Volume 9, September 12, 2013 for the WSL Updates mailing list

Topics include:

1) THERE’S STILL TIME TO SING WITH OUR KIDS

2) INFOCAMP SEATTLE 2013

3) CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS FOR NOVEMBER ALKI

4) PLEDGE TO PREPARE

5) PROTECT YOUR COMMUNITY’S CULTURAL HERITAGE

6) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES NEXT WEEK

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From the Desks of the Central Library Staff

Longtime Olympia political fixture, C.B. Mann was born Nov. 2, 1844 in Crawford County, Pennsylvania. Mann attended Willamette University in Salem, Oregon and graduated from Portland Business College before arriving in Olympia in March 1870.

He was assigned to the position of Territorial Librarian and served from Aug. 1 to Nov. 6, 1870. C.B. initially held the occupation of school teacher in Oregon and was chosen school district principal in Olympia at the same time he was Librarian.

A Republican, Mann held a variety of public offices: City Treasurer, County Treasurer, County Commissioner, and Olympia Mayor (1894-1895).

A bottle from C. B. Mann’s apothecary.

Later in life he was active in gathering historical and biographical data on the pioneers of Thurston County. In a sad coincidence, although in different states Mann and his only son, Claude, died almost simultaneously on October 19, 1929.

Mann was also the topic of an earlier blogpost here, “Digging Up History“.

[The Territorial Librarian profiles were compiled by Sean Lanksbury, Mary Schaff, Kim Smeenk, and Steve Willis]

Image courtesy North Pend Oreille Heritage collection

Library News
Lawns at Pierce County Library System (PCLS) branches will be brown this summer as a money-saving measure. PCLS anticipates $8,300 in savings from not watering and, as a result of letting lawns die, less mowing. (South Pierce County Dispatch [Eatonville], 6.26.13) http://www.dispatchnews.com/?p=2706

The Anacortes Public Library recently redesigned its website and public catalog. Library director Cynthia Harrison said recent survey results told them searching the catalog is the top reason library patrons visit the website. The survey also revealed the catalog has been a source of frustration. (Anacortes American, 6.26.13) http://www.goanacortes.com/news/entry/library_launches_redesigned_website

Quilcene students are learning to navigate new technology thanks to a gift from the Port Ludlow Yacht Club Women’s Group. The group’s 49 women put together a beauty pageant fundraiser that netted $3,800, and in November 2012 Quilcene’s school librarian Kelly Ingalls received a surprise check. (Photos) (The Leader [Port Townsend], 6.26.13) http://www.ptleader.com/news/education/e-books-open-new-wave-of-learning-at-quilcene/article_3fdd3dbf-1a62-5dc8-b100-11c3450d584d.html

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WSL UPDATES SPECIAL EDITION FOR FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2013

Note: The next regular edition of WSL Updates will appear on Thursday, September 12, 2013.

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WANTED – THREE BRANCH LIBRARY ASSOCIATES

The Office of the Secretary of State, Washington State Library, is recruiting for three permanent full-time Branch Library Associates. One position is available at each of the following locations:

• Washington State Reformatory in Monroe;
• Coyote Ridge Corrections Center in Connell;
• Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla.

All applications are to be submitted through the Careers website at www.Careers.wa.gov. For additional information, review the job posting at www.sos.wa.gov/office/employment.aspx. Please share this announcement with anyone who may be interested.

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The Washington State Library has gone social! Friend/follow us at:

• Facebook: on.fb.me/FBWSL;
• Twitter: twitter.com/WAStateLib.

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An archive of WSL Updates is available at http://list.statelib.wa.gov/read/?forum=wslupdates.

William H. Packer

From the desk of Steve Willis, Central Library Services Program Manager of the Washington State Library

William H. Packer was probably among the last living Civil War veterans in Washington State. In his eventful life he was able to strut and fret his hour upon the stage alongside Edwin and John Wilkes Booth, serve in the Union Army, and help found a Socialist Utopian community in Washington State.

Changing his surname from Packard to Packer in order to avoid detection from his family, William enlisted in the Union Army and initially served as a drummer boy but eventually took up arms. He saw quite a bit of action including Gettysburg, Rappahannock, and the fall of Richmond.

The following profile is from page 1 of the March 11, 1921 issue of the Bay-Island News, published in Gig Harbor. The piece was originally printed in the Tacoma Ledger.

BOY ACTOR OF ’59 LEARNS ART OVER

Gig Harbor Man Who Appeared with Booth Studies Stagecraft Here.

“Sputtering gas lights, which cast a yellow glare, floors built on a slope that the audience might have a better view, scenery sections built on flats or rollers, which made a great rumble when brought together in the middle of the stage, and strictly conventional furnishings of the somewhat showy style of the period– such was the stage on which W.H. Packer of Gig Harbor, began in 1859, a boy of 14 years, with Edwin Booth and John Wilkes Booth, a stage career which was cut short by the Civil War.”

“Now, at 76, Mr. Packer is learning modern methods in stagecraft as taught at the Drama Institute last week at the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ clubhouse. Heavy velvet drapes, concealed lights casting a soft, indistinct glow, shaded footlights or sometimes no footlights at all, fanciful settings, such as only a most imaginative mind could evolve, these are some of the changes Mr. Packer has found in the stage of today. But despite the changes, he says he thoroughly enjoyed the institute and believes that he ‘may shift into some sort of play.'”

“Born in Boston, Mr. Packer was attending school there when he had an opportunity to fill an auxiliary role in ‘Hamlet,’ in which Edwin Booth was playing the lead. It was greatly to the envy of his schoolmates that he appeared on the stage at the same time as the great actor. All spare moments following school hours found the boy at the Boston theater, watching every movement, listening to every word of the man whose fame as an American actor had spread throughout the country. A few months later he was given a part in the play in which John Wilkes Booth was then taking the lead.”

Drummer Boy in Civil War

“Then came the Civil War, and Mr. Packer, a boy of 16, enlisted as a drummer boy in the 11th United States infantry. For three years and month he served in the army and on receiving his discharge returned to Boston, where, a short time later, he was married. Mrs. Packer, however had no such admiration for the theater as had her young husband so he gave up his idea of becoming a famous actor and turned his attention to becoming an expert electrician. He and his wife traveled over the United States for a time, the electrician sometimes finding employment in a theater where he gave much time and attention to working out new lighting effects.”

“On their return East, Mr. Packer became head of the city light department at Binghampton, N.Y. Here he continued his experiments in lighting and when Admiral Robert E. Peary returned to the United States after discovering the North Pole, and was to give a lecture in the Binghampton theater, Mr. Packer was asked to arrange the stage.”

“‘That was the hardest job I ever had,’ said Mr. Packer. ‘I wanted to show the Northern lights and a rainbow. I worked on it for a long time but finally managed to get a beautiful effect. Maybe the Northern lights weren’t just right but most of the people had never seen them anyway, so it didn’t make any particular difference.'”

Map of Burley, WA

One of Founders of Burley

“Twenty-two years ago, in the fall of ’98, the wanderlust again seized Mr. Packer and he and his wife started for the Pacific coast. They arrived in Seattle, stayed there for three months and then, with a man by the name of DeArmond, of Colorado, they started to explore the surrounding country. Rich farming land, found not far from Gig Harbor, decided them to start a colony there and, with the advent of a few more families, the settlement was given the name Burley, now six miles from Gig Harbor.”

“Five years ago Mr. Packer’s wife died, just three months before they were to have celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary. Mr. Packer continued to work his little farm until four months ago when he sold his home and moved to Gig Harbor.”

Our earlier profile of the Burley commune in this blog included a map, and on it you can plainly see W.H. Packer had a nice chunk of land very close to the center of the settlement. Packer was appointed the first Postmaster of Burley in early 1901.

According to Charles Pierce LeWarne’s Utopias on Puget Sound 1885-1915, Packer, who had a white beard at the time, was able to use his thespian skills while playing the part of Santa Claus for the community’s children.

William H. Packer died in the veteran’s hospital in American Lake on November 20, 1937. The Bay-Island News changed its title in 1923 and became the present-day Peninsula Gateway. The Washington State Library has both titles available on microfilm here in Tumwater or via interlibrary loan.

From the desk of Steve Willis, Central Library Services Program Manager of the Washington State Library

If you are a repeat visitor here at WSL’s Central Library you will no doubt notice some changes in our lobby. What you are seeing is an experiment that is the result of brainstorming from several staff members and one exceptional volunteer. But first, a bit of background.

The Feb. 2001 6.8 Nisqually Quake hammered most of the buildings on the Capitol Campus to the point where they were not safe to inhabit. Unfortunately for us, the Pritchard Building, our old home, was pretty solid with concrete and rebar and survived relatively intact. We were sitting on prime real estate. And so we had to move.

Time was of the essence and by the end of 2001 we relocated to a new office building in neighboring Tumwater. This structure was not designed to be a library, but we have been very creative in trying to adapt to our architectural restrictions.

The actual browsing portion of our collection is on the 2nd floor. This means the library customer has to walk through the lobby and then take an elevator. Before our massive budget cuts we had our circulation desk in that area, but now it is just an empty room with signage and some library displays.

Since we have moved out here to the site of Washington’s first American settlement on Puget Sound we have seen several new office buildings erected and filled with Washington State agencies. Our new neighbors. This area has essentially become Capitol Campus South. And so far as I can ascertain, our lobby is the only truly public state government space (without a commercial coffee bistro) on this campus where a person is not confronted by a security guard and is compelled to account for their presence.

So as a community space, and in the spirit of reaching out to our neighbors, we are going to give different state agencies some display ground as a public service. We want to be the hub of Capitol Campus South. Our services overlap the needs of all of our CCS fellow residents. The most dominant presence out here is the Washington State Dept. of Health, and they have been wonderful in being willing to take the risk and work with us on this idea.

Now for the really good part. This year WSL turns 160 years of age. It could be easy to dismiss us as antiquated.

But get this.

DOH selected West Nile Virus (which apparently is still a problem) as their theme for the exhibit. As I collected library materials to supplement this display it became apparent that the bulk of what the Washington State Library has to offer on this topic is not in hardcopy, but digital. Among the over 20,000 electronic state publications we have captured, cataloged and preserved are numerous titles on this topic. Just by using our catalog you can access entire DOH publications on this or any other subject.

And this service isn’t limited to just DOH.

Try it, you’ll like it. And you’ll see we offer a very unique electronic portal into all aspects of Washington State government and public service. Providing online access to state government publications in an organized and centralized manner with detailed subject headings supports the concept of transparency and enhances public discourse. No one else does this as well as the Washington State Library.

Recently WSL Public Services became the main information source for questions coming into the Access WA website, the primary online gate into Washington government, demonstrating that although we are steeped in history we remain very much a part of Century 21.

Well, my, my, I sort of strayed there. But hopefully I have explained some of the thinking behind the experiment in the WSL lobby.

From the desk of Judy Pitchford

Digital Collections has added 3 more titles to our Classics in Washington History.

Under Native Americans –

Indian myths of the Northwest by William Lyman.

This book attempts to cite original sources for Indian Myths. It also identifies the scholars and investigators of the myths that Mr. Lyman felt were reliable.

Under Natural History –

Some hydroids from Puget Sound by Gary Calkins

A paper from the Proceedings of the Boston society of natural history that examines approximately 30 species of hydroids found in Puget Sound around Port Townsend and Bremerton.

Under Exploration and Early travel / Pioneer Life –

Two studies in the history of the Pacific Northwest by Edmond Meany

A reprint originally published in the Annual report of the American Historical Association of 1909 containing :

1. The towns of the Pacific Northwest were not founded on the fur trade — 2. Morton Matthew McCarver, frontier city builder

Classics in Washington History is a digital collection of full-text books, bringing together rare, out of print titles for easy access by students, teachers, genealogists and historians. Visit Washington’s early years through the lives of the men and women who lived and worked in Washington Territory and State. All items are available in DjVu (Plugin required) and Pdf formats.

Volume 9, September 5, 2013 for the WSL Updates mailing list

Topics include:

1) FIRST TUESDAYS – IMPACT SURVEY

2) LAST CALL FOR LCW APPLICATIONS

3) BE LUCKY AND CATCH THE WALE EARLY BIRD NOW

4) 2014 WLA CONFERENCE SEEKS PROPOSALS

5) DISASTER PLANNING – BEYOND COLLECTIONS

6) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES NEXT WEEK

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Sylvester Hill Mann

From the Desks of the Central Library Staff

He was born May 6, 1817 in upstate New York. Raised in Pennsylvania, Mann was a soldier in a volunteer unit during the Civil War in 1862-1863. His occupation as a Methodist minister took him all over the Pacific Northwest. The Mann family arrived in Oregon’s Willamette River Valley via the Isthmus route in 1864. By 1870 Rev. Mann was sent to Olympia, where he found himself appointed to fill out the Territorial Librarian term of the late Mr. Mabie. He took the oath of office June 21, 1870. As the June 20 issue of the Daily Pacific Tribune reported: “The decease of J.D. Mabie having left this office vacant, Acting Gov. Scott has appointed Rev. S.H. Mann to fill it until the next Legislature convenes. We heartily approve of this appointment, though it is questionable whether the new incumbent will be able to fill it for the unexpired term, as the next Methodist Conference will probably assign him to another field.” There was no “probably” about it. They did. To Seattle. By Aug. 1, his son, C.B. Mann, was taking the oath of office as his replacement. The roughly five weeks of Rev. Mann’s term might be a record for brevity in the office. He was sent to Seattle in 1870-1872, Steilacoom 1872-1874, and finally to Brownsville, Oregon in 1874. He died there Mar. 15, 1876. Considered “somewhat retiring,” his poor health was attributed to his involvement in the Civil War.

[The Territorial Librarian profiles were compiled by Sean Lanksbury, Mary Schaff, Kim Smeenk, and Steve Willis]