Mary Cutler Fairchild

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Mary Salome Cutler Fairchild (1855-1921) was a pioneering American librarian and library educator.

Mary Cutler was born in Dalton, Massachusetts. She attended Mount Holyoke College (then Mount Holyoke Female Seminary) and graduated in 1875. In 1884, she was hired by Melvil Dewey, the librarian of Columbia College, as a cataloger. When Dewey opened the first library school, Fairchild taught cataloging. She moved with it when the school moved to Albany. She served as vice-director in addition to teaching. Because of Dewey's frequent absences she conducted much of the administration of the school. She served the school for 16 years.

In 1897, Fairchild married Edwin M. Fairchild, a Unitarian Minister. She pioneered library services for the blind. She organized the New York state library for the blind in 1899 and was active in the American Library Association serving as president twice (1894-1895 and 1900-1901).

"Salome C. Fairchild" is a member of the Library Hall of Fame.

[edit] See also

List of librarians

[edit] References

"Fairchild, Salome Cutler." The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography. 10:263264. 1929.
"Fairchild, Mary Salome Cutler." American National Biography. 7:684-685. 1999.
"Fairchild, Mary Salome Cutler (1855-1821)." Dictionary of American Library Biography. Pages 167-170. 1978.