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Treasures from the Trunk
Heart of the Law School : Houston and Its Academic
Law Libraries
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by Christopher Anglim
This series now looks at the history of Houston's three
academic law libraries ( South Texas College of Law, Texas Southern
University, and the University of Houston), beginning with South
Texas.
Part I: South
Texas College Law Library
While the first classes of South Texas students largely
relied on either the Harris
County Law Library or their employers' library, a small law
library was available at the school. By 1924, it had approximately
600 volumes. Developed largely through donations, the library
essentially began with a gift of books from Judge Edgar E. Townes.
Without funds to purchase materials, the school actively solicited
donations. In 1927, the students raised money among themselves
in order to buy needed books in what was praised as an example
of "a real school spirit."By 1928, the collection could
support legal research of many state issues. Under the honor system,
every student had a key to the library and could study there at
any time. Realizing that improving the library was crucial to
the school's future, the Board of Directors created a permanent
library committee. To further develop the library, the YMCA considered
using some of the tuition for library uses in 1933. From 1946
to 1951, a library fee of 50 cents per each semester hour was
imposed on each student. In September 1951, the library fee was
abolished, but tuition increased by $2.00.
During the post-World War II era, the college faced
both the challenges of meeting ABA standards in order to continue
operations and competition from the University of Houston Law
School. While ABA accreditation includes standards on the quality
of the library, the college’s efforts to improve the library
were constrained by its ties to the YMCA and the YMCA's financial
limitations. Even by the 1950s, the collection could support only
limited legal research. Throughout the decade, however, the library
grew significantly as the college moved towards ABA accreditation.
The library had two rooms -- one housed stacks and a reading area
and the other housed another reading area. The library still relied
heavily on book donations. Both the Student Bar Association and
the Ex-Student's Association actively solicited for book donations
and sponsored "donation drives". .
The library lacked a professional librarian for several
years and the collection grew without proper planning or cataloging.
In 1952, John H. Rodell became librarian for both the YMCA's junior
college library and law school library, while also serving as
the college bursar. He cataloged the law library, rearranged the
law treatises, and weeded the collection. From 1958-1959, Richard
Ducote served as librarian for both libraries. From 1959 to 1961,
Garland Walker was the law librarian, which represented two advances:
1) the college now complied with the standard that the law school
should control its own library and 2) that the librarian was law-trained,
and therefore, would understand legal research. Georgia Ann Miers,
then a recent South Texas graduate, served as librarian from 1961
to 1965. The library's future growth along with that of the college,
depended largely on finding larger quarters. The library, along
with the college moved to its present location (then called the
Neal Building) in 1964. Mrs. Miers, supervised the move of the
collection. At first, the library occupied only a large room in
a part of the first floor. The college disassociated from the
YMCA in 1967.
In the two decades following the move, the library
gradually grew to a truly academic library. After Miers left to
practice law in 1965, the college was without a full-time librarian
until Frances H. Thompson was hired in 1966. She would be the
only librarian for the next seven years. The collection at the
time had only 18,000 books. During her early tenure, Mrs. Thompson
struggled to comply with ABA library standards. The library, however,
began to greatly expand. As various law school departments moved
into newly available space due to successive expansions, the library
grew into the vacated space in the Neal building. Space was a
chronic problem with a great increase in legal publishing and
the receipt of major donations. In 1974, the library was renovated
and expanded in the Neal building (now renamed the Cullen building).
The collection's growth again outgrew its space. Until the construction
of the "Tower" in 1984, the library was essentially
crammed into the back half of the Cullen building.
South Texas' historical emphasis on practical rather
than academic-oriented instruction, was reflected in the library's
collection. It had been inadequately supported while the college
was under the YMCA control and had minimal funds in the period
immediately following disassociation. From 1975 to 1986, the collection
grew substantially as Mrs. Thompson and Dean Walker sought to
remedy its deficiencies. For several years, the South Texas Law
Library had a very small staff. Growth in the college, the collection,
an increased number of users, the continuing effort to comply
with ABA Standards, and increasing complexity in the information
environment led to a need to hire more employees. Mrs. Thompson,
in meeting these needs, hired a solid technology- and public service-oriented
staff.
Advanced technology began being implemented during
Mrs. Thompson's tenure. WESTLAW was introduced in 1981 at South
Texas and then LEXIS in 1986. The library's cataloging was converted
to OCLC from 1982 to 1984 and went online in 1983. Audiovisual
media plays a crucial role in the new information environment.
The college's Audio -Visual (AV) Department, which begun in 1986,
quickly developed to serve a wide-range of audiovisual needs,
and is now a full-fledged multimedia center.
Ann Puckett, formerly an acting co-director of the
law library at Northwestern University, became library director
at South Texas in August 1987. She was attracted by the library’s
potential including a strong staff and financial, faculty and
administrative support. Professor Puckett greatly increased library
staffing. She found, however, that the library's size and layout
were inadequate. She was able to increase library space through
one small renovation, which also brought two large rooms within
the library’s control and placed library offices in a more
rational order. From 1991-1992, the library underwent an extensive
renovation, which expanded to the third floor and converted much
of the space in the older part of the Cullen building to library
uses. After that time, no further library expansion was possible.
A computer technology wing was created on the first floor, which
included a new computer classroom. The renovation also created
the Jesse H. Jones reading room for the library's Special Collections.
Professor Puckett implemented library automation, including the
Innovative Interfaces systems for acquisitions and serials, which
began service in 1989 and initiated planning for an On-line Public
Access Catalog (OPAC). Having an expansive view of public service,
Professor Puckett improved library service and communications
with library users (particularly faculty and students) and increased
responsiveness to their needs.
Professor Puckett, who left South Texas in July 1994 to become director of
the University of Georgia Law Library, was succeeded by Professor
David Cowan, formerly the library director at Baylor University School
of Law. He is pursuing plans to transform the library into 21st century research
facility. In 1995, funding for the OPAC was approved and the system went up
in January 1996. In order to increase space for users, accomodate a reasonable
expansion of the collection, and accommodate increasing use of technology,
Professor Cowan is currently pursuing a major library expansion and the establishment
of a campus network, accessible from remote sites electronically.
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