In the Southeast Pavilion of the Jefferson Building, also called the Hall of Elements, sun filters through the east- and south-facing windows, warming the yellow walls and bringing a glow to the beautiful surroundings. The disc in the domed ceiling, appropriately enough, represents the sun.
This graceful corner room adorned with pastel-colored paintings representing air, earth, water and fire is the new home of the European Reading Room.
Previously located in the adjacent second-floor South Curtain, the reading room was moved to make more space available for exhibitions. The European Division’s staff colonnade or office area, located between the old reading room and the new one, was unaffected by the reallotment of space.
Staff and readers, many of whom were wary of the move at first, are steadily adjusting to their new quarters.
“Overall, the room is working,” said Grant Harris, head of the European Division Reading Room. “The readers’ comments I’ve heard so far have been just slightly positive, but keep in mind that those who knew the old reading room preferred it; it’s a hard act to follow.”
That preference is easy to understand, because the previous reading room had spacious proportions, elegant mahogany furnishings, stair-step bookcases and book-filled catwalks.
Current access to the new European Reading Room is through the Hispanic Reading Room and the Hispanic Division office area. After February 2009, when an Abraham Lincoln exhibition will open in the South Curtain, the public will be able to reach the European Reading Room through the exhibition space and a corridor along the staff offices of the European Division.
Although reading room space was downsized and the décor has changed, the new quarters function well. The reference collections are easily accessible, and a massive rearrangement of 4,000 serial titles and 1,600 shelves resulted in a net gain of 166 linear feet of reference shelf space, which allows for more reference materials.
The new reading room itself lost 250 linear feet of reference shelf space from the 1,069 linear feet that were available previously, but the European Division added 425 feet of open shelving in the stacks adjacent to the staff colonnade, about 30 yards from the new reading room. Open to division researchers, this stack area for reference materials is separate from Library collections housed in other Library stacks that are closed to the public and general use by the staff.
“Ideally, we would want all reference books out in the reading room. Having to walk 30 yards away for some of them is not ideal, but it works,” said Harris.
Periodical-display shelving also had to be reduced. But readers are not viewing the printed current issues as much, now that the Library of Congress subscribes to more than 15,000 online serials, including 200 Russian newspapers and periodicals.
In addition to periodicals, the reference collection includes encyclopedias, bilingual dictionaries, biographical works, general histories and bibliographies.
Michael David-Fox, an associate history professor at the University of Maryland, uses the European Reading Room in its new location in the Southeast Pavilion of the Thomas Jefferson Building.
- Michaela McNichol
Harris and his colleagues looked at reader usage to determine which reference books to house on the shelves in the new reading room. Beginning in 2006, reading rooms in the Library started to keep sign-in sheets to determine usage and indicate countries of interest for researchers. From that information, Harris determined that 80 percent of visitors were most interested in researching, in the order of popularity, Russia, Germany, France, Poland, Italy, Romania and Hungary. Reference books pertaining to those countries, as well as the general sections for Europe, Eastern Europe and Western Europe, were placed in the new reading room.
Reference books for the remainder of the European countries are housed in the stack area that is open to European Division readers.
In the coming months, the reading room will take on a more coherent look, after the arrival and installment of tall wooden shelves that will replace the oversized temporary white metal shelves. These new shelves will match the style and wood finish of the tables and lower shelves already in the room.
Another major change involves the reader tables. The previous reading room contained six tables. Each table could accommodate six researchers, creating a 36-seat capacity. The new reading room has three tables that yield 18 seats. Only once, since the previous reading room opened in 1997, have there been more than 18 readers in the reading room, according to Harris. On that occasion, there were 19 researchers. So, he said, the three tables should be sufficient; what the readers might lose on a busy day is elbow-room.
Harris said the designers, artisans, workmen and technicians deserve credit for conducting the move on a tight schedule. The large reference desk had to be disassembled and moved into the new reading room, where it presides along the north side of the pavilion. The five public-access computers and the computer dedicated to Comintern Electronic Archives were transported to the new site. The photocopier and the microfilm machines occupy the foyer space between the staff colonnade and the pavilion. “We have pretty much everything we had before,” said Harris.
Throughout the move, the European Reading Room, in one location or the other, remained open for researchers. There were a few awkward weeks, but the public was always able to consult with staff, request books online, make use of electronic resources and access the reference collections and study shelves.
“The move happened so fast,” said Harris. In early 2008, Harris and his staff started to notice workers from the Architect of the Capitol come by and carefully look around the reading room. The European Division was told of the relocation on March 18, and four months and one week later the new reading room opened on July 25 in the Southeast Pavilion.
Some regular researchers in the European Reading Room were upset when they heard news of the impending move. Four scholars created a blog titled “Save the European Reading Room at the LC!” which was active online from March to May. In addition, letters of protest were sent to the Library of Congress administration and to members of Congress. The criticism has subsided as researchers realize the European Reading Room remains open and materials remain accessible.
Harris said the staff is adapting to the change. And to say thanks to the public for its support, the staff decided to host a tea. On a Friday afternoon in April, they invited researchers to the nearby European Division conference room for tea and cookies. About 10 people attended. The event was a success, with interesting and scholarly conversations taking place.
“It was so successful and appreciated that we continue to hold the teas on Friday afternoons. Enough of our staff likes the idea,” said Harris. Each week staff members take turns bringing in tea bags and cookies or cake.
And so scholarship—enhanced with lagniappe, as they say in New Orleans—continues.
