Meta Howell 1899-1968 



Meta Pauline Howell (Mrs. Frederick S. Howell), the 

 Museum's Head Librarian, died suddenly on Saturday, 

 August 31, 1968, one day before her 20th anniversary in 

 that position. Though in ill health she was thought to be 

 recovering and was to retire toward the close of this year. 



Mrs. Howell (nee Armbruester) was born in Dusseldorf, 

 Germany, on November 7, 1899. She came to the United 

 States in 1902 and was naturalized in 1916. She studied at 

 the University of Buffalo and received her library degree in 

 1924. Before coming to Chicago she worked at the Public 

 and Grosvenor Libraries in Buffalo. In 1926 she accepted 

 a job as a Branch Librarian for the Chicago Public Library, 

 and from 1927 until 1947 she worked at the Museum of Sci- 

 ence and Industry, first as Assistant Librarian and, after 

 1941, as Head Librarian. She joined the staff of Field 

 Museum in 1947. She was married to Mr. Frederick S. 

 Howell in 1934. 



Mrs. Howell loved librarianship and was devoted to im- 

 proving and enlarging the Museum's Library. One of her 

 first concerns as Head Librarian was a complete overhaul of 

 the acquisition and exchange program, particularly as it re- 

 lated to serial publications. She has written that "Research 

 centers, such as those served by museum libraries, are be- 

 yond the general book stage. Their primary need is for 

 literature of an intensive nature, written at the specialist's 

 level. This material is to be found only in the journals, the 

 bulletins, the revistas of the learned societies and research 

 institutions. As one of our paleontologists put it, 95 per 

 cent of all written material he consults is in these publica- 

 tions. This is particularly true in the case of the [Field] 

 Museum. . . ." Because of this she was very conscious of 

 the serious gaps the Depression and World War had caused 

 in our serial holdings and proceeded, with characteristic 

 energy and thoroughness, to fill them. In cooperation with 

 the Museum's Publications Division the exchange program 

 was completely revised. The system she devised can be 

 found in her article "Exchange of Serial Publications and 

 Its Place in Museum Libraries" {The Museum News, v. 29 

 (1952), no. 14, pp. 6-8); the results can be seen in the Li- 

 brary's catalogue and on its shelves. 



As an adjunct to this program Mrs. Howell was instru- 

 mental in working out an agreement between the John 

 Crerar and the Museum Libraries whereby hundreds of nat- 

 ural history serials and numerous books on entomology and 

 malacology were deposited with us on "permanent loan." 

 These have been a welcome and valuable addition to our 

 collections. 



Mrs. Howell's emphasis on this aspect of library work 

 continued until her death and resulted in greatly strength- 

 ening our position as one of the nation's foremost sources of 

 specialized information in the natural sciences. In 1963 she 

 realized a long-time ambition when, through the kind offices 

 of former Senator Paul H. Douglas, the Library was named 



Mrs. Howell assisting Dr. Louis O. Williams, Chief Curator, Botany, 

 in the Library. 



a depository for selected government publications under the 

 Depository Library Program. Our Library, at that time, 

 was the only museum library so designated. 



The Library's growth was such that Mrs. Howell be- 

 came seriously concerned about overcrowding in the stacks 

 and increasingly cramped working quarters. At the Direc- 

 tor's request she submitted, in 1963, a report on current 

 needs and a projection of those of the next 20 years. This 

 in time resulted, by means of a grant from the National Sci- 

 ence Foundation, in a greatly expanded stack area, new 

 facilities, and money to complete the reclassification pro- 

 gram. A complete discussion of this can be found in her 

 article "The Museum Library in Transition" {Chicago 

 Natural History Museum Bulletin, v. 36 (1965), no. 5, pp. 

 2-3, 7-8). 



Mrs. Howell possessed a driving and dynamic personal- 

 ity that strongh- affected all who worked with or for her. 

 She was prepared to defend her positions on important 

 matters with great vigor, and sometimes heat. But she was 

 fortunate in possessing another attribute of a commanding 

 personality : fairness. She had the ability to see other points 

 of view and was willing to modify her stand or change her 

 mind. She was a bit of a feminist and felt very strongly that 

 in the world of affairs men and women should be accorded 

 equal treatment. She was not above using "feminine wiles" 

 in an argument; but, as she proudly told me once, she 

 "never resorted to tears to win one." 



Mrs. Howell was not an easy person to know well. 

 There was an air of formality about her that she strove to 

 maintain. On the job she presented the sternly professional 

 facade of a dedicated career woman; in private, she was 

 gregarious, had a lively sense of humor, and was full of 

 kindness and concern for others. As one who worked for 

 her for 10 years I came to know both sides of her personality 

 and respected the one and very much liked the other. She 

 shall be missed in the Library and in the Museum; but her 

 work remains and will be of continuing value to the staff 

 and to the public as long as the Museum endures. 



— W. Peyton Fawcelt, Associate Librarian 



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