Brown, Charles Harvey, 1875-1960

Charles Harvey Brown was born December 23, 1875 in Albany, New York. Dr. Brown received a Bachelor of Arts (1897) and a Master of Arts (1899) at Wesleyan University. He also received a Bachelor of Library Science (1901) at the New York State Library, and his Literary Doctorate (1937) from Wesleyan. Dr. Brown began his career at Wesleyan University (1897-1899); he then worked for the Library of Congress (1901-1903); John Crerar Library (1903-1909) in Chicago, Illinois; Brooklyn Public Library (1909-1919); and the United States Navy (1919-1922). He joined the Iowa State College (University) Library and was the Dean of the Library (1922-1946) until he retired, when he became Librarian Emeritus.

Dr. Brown was the President (1941-1942) of the American Library Association (ALA). An active proponent of research libraries, he is credited with founding the American College and Research Libraries (ACRL). After his retirement, he was still associated with the Iowa State College (University) Library as a Bibliographer, and also taught courses in the winter in Florida. He traveled to Japan in the 1950's as an assistant to help organize the National Diet Library in Japan. He died in 1960, and is buried in the Iowa State University Cemetery.

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