THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, MAy 16, 2025 Page 5 ~ The Old Sachem ~ The librarian behind the Dewey Decimal System By Bill Stewart M elville Louis “Melvil” Dewey was born on December 10, 1851. He was the American librarian who invented the Dewey Decimal System that is used by every library in America and throughout the world. He became a chief librarian at Columbia University, the founder of what would become the Columbia University School of Library Service and a founding member of the American Library Association, then became its first president. He briefly attended Alfred University in 1870, then went to Amherst College and belonged to Delta Kappa Epsilon. He obtained a bachelor’s degree in 1874 then went on to obtain a master’s degree in 1877. He was a college junior when he proposed to the faculty a reorganization of the college library using a simple standardized system he created for cataloging. With agreement from the faculty, he created the system, and within a decade the Dewey Decimal System had been adopted in libraries across the country. He became Acting Librarian at Amherst, and he created the Library Bureau in 1876. He created high-quality index cards and filing cabinets along with a numerical system of cataloging library books. He moved to Boston in 1877, where he founded and became the President and Editor of the Library Journal, which became the influencing factor for his system of development for libraries in America and reform of their administration. Dewey also supported a decimal metric system of weights and measures and established the American Metric Bureau. He advocated spelling reform, and from 1883 to 1888 he was the librarian of Columbia College in New York City. In 1884 he founded the School of Library Economy, which was the first school to train librarians. He became the Director of the New York State Library in 1889, in which he established the program of traveling libraries. He was also secretary of the University of the State of New York. Dewey reorganized the state library system. In his early life he made powerful enemies, and his friends described him as difficult as well. He could not control himself against women; Dewey was guilty of unwanted hugging and kissing. In 1929 he settled out of court for $2,147, which would be over $39,000 today, in a lawsuit by a former stenographer. Dewey was a great librarian but not very good in his relationship with women. Now you know how the current American library system was created. “The Old Sachem,” Bill Stewart. (Courtesy photo to The Saugus Advocate by Joanie Allbee) (Editor’s Note: Bill Stewart, who is better known to Saugus Advocate readers as “The Old Sachem,” writes a weekly column – sometimes about sports. He also opines on current or historical events or famous people.) SABATINO/MASTROCOLA INSURANCE AGENCY 519 BROADWAY EVERETT, MA 02149 Auto * Home * Boat * Renter * Condo * Life * Multi-Policy Discounts * Commercial 10% Discounts * Registry Service Also Available Sabatino Insurance is proud to welcome the loyal customers of ALWAYS READY TO SERVE YOU: Our Staff are, Emma Davidson, Jeimy Sanchez, Josephine Leone, Marie D’Amore, Rocco Longo, Z’andre Lopez, Anthony DiPierro, Darius Goudreau, Laurette Murphy, Danielle Goudreau and Tina Davidson. PHONE: (617) 387-7466 FAX: (617) 381-9186 Visit us online at: WWW.SABATINO-INS.COM
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