Edward G. Holley- ( 1927 – 2010) was an American librarian, library historian, and library educator.
Holley was president of the American Library Association (ALA) from 1974–75, He played a significant role in the celebration of the American Library Association’s (ALA) 100th anniversary in 1976. He wrote the essay, "ALA at 100," which was published in the ALA Yearbook (centennial edition, 1976) and later reprinted as a standalone 32-page booklet by the ALA.
Among many awards he was honored with:
- ALA Medal of Excellence in 1983.
- Joseph W. Lippincott Award in 1987.
- Academic Research Librarian of the Year in 1988 by the Association of College and Research Libraries.
- Beta Phi Mu Award in 1992.
Holley was an expert witness in defense of the ALA-accredited degree in the legal case,"Merwine v. Board of Trustees for State Institutions of Higher Learning" (US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, March 8, 1985).
Education and career
Edward G. Holley graduated from David Lipscomb College in Nashville, Tennessee in 1949. graduated from George Peabody College for Teachers with a master's in library science in 1951.
After serving in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War, Holley went on to receive his Ph.D. in library science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1961.
Holley began his professional career at the University of Houston as Director and worked there for nine years.
In 1972 he moved to Chapel Hill, North Carolina, where he accepted the position of Dean and professor (William Rand Kenan Jr. Professorship) in the School of Information and Library Science. He remained dean until 1985, and was a professor from 1989 to 1995, when he retired.
Legacy
The Library History Seminar IX: Libraries and Philanthropy was held in 1995 and dedicated to Edward G. Holley.
The Library History Round Table holds the Edward G. Holley lecture in his memory at conferences of the American Library Association.
Selected Publications
Holley, Edward G. Charles Evans : American Bibliographer. University of Illinois Press, 1963.
Holley Edward G. (1967). Raking the Historic Coals: The A.L.A. Scrapbook of 1876. Pittsburgh: Beta Phi Mu.
Holley, Edward G. ALA at 100. American Library Association, 1976.
Holley, Edward G. “The Past as Prologue: The Work of the Library Historian.” The Journal of Library History 12, no. 2 (1977): 110–27.
Holley, Edward G., and Robert F. Schremser. The Library Services and Construction Act : An Historical Overview from the Viewpoint of Major Participants. JAI Press, 1983.
Holley, E. G. (1984). The Merwine Case and the MLS: Where was ALA? American Libraries, 15(5), 327.
Wiegand, Wayne A., and Edward G. Holley. An Active Instrument for Propaganda : The American Public Library during World War I. Greenwood Press, 1989.
Sources:
Delmus Eugene Williams. 1994. For the Good of the Order: Essays in Honor of Edward G. Holley. Greenwich Conn: Jai Press.
The Edward G. Holley Papers, 1970-2001- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Nixon, T. J. (1998). Interview with Edward G. Holley. North Carolina Libraries 56(2), 65–70.
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Kathleen de la Peña McCook
Distinguished University Professor
School of Information
University of South Florida
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