. 45, v. 287, p. 28, no. 203.

18. Canada. Parliament.. 12^th Parliament, 5^th session.. Summary report of the Geological Survey, Dept. of Mines for the calendar year 1914. Sessional Paper, no. 26. Ottawa : King's Printer, 1915.

19. Forsey, Eugene A. A Life on the fringe: the memoirs of Eugene Forsey. Toronto : Oxford University Press, 1990 p. 12-13.

20. Geological Survey of Canada. Autobiographical Files. Library & Archives of Canada.. RG45 v. 34, File no. 692D1.

21. [Wilson, Alice]. Memorandum to Dr. G. A. Young from Chair, Library Committee, 1941. Library & Archives of Canada. Correspondence files of Dept. of Mines and Resources, no. 143

22. Report of the National Librarian. Ottawa : Queen's Printer, 1968.

23. Young, G. A. Memorandum to Alice W. Wilson, Chair, Library Committee, Feb 26, 1942. Library & Archives of Canada. Correspondence files of Dept. of Mines and Resources, no. 143

24. Bell, W. A. Memorandum to Dr. G. S. Hume, Acting Director General, GSC, Feb. 7, 1950. Library & Archives of Canada. Correspondence files of Dept. of Mines & Technical Surveys, no. 172.

25. Geological Survey of Canada. Annual Report. Ottawa : Dept. of Mines & Technical Surveys, 1959. p. 129-130.

26. Report of the National Librarian. Ottawa : Queen's Printer, 1968.