Dr. Alex Poole named 2022 LHRT Justin Winsor Library History Essay Award winner

CHICAGO — The Library History Round Table (LHRT) is pleased to announce that this year’s Justin Winsor Library History Essay Award winner is Dr. Alex H. Poole for his paper, “Will the day ever come when we will be judged on our merit and not on our blackness?” The Rise of the Black Caucus of the American Library Association, 1970-1975.” Dr. Alex Poole is an Associate Professor in the College of Computing & Informatics at Drexel University.

The selection committee found the paper to be extremely well-researched and well-written in a highly readable style. The paper’s chronological documentation of the Black Caucus draws readers in quickly with its discussion of the group’s early leadership. A highlight of the paper is its inclusion of the work of E. J. Josey and Wayne and Shirley Wiegand. Dr. Poole has been invited to submit his essay for possible publication in the official LHRT journal Libraries: Culture, History, and Society.

The committee members recognize this work as an invaluable resource for historians and archivists in the years to come about the rise of the Black Caucus of the American Library Association. We congratulate Dr. Poole for this valuable contribution to the scholarship of library history.

The Justin Winsor Award is named in honor of the distinguished nineteenth-century librarian, historian, and bibliographer who was also ALA’s first president. To be eligible, essays must embody original, previously-unpublished historical research on a significant topic in library history, be based on primary sources, and use good English composition and superior style. The winner is awarded a certificate and a $500 cash prize.

Justin Winsor Library History Essay Award Committee
Sheila Devaney, Chair
Barbara Blummer
Stacy Hisle-Chaudri
Cindy Mediavilla
Jeffrey Stainbrook