Call for Nominations

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Phyllis Dain Library History Dissertation Award: January 31, 2025

The Library History Round Table (LHRT) of the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±ÏÖ³¡Ö±²¥ (°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±ÏÖ³¡Ö±²¥) sponsors the biennial Phyllis Dain Library History Dissertation Award. The award, named in honor of a library historian widely known as a supportive advisor and mentor as well as a rigorous scholar and thinker, recognizes outstanding dissertations in English in the general area of library history. The author of the selected dissertation will receive a certificate and five hundred dollars.

Nominations for the 2025 Phyllis Dain Library History Dissertation Award may be submitted , with a submission deadline of January 31, 2025. Applicants will be asked to submit one electronic copy of the approved and signed dissertation and a signed letter of support from the doctoral advisor or dissertation committee chair at the degree-granting institution. Dissertations completed and accepted during the preceding two academic years (2023 and 2024) are eligible.

Dissertations must be original research on a significant topic relating to the history of libraries during any period, in any region of the world. Entries are judged on clear definition of research questions and/or hypotheses, use of appropriate primary resources, depth of research, superior quality of writing, and significance of conclusions. The LHRT is particularly interested in dissertations that place the subject within its broader historical, social, cultural, and political context and that make interdisciplinary connections with print culture and/or information studies.

Justin Winsor Library History Essay Award: February 20, 2025

The Library History Round Table (LHRT) of the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±ÏÖ³¡Ö±²¥ (°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±ÏÖ³¡Ö±²¥) invites submissions for the Justin Winsor Library History Essay Award. The Justin Winsor Library History Essay Award is given annually to recognize the best essay written in English on library history. The award is named in honor of the distinguished nineteenth-century librarian, historian, and bibliographer who was also °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±ÏÖ³¡Ö±²¥’s first president. It consists of a certificate and a $500 cash award, as well as an invitation to have the winner’s essay considered for publication in Libraries: Culture, History, and Society.

Manuscripts submitted should not be previously published, previously submitted for publication, or under consideration for publication or another award. To be considered, essays should embody original historical research on a significant topic in library history, be based on primary sources whenever possible, and use good English composition and superior style. The Library History Round Table is particularly interested in works that place the subject within its broader historical, social, cultural, and political context and make interdisciplinary connections with print culture and information studies.

Essays should be organized in a form similar to that of articles published in Libraries: Culture, History, and Society and conform to the latest edition of the Chicago Manual of Style. Papers should not exceed thirty-five typewritten, double-spaced pages (plus endnotes and references).

Applicants must submit their manuscripts electronically. Applications must be received by February 20, 2025. The application deadline is firm, and any submissions received after the deadline will not be forwarded to the committee.

Please upload your manuscripts electronically via the web form:

Interested applicants can direct inquiries to Rachel Edford Trnka, Justin Winsor Award Committee Chair, rachel.trnka@ucf.edu. Please include “LHRT Winsor Award” in the subject line.

Mission

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LHRT encourages research and publication on library history and promotes awareness and discussion of historical issues in librarianship.

Libraries: Culture, History, and Society

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is peer-reviewed publication of the Library History Round Table of the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±ÏÖ³¡Ö±²¥ and the Penn State University Press, LCHS is available in print and online via JSTOR and Project Muse.

The only journal in the United States devoted to library history, LCHS positions library history as its own field of scholarship, while bringing together scholars from many disciplines to examine the history of libraries as institutions, collections, and services, as well as the experiences of library employees and users. There are no limits of time period or geography, and libraries of every type are included (private, public, corporate, academic, and school libraries, and special collections). In addition to Library Science, the journal welcomes contributors from History, English, Literary Studies, Education, Sociology, Gender/Women’s Studies, Race/Ethnic Studies, Political Science, Architecture, and other disciplines.
Manuscripts must be submitted electronically through LCHS’s Editorial Manager system at . They must also conform to the instructions for authors at . New scholars, and authors whose work is in the "idea" stage, are welcomed to contact the editors if they would like guidance prior to submission.

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Staff Contact

Danielle Ponton
Program Manager for Round Tables
dponton@ala.org