Frank L. Turner, Professor Emeritus of Library Science at Texas Woman’s 
University, died on February 17, 2010 in Dallas TX.

Dr. Turner was a beloved colleague, friend, and mentor. He was a man of 
great charm, a gentle ironist who had a sentimental side. He enjoyed the 
proprieties of professional and personal life, while refusing to let 
such things interfere with his whimsical, independent spirit. He loved 
life, but he never let life take him too seriously.

Dr. Lynn Akin (TWU) remembers, “He was always impeccably turned out, 
prepared for class, and when he lectured, out came that soft, Southern 
accent (at least it sounded southern to me, from New Jersey). Take the 
accent and add his bow ties and I thought I was in a Southern novel. He 
could lecture on a wide range of subjects, from the academic to the 
professional to the arcane.” To Dr. Louise Robbins (University of 
Wisconsin), "He was the consummate teacher with a gift for analogy that 
was both apt and humorous." And Dr. Nancy Zimmerman (University of South 
Carolina) adds, “He was also a true scholar who shared with us the 
historic heart of librarianship. He inspired us as future professors to 
ask, ‘What do we teach that truly matters?’ and so we left his classes 
not merely learned or capable, but with good habits of the mind grounded 
in human caring.”

Frank Turner was born in Little Rock AR in 1930 and was raised there. He 
earned a BA in History at Rhodes College in Memphis in 1950, followed by 
MA and PhD degrees in History at the University of North Carolina. He 
taught history as an Instructor at Arlington (TX) State College 
(1960-61), Assistant Professor at Northeast Louisiana University 
(1961-66), and as Associate Professor at the University of Southern 
Mississippi (1966-69) and at Stratford College (1969-70). He switched 
careers after earning an MLS at Louisiana State University in 1971 and 
became Library Director at Henderson State University (1971-74). He 
joined the library science faculty of Texas Woman’s University in 1974, 
where he taught until his retirement in 1992. He served as Acting 
Director of the Library School in 1976-77 and counted among his 
contributions that he helped select the new Director, Dr. Brooke 
Sheldon. Dr. Turner taught academic librarianship, cataloging, 
information professions, and his signature doctoral seminar, Books, 
Libraries and the Cultural Heritage.

He had many leadership roles at TWU, taking pride particularly in his 
role in the Faculty Senate (1984-87). He was a member of the Council of 
the American Library Association (1979-83), member of the Texas Library 
Association Executive Board (1979-83), and Chairman of the Southwestern 
Library Association (1980-82). He was a member of Phi Beta Kappa, Phi 
Alpha Theta, and Beta Phi Mu.

Keith Swigger, Ph.D.
Professor, Texas Woman’s University

-- 
Keith Swigger, Ph.D.