A new history of ASLIB, 1924‐1950

Abstract

Purpose -ASLIB -the Association of Special Libraries and Information Bureaux -was founded in 1924 with the aim of co-ordinating the activities of specialist information services in the UK. This article seeks to present a new history of the first quarter-century of the Association. Design/methodology/approach -This is a historical study based substantially on two collections of primary documents: ASLIB's own records, held at Aslib Headquarters, London; and the papers of Edith Ditmas, held at the National Library of Wales. Findings -The paper explores the origins of ASLIB, and its roots in the "science lobby" of the time; it then traces the development of ASLIB as both a "national intelligence service" for science, commerce and industry, and as a quasi-professional association with international significance. It concludes that the first of these two functions was the Association's fundamental raison d'être.Research limitations/implications -The research is limited to study of ASLIB in the period 1924-1950 and an obvious continuation would be a history of "corporate" ASLIB . More generally, the paper reveals that the history of UK documentation and information science in the twentieth century is underexplored: there is scope for future research focused on key pioneers and ideas, as well as institutions such as ASLIB. Originality/value -As far as is known, this is the first historical study of ASLIB to be based on contemporary records: it should therefore be of value to both historians of information and library science and practitioners interested in their professional heritage.

‘So wide and varied’: The origins and character of British information science

“…However, as we shall discuss later, the special library influence was particularly strong in the development of information science in Britain. This was particularly so because of the very strong overlap in Britain between special librarians and those supporting the new documentation movement [16]; indeed it is difficult to make a distinction between them. The British organization affiliated to the IIB was the British Society for International Bibliography, founded in 1927, which merged with Aslib in 1948 [16].…”

“…This was particularly so because of the very strong overlap in Britain between special librarians and those supporting the new documentation movement [16]; indeed it is difficult to make a distinction between them. The British organization affiliated to the IIB was the British Society for International Bibliography, founded in 1927, which merged with Aslib in 1948 [16]. It is worth noting that it was strongly supported by librarians, one of its main protagonists being SC Bradford of the London Science Museum library.…”

“…The Institute of Information Scientists (IIS), the professional association for the new discipline, was formed in 1958; its associated newsletter, The Information Scientist, became the Journal of Information Science in 1967. However, it is arguable that this marked the conclusion of the process of discipline formation; Muddiman [16], for example, suggests that the launch by Aslib of Journal of Documentation and Aslib Proceedings in the 1940s marks the coming of age of the British documentation/information science discipline.…”

“…The increased awareness of technical information as a resource, for science-based industries in particular, led to the establishment of special libraries, and to the idea of 'information work' as distinct from librarianship, from the end of the nineteenth century [16,23,24]. These, compared with traditional libraries, had a much more pro-active role, a strong subject focus, and an interest in all forms of information, not just formally published documents [24,32].…”

“…In the UK, the Association of Special Libraries and Information Bureaux (Aslib), was formed in 1924 with the aim of coordinating the activities of specialist information services in the UK and with a role as a national intelligence service for science, commerce and industry [16]. National groups of special librarians were formed in many other countries, and it is not suggested that Britain had any unique interest in special libraries; on the contrary, the foremost international body for this sector, the Special Libraries Association, was founded in the USA in 1909 [29,34].…”