The Lumberjack's Boxcar Library

The problem of getting books into the hands of readers has been solved in many ways over the centuries.  Of course, one of my favorites is the bookmobile.  A classic, and staple of rural life in the 20th Century.  But in 1919, there was something else in the works to get books into the hands of the lumbermen in the employ of the Anaconda Copper Mining Co.  The Anaconda company is one of those "too big to fail" sorts in the history of Montana-- it's name was apt.  But that's not to say this wasn't a great idea.

Beginning in 1919, this railroad boxcar was refitted to be a library on rails to serve the mobile timber camps in western Montana.  The men and their families could be in these remote camps for a few months at a time, and undoubtedly anticipated the days when the library car came.  That's how it was at least where I grew up on bookmobile days.  According to the info posted, it was perhaps administered by the Missoula Public Library.  I would certainly love to hear more about how this "cooperative effort" really worked between the public library and the Anaconda Co.

I'd also love to get my hands on lending records--- what were lumberjacks reading in the 1920s?  Especially lumberjacks with access to an ostensibly public library working for an enormous multi-national "evil empire" type corporation whose practices gave rise to the modern organized labor movement?  How were books selected?  Did the employees and their families enjoy it?  It must have been effective since it was in use into the late 1950s as a library by the Anaconda Co.  After that, it was used by the University of Montana at one of their lumber research stations-- first as a library then as a dormitory.  It was later used for storage, until it was discovered by the museum and acquired for restoration and interpretation of the timber history of the region.

To interpret my own photos a little, the floor plan above is oriented opposite of how the car actually sits in the first photo.  The restoration is underway, and although I know the administration at the museum where it is, I haven't had a chance to chat with him about the project.  It certainly is impressive, and should be on the biblio-tourists list of stops when passing through Montana.

Today this railroad bookmobile resides at the Historical Museum at Fort Missoula in Missoula, Montana.  The restoration so far is impressive indeed.

Of course, if you know more about this amazing piece of bibliophilic history, please get in touch.  A real dream would be records, or even a book with markings that showed it was used on this unique library.  Even if it's not about this particular library on rails, I'd love to hear about others.  Do any others even exist?  Surely they do, but I've had a hard time finding any online.  I know the Historical Museum at Fort Missoula would also appreciate any stories as well.

Happy Library Week

In honor of library week, I'd like to direct your attention to a *very* cool thing. If you've read my blog for very long, you know I have a thing for bookmobiles. So, here is your chance to own your very own Parnassus on Wheels:

Ebay item: 270551067368. And believe me, I've shopped for horse-drawn vehicles in the course of my day job (museum curator), and this one is right on the money so to speak, judging by the photos. It would make a killer artifact for the currently forming American Writers Museum! Although, they've said they will not be an archiving institution (enough others do this, and do it well), they did not say if the new museum would be a collecting institution.

Bookmobile Toy at Auction

I had a slew of the old steel Tonka trucks my Dad grew up playing with. There was a firetruck, a pickup with a horse trailer, a big yellow dump truck I could put my knee in and push myself around scooter-style. I loved these trucks for the fact they were made of steel, like a real truck. They had hard rubber tires unlike my other toy trucks that had soft tires and plastic bodies.

So, another bookmobile grabbed my attention this week. This time it is on ebay, and it is in perfect original condition. The seller pegs it as 1950s and it is likely Japanese in origin. Seller had to add the word "bookmobile" to the listing, as the toy was marketed as "Children's Book Service Car." This thing is just beautiful, and is currently sitting at $350.00! It may sound like a lot, but try to find another one. The seller describes the toy:

"The library on wheels was a fairly common sight in the North American suburbs of the 1950s and one that is captured nicely in this 11.5 inch toy by some obscure Japanese toy maker (signed with the trademark "AN"). The truck comes with a working friction motor and measures 11.5 inches in total. It is in mint condition and comes with its beautifully illustrated original box. It is the only example of this toy that I have seen to date."

There are several things I really like about this toy. The first is the colors. I also find the awkward English phrases charming. "Lets Read the Good Books!" and "Children's Book Service Car." I also like the fake book covers painted on the side and that the books look as though they open left-to-right and some open right-to-left. Two things I don't like. The biggest thing (to me) is that you'd need some freakin' huge kids to be able to reach those books! Maybe if I made a little matching rolling ladder to go with it. The other is the extremely constipated expression on the children's faces on the protective doors. They do not look eager to read the good books. It looks like the back door swings down, but the seller didn't clue us in for sure. Otherwise, these are tantalizing images. Perhaps all the more as we can't see inside.

I casually looked around the internet this week for other bookmobile toys. There don't seem to be very many. Have you seen any? Did you have one as a kid? Do you have it still? Will you send it to me?

Ex Libris Mobilis

. I've recently run into Tom online. Tom is the lucky owner of a 1955 Chevy bookmobile named Baby. Can I even begin to say how jealous I am? Very cool. He is planning to hit the national car show circuit with it next year, with a compliment of pre-1955 books. If you're curious if he has a copy of Here Comes the Bookmobile by Dirk Gringuis, published in 1952, yes he does. From what I understand, it is the first bookmobile book written for kids. Anyone know of one earlier? According to Tom: "In the Spring of 1955, the Anderson, South Carolina Library ordered a Second-Series Chevy 3600 Chassis-Cab, and sent the unit off to Rock Hill, SC to have the book box built. The Rock Hill Body Company (RHBC) created the box, an evolutionary design with walk-in center core and exterior fold-out wing doors. In '58, the Anderson County Library System was created by referendum, and the Bookmobile continued in service till 1991." I asked if he planned on using a bookplate for the collection and he did not know what a bookplate was. I directed him to Confessions of a Bookplate Junkie. If you are not familiar with Confessions, it is my favorite ex libris blog. I was also curious if anyone out there have ever seen a bookplate, specific to bookmobiles, or featuring bookmobiles. I've certainly never seen one. I asked Mr. Junkie, of the above plugged blog, and it turns out that he hasn't either. Perhaps they'd be more appropriately called ex libris mobilis. Thinking about it, if a bookplate featured a bookmobile, it would be from a collection of books that stayed with the bookmobile, and did not generally circulate among a library system. It seems that many (most?) libraries stock bookmobiles with books from the general circulating collections, so a bookmobile specific bookplate seems unlikely. Perhaps a mobile branch librarian could help us out? The four photos of Baby the Bookmobile are inside and out "As Found", and inside and out, "Cleaned up". She's in an amazing state of preservation. I can't wait to see her on the road! .