King, Margaret I. (Margaret Isadora), 1879-1966.

"She has built the library up from one that could be housed in a single room to a library that now contains more than 400,000 volumes and is fourth or fifth in size among the libraries of the South. It would be impossible to estimate the value of her contribution to the University of Kentucky." (Board of Trustees Minutes 6/25/1948:48). This is how President Donovan described Margaret I. King in 1948. As the University's first librarian, King played a vital role in the development and growth of the library at the University of Kentucky.

Margaret Isadora King was born in Lexington, Kentucky, on September 1, 1879, to Gilbert Hinds and Elizabeth K. King. She earned her Bachelor of Arts from the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky (University of Kentucky) in 1898, and did clerical work in the Lexington law firm of Allen and Bronston from 1899 to 1905. In 1905, King began her long career at the University of Kentucky by serving as secretary to President James K. Patterson. She became involved with the library when President Patterson asked her to organize the University's first library in 1909. While organizing the library, she continued as secretary to the president until she was named the University's first librarian in 1912.

During her career as librarian of the University, King continued her education. She performed some graduate work at the University of Michigan, and in 1929, she earned her Bachelor of Science in Librarianship from Columbia University. Some of King's professional activities included the following: serving as the Kentucky Library Association president from 1926 to 1927, serving as a trustee for the Lexington Public Library for many years, and directing the survey of Kentucky libraries from 1936 to 1938 for the American Library Association's Survey of Research Materials in Southern Libraries. King's development of library methods courses eventually led to the establishment of a Department of Library Science at the University of Kentucky.

In 1948, after King had directed the University's library for 39 years, the Board of Trustees voted to name the library the Margaret I. King Library. This was a special honor since the Board rarely names buildings in honor of those still living. Although King retired as librarian in 1949, she continued to perform some work for the library at the University of Kentucky. She died in Lexington on April 13, 1966.

From the description of Margaret I. King papers, 1879-1966. (University of Kentucky Libraries). WorldCat record id: 192072489