Library History

Libraries at Converse College

Carnegie Library
1905-1951

In the earliest years the college library was housed first in the Annex and then the west wing of Wilson Hall. In 1904, President Pell secured a gift of $10,000 from Andrew Carnegie for the construction of a separate building to house the library. This grant is said to have been among Mr. Carnegie's earliest gifts to an institution of higher learning. With stacks to hold 25,000 volumes, four study rooms, a general reading room, a seminar room, and offices, "Carnegie", as this building of graceful neoclassic design was named at its dedication in 1905, was a long step from the one or two rooms first called the library. From 1914 to 1948, Dr. Weldon Myers, beloved professor of English, and chairman of the Library Committee the entire time he was at Converse, was primarily responsible for the strengthening of the collections in the library. Since the construction of Gwathmey, in 1951, Carnegie has provided valuable classroom and office space.

Gwathmey Library
1951-1980

By the early 1940s the need for a new library was obvious, and in 1944, Mr. H. Arthur Ligon was made chairman of the fundraising committee under whose direction Gwathmey Library was built. Many alumnae remember the day of the book brigade organized by college librarian Louise Carlisle and Physical Education Instructor Henrietta Browning in February, 1951, when students and faculty formed a line and transferred the college's collection of books from the old library to the new. Gwathmey Library, completed in 1951 at a cost of $200,000, "dedicated to students, past, present, and future," and named for President Gwathmey on his retirement in 1955, was designed by J. Russell Bailey, a specialist in library design. Three stories high, with a capacity for 100,000 volumes, the 20,000 square foot building sounded a note of modernity in design of which Converse was justifiably proud, since she was the first among women's colleges in the Southeast to build a library in the years following World War II.

Mickel Library
1980 - Present

In 1980, a major library addition of 20,000 square feet was built at the head of a newly formed academic quadrangle. The addition, designed by Walker O. Cain of Cain, Farrell & Bell of New York, the successor firm to the beaux-arts firm of McKim, Mead and White, resulted in a revolution of library service to the Converse community. Named Mickel Library after Buck and Minor Mickel, the addition allowed room to house a total of 180,000 volumes, greatly expanded seating capacity, a new, larger circulation desk, ten new enclosed and soundproofed study carrels, a new soundproofed recording room, greatly expanded listening facilities, an Alumnae room, and a new student lounge. The $2,000,000 investment has allowed much more varied library services to our student body, and helps to assure the continuing excellence of our academic offerings and reflects our pride in our reputation as a distinctive liberal arts college for women.

During the 1990s, a grant from the Mickel family helped to establish an archives within the library. The Mickel Library Archives was built during the winter of 1995-96, and was dedicated in the fall of 1996. Dr. Jim Harrison, former library director, became the college's first archivist.

Mickel Library continued to change and grow in the late 1990s. The library began work on an automation system in 1997, and by fall of 1998 the system was fully operational, with an online catalog and full searching capabilities.

Between 1998 and the present, the library developed a fairly extensive website, which includes (among other important resources) 15 online periodical indexes and reference works. Additional databases have been provided by state funding through the PASCAL and DISCUS programs. Together, these online resources give users access to the full text of more than 19,000 academic journals, newspapers, and magazines, as well as to literary criticism, short biographies, art images, and other reference information.

Currently, the library contains more than 151,000 books and other cataloged items (e.g., CDs, DVDs, and music scores). Subscriptions to periodicals in print and microform total 591.

Since the year 2000, substantial improvements have been made to the library’s physical plant. Much of the HVAC system has been replaced with new components. New carpeting has been installed throughout the building, and the first floor has been repainted. More importantly, six computer workstations in the reference area and two in the music library have been upgraded to newer models with additional software and functionality, and other new hardware (e.g., laser printers, CD burners, and AV equipment) has been installed in public areas, as needed. This has resulted in a more inviting and studious environment where students can work on library assignments without significant distraction.