Wayne August Wiegand (born April 15, 1946) is an American
library historian, author, and academic. Wiegand retired as F. William Summers Professor of Library and Information Studies and Professor of
American Studies
American studies or American civilization is an interdisciplinary field of scholarship that examines American literature, history, society, and culture. It traditionally incorporates literary criticism, historiography and critical theory.
Schol ...
at
Florida State University in 2010.
Early life and education
Wiegand received a BA in history at the
University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh
The University of Wisconsin Oshkosh (UW Oshkosh or UW Osh) is a public university in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. It is part of the University of Wisconsin System and offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degree programs to nearly 14,000 students e ...
(1968), an MA in history at the
University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee
The University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (UW–Milwaukee, UWM, or Milwaukee) is a public urban research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It is the largest university in the Milwaukee metropolitan area and a member of the University of Wiscon ...
(1970), and an MLS at
Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University (Western Michigan, Western or WMU) is a public research university in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It was initially established as Western State Normal School in 1903 by Governor Aaron T. Bliss for the training of teachers ...
and a Ph.D. in history at
Southern Illinois University
Southern Illinois University is a system of public universities in the southern region of the U.S. state of Illinois. Its headquarters is in Carbondale, Illinois.
Board of trustees
The university is governed by the nine member SIU Board of Tr ...
(1974).
Career
Wiegand was Librarian at
Urbana College in Ohio (1974-1976), and on the faculties of the College of Library Science at the
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state ...
from 1976 through 1986, and the School of Library and Information Studies at the
University of Wisconsin–Madison
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...
from1987 through 2002. He moved to Florida State University in 2003. At the University of Wisconsin-Madison he served as founder and Co-Director of the Center for the History of Print Culture in Modern America (a joint program of the University and the
Wisconsin Historical Society
The Wisconsin Historical Society (officially the State Historical Society of Wisconsin) is simultaneously a state agency and a private membership organization whose purpose is to maintain, promote and spread knowledge relating to the history of N ...
established in 1992).
He served as William Rand Kenan Jr. Visiting Professor at the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...
and as Fellow in the UW–Madison's Institute for Research in the Humanities. He was an elected member of the
American Antiquarian Society
The American Antiquarian Society (AAS), located in Worcester, Massachusetts, is both a learned society and a national research library of pre-twentieth-century American history and culture. Founded in 1812, it is the oldest historical society i ...
and a
Spencer Foundation
The Spencer Foundation was established in 1962 by Lyle M. Spencer. This foundation makes grants to support research in areas of education that are widely construed.
Founder
Lyle M. Spencer was the founder of The Spencer Foundation. Spencer gre ...
Fellow. Between 2004 and 2007 he served as Executive Director of
Beta Phi Mu
Beta Phi Mu (also or βφμ) is the international honor society for library & information science and information technology. Founded by a group of librarians and library educators, the society's express purpose is to recognize and encourage "su ...
(the International Library and Information Science Honor Society). Wiegand co-organized the Florida Book Awards as a member of the faculty of the FSU Program in American & Florida Studies. For the academic year 2009-2010 he shared time between
Florida State University in
Tallahassee
Tallahassee ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2020, the population ...
and the
Winter Park Institute of
Rollins College, where he was "Scholar in Residence." In 2011 he received a Short-Term Fellowship from the
New York Public Library.
Writing
From 2008-2009, he had a Fellowship from the
National Endowment for the Humanities
The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) is an independent federal agency of the U.S. government, established by thNational Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965(), dedicated to supporting research, education, preserv ...
to write a book entitled Part of Our Lives:' A People's History of the American Public Library''. The book was published by
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...
in 2015. Notable among library histories for its emphasis on user experience and the role of libraries as community institutions, the book has been described as a "landmark" in library history marked by "impassioned advocacy" and "solid scholarship". The book precedes a documentary on the American public library (release expected in 2019) by independent film makers.
From January to May, 2017, he was distinguished visiting scholar at the
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library ...
's
John W. Kluge Center
The John W. Kluge Center at the Library of Congress invites and welcomes scholars to the Library of Congress to conduct research and interact with policymakers and the public. It also manages the Kluge Scholars' Council and administers the Kluge ...
, researching a book on the history of American public school librarianship. It will appear as “American Public School Librarianship: A History” (Johns Hopkins University Press) in Fall, 2021.
In Spring, 2018,
Louisiana State University Press published "The Desegregation of Public Libraries in the Jim Crow South: Civil Rights and Local Activism," a book he coauthored with his wife, Shirley A. Wiegand. It was awarded the 2019
Eliza Atkins Gleason Book Award Eliza Atkins Gleason Book Award is presented by the Library History Round Table of the American Library Association every third year to recognize the best book written in English in the field of library history, including the history of libraries, l ...
by the Library History Round Table of the American Library Association.
Personal life
Wiegand is married to Shirley A. Wiegand. They currently reside in
Walnut Creek, California
Walnut Creek is a city in Contra Costa County, California, United States, located in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, about east of the city of Oakland. With a total population of 70,127 per the 2020 census, Walnut Creek s ...
.
Bibliography
;Books:
"Part of Our Lives: A People's History of the American Public Library." Oxford University Press, 2015
* ''Main Street Public Library: Community Places and Reading Spaces in the Rural Heartland, 1876-1956.'' University of Iowa Press, 2011.
* ''Irrepressible Reformer: A Biography of Melvil Dewey.'' American Library Association, 1996.
*"''An Active Instrument for Propaganda:" The American Public Library During World War I.'' Greenwood Press, 1989
*"Patrician in the Progressive Era: A Biography of George von Lengerke Meyer." Garland Publishing, 1988.
*"The Politics of An Emerging Profession: The American Library Association, 1876-1917." Greenwood Press, 1986.
*''The History of a Hoax: Edmund Lester Pearson, John Cotton Dana, and the Old Librarian's Almanack.'' Beta Phi Mu. 1979.
*With Sarah Wadsworth, ''"Right Here I See My Own Books:" The Woman's Building Library at the World's Columbian Exposition.'' University of Massachusetts Press, 2012.
*With Shirley A. Wiegand; ''Books on Trial: Red Scare in the Heartland.'' University of Oklahoma Press, 2007.
*With Shirley A. Wiegand; "The Desegregation of Public Libraries in the Jim Crow South: Civil Rights and Local Activism." Louisiana State University Press, 2018. ()
;Edited Books:
*''Leaders in American Academic Librarianship: 1925-1975.'' Beta Phi Mu, 1983.
*''Supplement to the Dictionary of American Library Biography.'' Libraries Unlimited Inc., 1990.
*With Donald G. Davis, Jr., ''Encyclopedia of Library History.'' Garland, 1994.
*With James P. Danky, ''Print Culture in a Diverse America.'' University of Illinois Press, 1998.
*With Thomas Augst; ''Libraries As Agencies Of Culture Print Culture History In Modern America.'' University of Wisconsin Press, 2002.
*With Anne Lundin, ''Defining Print Culture for Youth : The Cultural Work of Children's Literature.'' Libraries Unlimited, 2003.
*With Diana Tixier Herald ''Genreflecting: A Guide to Popular Reading Interests, Sixth Edition.'' Libraries Unlimited, 2005.
*With James P. Danky ''Women in Print: Essays on the Print Culture of American Women from the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries.'' University of Wisconsin Press, 2006.
*With Pamela Spence Richards and Marija Dalbello, "A History of Modern Librarianship: Constructing the Heritage of Cultures." Libraries Unlimited, 2015. .
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wiegand, Wayne A.
1946 births
20th-century American historians
American male non-fiction writers
21st-century American historians
21st-century American male writers
American librarians
Florida State University faculty
Living people
People from Manitowoc County, Wisconsin
People from Walnut Creek, California
Southern Illinois University Carbondale alumni
University of Kentucky faculty
University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty
University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee alumni
University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh alumni
Western Michigan University alumni
Historians from California
Historians from Wisconsin
20th-century American male writers