UpFront with NGS: Library Cards

07 September 2017

September is Library Card Sign-up Month! Do you have one or maybe more library cards in your wallet?

September is Library Card Sign-up Month! Do you have one or maybe more library cards in your wallet?

For the first time in ages, I got a new library card recently. I have long-held cards to several libraries and starting on 1 September, the State Library of North Carolina started offering library cards to NC residents. The picture above is a selfie with my new card (please excuse the awkward angle and after all, it is a selfie!). Here’s part of the email I received about the new library card opportunity …

September 1^st all NC residents can get a Government and Heritage Library card. Even though our genealogy/family history collection will not circulate there are still a lot of great items that will be available in addition to some of our databases such as JStor and Newspaper Archive. Here is a list of our research databases and online tools, https://statelibrary.ncdcr.gov/ghl/resources/online. Anything with an NCLive logo or NC icon means you can access it remotely with a State Library of NC library card. With a GHL card you can request materials through ILL [Interlibrary Loan] and pick up here as long as the materials you are requesting fall in line with the State Library’s mission of NC history, culture, etc.

I was told though that I couldn’t order any dystopian teen fiction through ILL . Looking at the referenced list above, besides what’s mentioned, there is access to Fold3 and several of my favorite newspaper archives, including some that I don’t personally have access to now (ProQuest Historical Black Newspapers, 19^th Century U.S. Newspapers Digital Archive, etc.).

Have you recently checked out your local library and its services? They may have new offerings that will support your family history research!

Or, you might find, like I did, that an entity where I could not previously get a library card, has now expanded who it serves.

To learn more about Library Card Sign-up Month, check out this link from the American Library Association.

This September, crimefighting DC Super Heroes, the Teen Titans, will team up with the American Library Association (ALA) to promote the value of a library card. As honorary chairs, DC’s Teen Titans will remind parents, caregivers and students that signing up for a library card is the first step towards academic achievement and lifelong learning…

… Everyone loves superheroes, not just because they do great things, but also because they inspire us to be our best selves. And there's no better place to discover and develop your superpowers than at the library.”

Share a selfie with your most treasured library card?

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Unless indicated otherwise or clearly an NGS Public Relations piece, Upfront with NGS posts are written by Diane L Richard, editor, Upfront with NGS.

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29 June 2016

When Was The Last Time You Used a "Physical" Library Card?

Library Cards -- Opened So Many Windows Into Literal and Imaginary Worlds

Is the Library Card Dying?

This was a recent post title on The Atlantic.

Definitely inspired some nostalgia in me. I remember visiting our town library and the musty smell of the books back in the research section (a very dark room compared to the children’s book section which was all bright) … I loved to always see new books listed on my library card. It was always special to go to the library and take out books. We only owned a set of encyclopedias, some Nancy Drew books and Reader’s Digest Condensed Books. I loved what we had and one can only re-read the same stories so many times before you crave something new!

Our library used the system mentioned here from the article …

Of all of the charging methods, the two-card system—invented around 1900 in Newark, New Jersey—is probably closest in concept to the present-day library card. It also seems to inspire the most nostalgia … In a two-card system, each book had a card attached on which checkouts were recorded, and each borrower had a separate card listing his or her selections. The practice of keeping individual book cards continued until the era of computerized checkout systems.

And, the concept of privacy was non-existent. You could always see who had taken out a book before. It wasn’t even something I thought of. On the other hand, it’s not like the library carried books that anyone would be embarrassed or concerned about taking out. My library just didn’t carry anything like that.

I hadn’t really thought out this until the article mentioned …

The library cards of today, squares of plastic with bar codes for quick scanning, have an additional advantage beyond the ease of the system: They allow for greater user privacy. When a book is checked out, the book’s information is linked to the borrower’s in the computer, but as soon as a book is returned, the system erases the link between borrower and book.

Who knows how the future will handle our access to library materials. My most recent use of my “library card” was just a virtual use. I input my library card number and pin to log-in, I then signed up for an e-book, I received an email of its availability, I then accessed the book via my Kindle and my transaction was done. I honestly don’t know where my “physical” library card is. I have not used it in years, maybe even longer!

Some related posts about library cards and systems, you might read:

+ Browne Issue System

+ Vintage Library Cards

+ Vintage Library Cards (The Library History Buff)

+ Old Library Bookcards

Do you still have and use a physical library card?

What is your fondest memory of your local library?

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NGS does not imply endorsement of any outside advertiser or other vendors appearing in this blog. Any opinions expressed by guest authors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the view of NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Think your friends, colleagues, or fellow genealogy researchers would find this blog post interesting? If so, please let them know that anyone can read past UpFront with NGS posts or subscribe!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Suggestions for topics for future UpFront with NGS posts are always welcome. Please send any suggested topics to UpfrontNGS@mosaicrpm.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Unless indicated otherwise or clearly an NGS Public Relations piece, Upfront with NGS posts are written by Diane L Richard, editor, Upfront with NGS.

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Want to learn more about interacting with the blog, please read Hyperlinks, Subscribing and Comments -- How to Interact with Upfront with NGS Blog posts!

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