APPENDIX 10 

 REPORT ON THE LIBRARY 



Sm: I have the honor to submit the following report on the 

 activities of the Smithsonian library for the fiscal year ended June 

 30, 1941 : 



THE LIBRARY 



The library, or library system, of the Smithsonian is made up 

 of 10 major and 35 minor units. The former consist of the main 

 libraiy of the Institution, whicli since 1866 has been in the Library 

 of Congress and is known as the Smithsonian Deposit; the libraries 

 of the United States National Museum, Bureau of American Eth- 

 nology, Astrophysical Observatory, Freer Gallery of Art, National 

 Collection of Fine Arts, National Zoological Park, Division of Radi- 

 ation and Organisms; the Langley Aeronautical Library — deposited 

 in 1930 in the Division of Aeronautics at the Library of Congress — 

 and the Smithsonian office library. The minor units are the sec- 

 tional libraries of the National Museum. Although the collections 

 in these 45 libraries are on many subjects, they have to do chiefly 

 with the matters of special moment to the Institution and its branches, 

 namely, the natural and physical sciences and technology and the fine 

 arts. They are particularly strong in their files of standard mono- 

 graphs and serials and of the reports, proceedings, and transactions 

 of the learned institutions and societies of the world. 



Cooperating with the Smithsonian library system, but independent 

 of it, is the library of the National Gallery of Art, which, during 

 the year just closed took its first steps, under a competent staff, to 

 meet the reference needs of the Gallery personnel and of others 

 outside. The libraries of the Institution welcome the opportunity to 

 further, in every way possible, the interests of this new friendly 

 neighbor. 



PERSONNEL 



The year brought an unusually large number of changes in the 



staff. Among these were the following: The retirement, on account 



of age, of Miss Gertrude L. Woodin, after long and valuable service 



as assistant librarian; the promotion of Miss Elisabeth P. Hobbs, 



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