150 YEARS STRONG

The Sesquicentennial

During the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876, 103 librarians (90 men and 13 women) responded to a call for a “Convention of Librarians,” held October 4-6 at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. The aim of the Association, in that resolution, was “to enable librarians to do their present work more easily and at less expense.” Attendees came from as far west as Chicago and even from England, and those who signed the register at the end of the two-day conference became charter members of the newly-formed American Library Association.

Now that we are firmly in the 21st century, and looking towards commemorating ALA’s sesquicentennial anniversary, we are given the opportunity to revisit and reflect on the many moments in ALA history that have impacted librarianship. ALA has been at the forefront of the library profession, and has also fallen short of the ideals of its mission. The Sesquicentennial is a space to revisit ALA’s history and to explore the potential directions of its future. It will host both updates on upcoming anniversary projects, and deep-dives into ALA’s history.

Now that we are firmly in the 21st century, and looking towards commemorating ALA’s sesquicentennial anniversary, we are given the opportunity to revisit and reflect on the many moments in ALA history that have impacted librarianship. 

Stay tuned to The Sesquicentennial for 150th commemoration updates and highlights from ALA’s long and impactful history. If you would like us to explore a specific moment or topic of ALA’s history in a future post, please email us.

150 YEARS STRONG

THE OFFICIAL ANNIVERSARY BLOG

ALA posters

Posters of Progress: Mapping ALA’s History Through Library Poster Art

American Libraries June 9, 2026

From wartime appeals to celebrity-studded reading campaigns, library posters have long captured the evolving role of libraries in American life. This feature traces ALA’s history through some of its most iconic visuals. Together, these images chart a story of the profession’s unflinching ideals of access, literacy, and intellectual freedom, showcasing how libraries continue to reimagine their place in public life.

An index card tracking an ALA conference exhibition hall exhibitor from 1924-1947.

The Heartbeat of the Hall: 150 Years of Exhibitors Who Shaped Our Conference

ALA Conference Services June 3, 2026

Every year as the doors of ALA’s Annual Conference and Exhibition swing open, the exhibition hall comes alive. It is a ritual that has been repeated, refined, and reimagined throughout ALA’s 150-year history. And at the center of it all, providing the innovations, solutions, and partnerships that have propelled our profession forward, are the exhibitors. To mark this milestone, we look back at the rich history of exhibitors at the conference—where it began, how it grew, and why, 150 years on, the exhibition floor remains one of the most vital spaces in our professional world.

Librarian at the Reference Desk in Camp Johnston Library, from the ALA Archives.

Charles R. Green at Camp Johnston: ‘We Can Find Such a Man’

Cara Bertram May 28, 2026

During the summer of 1918, Charles Green, a librarian from the Massachusetts Agriculture College, served as the Acting Librarian for Camp Johnston in Jacksonville, Florida. While his tenure was brief, the Charles R. Green Papers in the American Library Association (ALA) Archives reveal Green’s rapid appointment and promotion. It also shows how quickly circumstances could change within the ALA’s Library War Service and the adaptability of its volunteers.

Detail of letter from Lynn Blaylock to the Intellectual Freedom Committee.

‘Nothing Could Have Astonished Me More’: The Challenge of Consumer Reports

Cara Bertram May 21, 2026

Due to communist hysteria before and after World War II, many organizations and publications were under suspicion of being affiliated with or promoting the Communist party, including Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports, the product testing and consumer advocacy magazine. As a result, Ohio schools banned the use of Consumer Reports in the classroom. While the ban was short-lived, the questions about it were not and the ALA Intellectual Freedom Committee noticed the attempts to ban the publication.

A detail from the Library Bill of Rights, 1967.

The History of the LeRoy C. Merritt Humanitarian Fund

Faith McConnon May 19, 2026

To financially support librarians who have been denied employment rights or discriminated against on the basis of gender, sexual orientation, race, color, creed, religion, age, disability, or place of national origin or denied employment rights because of their defense of intellectual freedom, ALA created the LeRoy C. Merritt Humanitarian Fund, named in honor of a staunch defender of intellectual freedom and editor of ALA’s Newsletter on Intellectual Freedom.