Bodelian Library

The Bodelian Library is the research library of the prestigious University of Oxford. One hard-working, diligent person gets to be the head librarian, who is called "Bodley's Librarian." Sir Thomas Bodley saw the need for a librarian, and the first one was hired in 1602. Currently, Bodley's Librarian is Sarah Thomas, the first women, and the first American to reach this position. By earning an MLIS from Simmons college, and ten years laters a Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins, she is a great inspiration for a current library student.

Sir Thomas Bodley gained a fortune by marrying a wealthy widow, this money was used to refurbish the library that is now called the Bodelian. His goal was to keep it a research library and not allow patrons to take books home, but rather complete their research at the library. The library still operates this way, as an academic reference library. Much of what Sir Bodley desired is still kept in mind by the current employees. There have been many gifts throughout the years that keep the library funded. Kenneth Grahame, the author of Wind in the Willows gave the royalty money from his copyright to the library. The Bodelian was able to collect these funds for 70 years after the author died. Another statute that Bodley required was that the library must be open to any scholar, so anyone studying anything can take the oath to become a reader at the Bodelian. Bodley truly wanted the library to benefit everyone. The oath still requires readers to promise not to light a fire in the library. Broken statutes include the one regarding lighting and the librarian allowing to get married. No lights were allowed in the Bodelian, making it hard for professors who taught all day to do research in the evening. It was not until the 1920's that lights were installed. Fire was the main concern, rightfully so, since the collection is vast and contains rare books including a Gutenberg Bible. Modern lights do not pose as a severe fire risk. Bodley also insisted that the head librarian not be married, but later broke his own rule by allowing his very first one to marry.

The librarians know how to handle the collection very well. Books needed for undergraduate studies are highly accessible, and students are able to get to the information themselves without the assistance of a librarian. The cataloging system is in Latin, but is also done by subject. The library can benefit researchers who are not even in England because some of its collection has been digitized by Google. The parts available are books that are both out of copyright, and would be useful to scholars. This does not infringe on any copyrights.