Evening star., 1940-05-12
CLARA WELLS HERBERT.

| ClAr0 WellS HERBERT as librarian,
effective October !, after re-electing
Or. George r. Bowerman, as librarian
to serve until Miss Herbert assumes
the post.
Miss Herbert has been assistant
librarian since 1920 and DR.. Bower
man librarian since 1904. He reached
the retirement age, 10, In September,
1888, but President Roosevelt, at the
request Of the trustees, and the
District Commissioners, granted two
extensions Of year each. The ex-
tension period expires October /.
In their resolution asking for the
first extension, the trustees pointed
out that DR.. Bowerman's services
| were desired because his advice was
needed in planning new central
library, an improvement which has
been one of DR.. Bowerman's chief
interests for many years. Under his
direction, the library so grew that its
circulation of 276,0OO books in 1904
had expanded by last year to almost
5000, 900.
Miss Herbert is 81. She was born
in Southwick. Me-. and Is a great
niece of Cyrus w. Field, the inventor,
who supervised the laying of the
first Atlantic cable. She attended
Vassar College and received her pro-
fessional training at the Carnegie
Library School, Pittsburgh, Pa. She
served five years in the Brooklyn
Public Library and joined the
Washington Public Library April 16,
1907, as head of children's work.
Served as Personnel Officer.
Subsequently Miss Herbert was
put in charge of training classes.
and for a number of years she has
been the nbrary's personnel ofncer.
She has written many articles in
professional periodicals and is the
author of Personnel Administration
In Public Libraries" published In
1899 by the American Library Asso-
citation.
Miss Herbert has been president
of the District of Columbia Library
Association. She Is member Of the
American Library Association, the
American Association for Adult Edu-
cation, the American Association Of
University Women, the District Lii,
brary Association, the Monday Exk-..
ming Club and the Twentieth Cen
tury Club. She attends st. Johns
Episcopal Church.
The. trustees, according to their
views made public after the election
meeting, felt that Miss Herbert was
the person best qualified to direct
and make Of the library an increas-
ingly important factor In the life
Of the community, because OF her
long and efficient service as assistant
librarian, her familiarity with the
problems Of the public library sys-
TEN of Washington and because Of
her intimate knowledge of the need
and requirements that have justified
congressional appropriation for the
new central library building.
DR.. Bowerman . New Yorker.
DR.. Bowerman was born on a
farm near Rochester, N. Y, and
received his education at Genesee
Wesleyan Seminary, Lima, N. Y,
and the University Of Rochester,
from which he was graduated in
1892 with the bachelor of arts
degree. In 1895 he received
degree Of bachelor Of library science
from the New York State Library
School, Albany, N. Y.
DR.. Bowerman spent two years
on the editorial staff of the New
York Times, 1898 to 1900, and
then for q year was on the staff
Of the New International Encyclo-
pedia before going to Wilmington,
Del, for library work. There he
revitalized an outdated library unit
by establishing cooperative rela-
tons with schools and popularizing
children's departments and adding
features modern at the time, now
in vogue almost everywhere there
is library.
DR.. Bowerman once declared a
library should be q place where
'all seekers after truth can find
all sides of every question" He is
active in civic organizations. He has
lectured on library science at George
Washington University. He serves
on the Citizens Joint Committee
on National Representation for the
District and is q member Of many
clubs.