| Klau Library | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | 3101 Clifton Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio, 45220, United States |
| Type | Research library |
| Scope | Judaism, Hebraica, biblical studies |
| Established | 1875 |
| Branch of | Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion Library System |
| Branches | 4 |
| Collection | |
| Size | 600,000[1] |
| Other information | |
| Website | https://huc.edu/libraries/cincinnati/ |
Klau Library (Cincinnati) is a Jewish research library on the Cincinnati campus of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. It is the oldest and largest of the College-Institute's libraries.
History
editThe library was founded in 1875 alongside Hebrew Union College by the school's founder, Isaac Mayer Wise. It was known as the Hebrew Union College Library until 1961, when it was renamed in honor of Board of Governors member David Klau.[2][3]
The library began as a collection of textbooks locked in a chest and managed by the janitor of the first Hebrew Union College building in downtown Cincinnati.[4] This collection numbered 103 in 1875. Eventually, a faculty member was assigned as "librarian."[5] In 1878, the Union of American Hebrew Congregations voted to fund book acquisition for the library, and the collection began to grow.[6] The purchase of books was supplemented by donations, like the private library of Rabbi Samuel Adler, which was given to the library upon his death in 1891.[7]
When the College moved to Clifton in 1912, the Bernheim Library Building was built, named for Isaac W. Bernheim of Louisville, Kentucky.[8] This building now houses The Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives.
Under the leadership of Adolph S. Oko, the library quicky outgrew this building. In 1925, after Oko returned from Europe with the library and museum collection of S. Hirschstein of Berlin, the College began planning the library's next building.[9]
The building was dedicated on May 31, 1931.[10] The new building became home to the library, and the Bernheim Building housed the Hebrew Union College Museum (now the Cincinnati Skirball Musuem).
In 1961, the expanding library moved into its current building, dedicated as the Klau Library on June 3, 1961.[11] The Dalsheimer Rare Book Building was also built to house the rarest and most valuable materials in the collection.
In the 2000s, the building was renovated to accommodate the collection and make room for growth. On November 1, 2009, the renovated Klau Library was dedicated, along with The Jewish Foundation of Cincinnati Library Pavilion, the library's new atrium.[12] The Dalsheimer Rare Book Building was destroyed, and its collections were moved to the David Ellison Rare Book Room.
Notable personnel
edit- Adolph S. Oko: Biographer and Spinoza scholar, library director
- Michael Wilensky: Medieval Hebrew grammarian
- Jordan Finkin: Yiddish scholar and translator
- ^ "Klau Library HUC Cincinnati". Association of Jewish Libraries. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
- ^ "Bamberger, Zellerbach, Klau and Silberman On Board of HUC-JIR". The American Israelite. 10 Mar 1955. Retrieved 3 April 2023.
- ^ "HUC Ordains 14, Dedicates New Library". The American Israelite. 8 June 1961. Retrieved 3 April 2023.
- ^ "Dream Will Be Realized When H. U. C. Library Building Is Dedicated". The American Israelite. 28 May 1931. Retrieved 3 April 2023.
- ^ Karff, Samuel, ed. (1976). Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion At One Hundred Years. Cincinnati: Hebrew Union College Press. p. 25.
- ^ Karff, Samuel, ed. (1976). Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion At One Hundred Years. Cincinnati: Hebrew Union College Press. p. 25.
- ^ Karff, Samuel, ed. (1976). Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion At One Hundred Years. Cincinnati: Hebrew Union College Press. p. 25.
- ^ "Seventieth Anniversary Supplement: The American Israelite". The American Israelite. 24 July 1924. Retrieved 3 April 2023.
- ^ "HEBREW UNION COLLEGE ACQUIRES VALUABLE COLLECTION OF JUDAICA". The Jewish Exponent. 12 Mar 1926. Retrieved 3 April 2023.
- ^ "Dream Will Be Realized When H. U. C. Library Building Is Dedicated". The American Israelite. 28 May 1931. Retrieved 3 April 2023.
- ^ "HUC Ordains 14, Dedicates New Library". The American Israelite. 8 June 1961. Retrieved 3 April 2023.
- ^ "HUC sets Klau Library dedication for Nov. 1". Cincinnati Business Courier. Oct 26, 2009.