History of Original Project.

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Pioneers of Information Science

The original project was initiated by Dr. Robert V. Williams, Distinguished Professor, Emeritus, School of Library and Information Science, University of South Carolina. The project is funded by the Association for Information Science and Technology (ASIS&T), including the Special Interest Group on Foundations and History of Information Science (SIG HFIS), and the University of South Carolina College of Library and Information Science. The objectives of the project are to locate and document the archives and personal papers of individuals and organizations considered significant to the history of Information Science and Technology in the 20th century. While the project started focusing on pioneers in the US and Canada, it has extended globally to include important pioneers worldwide. The site was originally created in 1996.

People and Organizations in the Original Project

Questions and problems

Background

In response to a proposal made by SIG/HFIS in 1994, the ASIS SIG Special Projects Fund awarded a small grant to the University of South Carolina College of Library and Information Science for the purposes of: 1). identifying the early pioneering individuals and organizations of information science in North America; 2). determining the location of personal and corporate papers for these people and organizations; 3). preparation of a bibliography on the history of information science in North America. An advisory group of long-term ASIS members and historians of information science worked with the project. The project was completed in 1996.

This project was initially funded by a $4,000 grant from the SIG Project Fund of ASIS. Additional funding and support has been provided by the Eugene Garfield Fellowship of the Chemical Heritage Foundation, the University of South Carolina College of Library and Information Science, and by personal funds.

The Advisory Board members for the project were: Charles Bourne, Colin Burke, Michael Buckland, Irene Farkas-Conn, Trudi Bellardo Hahn, Norman Horrocks, Stella Keenan, Donald W. King, Michael E. D. Koenig, Boyd Rayward, Pamela S. Richards, John Richardson, Claire Schultz, Winifred Sewell, Jerry Sophar, and Herbert S. White.

Colleen Bradley and Laird Whitmire, graduate assistants to the project, helped in the compilation of this information and creation of the database. The web page was developed by Shannon White and Laird Whitmire, graduate assistants in the USC College of Library and Information Science.

Limitations

The biographical and historical information on the individuals and organizations included was compiled from limited secondary sources and was not considered complete, but was intended to serve for general identification purposes. Compilation of complete biographical information was not intended. The individuals and organizations listed were limited to North America. Funding was not available to extend the project beyond North America.