Working Catalog, Circa 1830-1848

File — Box: 09, Folder: 104

Identifier: MS002-09-104

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This catalog contains a relisting of the contents of the 1815 catalog and supplement sorted by the first letter of the alphabet with pamphlets listed separately as well as books added between April 1833 and the suspension of library operations after 1848 listed by subject. Although its initial form was compiled by George Drinker some time earlier, it does not appear to gone into effect until sometime after 1834 where there is a gap in circulation records. Because the numbering up to 1,725 remained the same, earlier print catalogs can also be employed for those number for the period from 1815-1848 even though this catalog alone can be used for the numbers 1,726-1,793 during that period.

Additions beyond 1,793 are only usable for the period 1841-1848, because they were relisted here under a combined subject/numbering system after being originally cataloged differently up to around 1,825. The later rearrangement left no record of how those 30 or so numbers should be understood during the period before 1834.

These later additions occupy the latter sections which include materials published from the late-1830s and early 1840s. Other indications of the ongoing nature of the listings include the blank entry for #351 at the end of Novels and Romances and the blank page with the heading “Biography” following the rest of that section.

The third, and final section, is the “List of Books from the Reading Room.” These are dated 1840-1841, and consist almost entirely of new additions to the periodicals with a few exceptions, chiefly among the first few entries. This suggests that the page may not have been used for its original purpose.

The title/subject organization of the latter part of the catalog is helpful in understanding acquisition priorities during the late-1830s and the Lyceum period of the 1840s.

The inside cover contains a calendar for 1833 going through February 1834, with the Thursdays closest to the middle of each month marked (none are the dates of official meetings). There is also a 29 March 1830 inscription by Drinker, Treasurer, authorizing James Dunlap in financial matters while he is librarian, which may predate the decision to use the book as a catalog. Drinker may have done the first 1,725 entries at that time in preparation for the publication of the 1815 supplement.

Dates

Record Keeping: Circa 1830-1848

Extent

From the Collection: 8.10 Cubic Feet (13 boxes, 2 oversize boxes, 1 record carton)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Arrangement

The catalog contains three separate arrangements. The first divides books alphabetically by the first letter of their title, with some further divided by the subheading “novels” at the end. “Pamphlets” appears between “P” and “R.” There is no clear arrangement within each letter. They may have been entered based on contemporary shelf locations.

These letter lists appear to include the contents of the 1815 catalog and the supplement with a different arrangement, except that the supplement went only to #1,725, while this work extended to #1,793. That number was first recorded as checked out on 10 April 1833, although the circulation records up to 1834 extend into the #1,820s.

The second section lists books by subject, sometimes with their own numberings, and sometimes simply by title.

These include the numerical listings:

History #1-122

-Ecclesiastical History

Biography #1-145
Voyages and Travels #1-213
Theology #1-113
Lexicography [crossed out] #1-6
Periodicals #1-31
Novels and Romances #1-350

As well as the unnumbered subjects:

Poetry, Belles Letters and the Drama
Lexicography, Statistics and Encyclopedia
Chemistry, Minerology, Surgery, and Materia Medica
Periodicals, Philosophy, and Miscellaneous and General Science
Law, Oratory of the Bar, and Military and Political Journals

Processing Information

This volume was difficult to date, for while an inscription makes clear that the book itself was in possession of the library by the end of March 1830, it does not make clear that it was being applied to its intended purpose. It contains a calendar suggesting 1833-1834, but books go until at least 1841 and perhaps 1844, and publication date can differ greatly from acquisition date. Circulation records also show that while created earlier, it was not yet the primary catalog by 1834, and due to gaps in the records we can only demonstrate that the subject system was in use between 1841 and 1848. Although Drinker’s name is everywhere, his long service as librarian prevents this information from being particularly useful. In light of all this, it was given a recordkeeping date of 1830-1848, indicating that the collection was documented and it could have been used by librarians during that period, new books were recorded there covering this period, even though the period of active use may have begun at a later, unknown date.