Herman H. Henkle

Herman H. Henkle (1900-1987) was a US librarian.

Herman Henkle
Credit: University of Chicago Photographic Archive, apf1-02750

Life

Herman Henry Henkle was born on March 26, 1900 in Colorado Springs, CO. He graduated in zoology and chemistry from Whittier College, California, then, at the University of California, Berkeley, he received a Certificate (1931) and an MA (1933) in library science with a thesis on "Bibliographic descriptions of some classical contributions to the literature of anatomy."

Henkle worked in the Biology Library at Berkeley, 1930-1935; then as Associate at the University of Illinois library school, 1936-1937. From 1937 to 1942 Henkle was Professor and Director of the Simmons College library school. In 1942 he became Director of the Processing Department of the the Library of Congress, then in 1947 librarian, later Executive Director, of the John Crerar Library, an autonomous science library in Chicago, until 1969.

Henkle was also active as a library consultant and lectured at the University of Chicago Graduate School from 1950. He died on October 3, 1987 in Chicago.

Contributions

Herman Henkle contributed as a library administrator, educator, and consultant. He was associate editor of American Documentation and of the Library Quarterly.

Publications

Numerous publications are listed in Google Scholar. [1]

• Bibliographic descriptions of some classical contributions to the literature of anatomy. MA thesis,
• "The Liberal Arts Function of the University Library." College & Research Libraries 2, no 1 (Dec 1940): 5-13. [2]
• Studies of descriptive cataloging: A report to the librarian of Congress by the director of the Processing Department ... Washington, DC: US Govt. Printing Office, 1946. [3]
• "The Classified Catalogue as an Aid to Research." Allerton Park Institute (6th: 1959). Champaign, IL: Illinois Union Bookstore, 1959, pp 42-52.
• The Colorado collection : a bibliography of books, pamphlets & maps in the Colorado-Henkle collection, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois. Denver: Denver Court Place Antiquarian Book Shop & Gallery, 1981. Items collected by Herman Henkle.

Offices

• American Association of Library Schools. President, 1941-42.
• Special Libraries Association. Executive Board, 1941-1947; President, 1945-46.
• American Documentation Institute. President, 1958.

Awards

• Whittier College. Hon. D. Litt., 1961.
• Special Libraries Association. Hall of Fame, 1971.

Further reading

• Who's Who in Library Service. 4th ed. Ed. Lee Ash. New York: Shoe String Press, 1966, p. 295.
• Who’s who in library and information services. Joel M. Lee, ed. Chicago: American Library Association, 1982, p 210.

Papers

• University of Chicago Library, Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center.
  • Graduate Library School. Records, Box 3, Folder 15. [4]
  • Archival records of the John Crerar Library, University of Chicago. [5]