Not your stereotypical librarian

Hugh Atkinson didn't look like the stereotypical librarian. He was a big, tall man, with red hair and handsome features. He wore a black patch over his right eye as the result of a childhood accident. He often wore black leathers since his usual mode of transportation was a large black Honda motorcycle.

Atkinson came to Illinois in l976 to be the director of the library at the University of Illinois. Previously, he had been the director of the Ohio State University Library in Columbus.

Remember: it is l976, the early days of computerization of our society. But Atkinson soon hatched a futuristic vision for making the enormous collection of the University of Illinois library available to the whole state, and also mobilizing the collections in many other libraries in Illinois for University of Illinois students. Atkinson strongly believed that library users didn't care where the book came from, as long as they could get it. He was willing to take the leadership role in sharing the university's holdings in return for the same privilege for the university's students and faculty.

He told an interviewer, "I don't mind lending 100 books if I can borrow 10 books U of I patrons need. Strict reciprocity is less important to me than satisfying patrons."

Atkinson approached the task of building a statewide locating tool for items held in libraries by utilizing a computerized and shortened version of what appeared on the catalog cards common at the time. He employed minimum wage workers for this task and gradually, over time, they accomplished the task of computerizing the over-10-million records representing the holdings of the university library.

At the same time, Atkinson used his considerable personal and political skills to motivate leaders of other Illinois libraries to undertake similar efforts. He enlisted the aid of the State Library of Illinois, which in turn utilized federal grant money to fund many of these projects. The result, in a fairly short period of time, was an incredible network of libraries that could deliver anything owned by any participating library to any library user. Called ILLINET, this approach to resource sharing between libraries revolutionized library practices around the world. All of this happened between l976 and l986.

Sadly, Atkinson died suddenly of cancer at age 53 in l986. Library colleagues at the state and national level were not only stunned and saddened for the loss of a friend, but also for the loss of the creative and energetic spirit that was Hugh Atkinson.

In Illinois, a special award was created to be given annually for "sustained activity and contribution having a lasting impact on librarianship." It was my distinct honor to be given the Hugh C. Atkinson Memorial DEMCO Award last month at the annual meeting of the Illinois Library Association. Not only was I honored and humbled to be considered "somewhat Hugh-like," but also, it is a privilege to be considered a member of the "Hugh club" consisting of winners from all the other years.

Listen to my podcast with Bridget Lamont, former director of the Illinois State Library and colleague of Hugh Atkinson, as she remembers the terrific force of his personality as well as his many accomplishments. Visit librarybeat.org for access.