Esther Green Bierbaum, 1928-2010
Dr. Esther Green Bierbaum, a
beloved professor in the School of Library and Information Science at The
University of Iowa from 1983 to 1996, died Sunday, February 14 at her home in
St. Petersburg, Florida.
Dr. Bierbaum’s courses in
cataloging, technical services, and special librarianship were highlights of
the program for many students. She
brought intellectual rigor, passionate commitment, and grace and humor to her
teaching. Her scholarship and research
was broad, reflecting her interest in the common ground between museums and
libraries, as well as in special librarianship and bibliographic retrieval.
Dr. Bierbaum was author of Museum Librarianship: A Guide to the
Provision and Management of Information Services in Museums (2d ed.,
McFarland, 2000) and Special Libraries in
Action: Cases and Crises (Libraries Unlimited, 1993). Her scholarly contribution included many
journal articles and papers and invited lectures. Her consulting activities included
consultation on the revision of the schedule for 570-599 (Biological Sciences)
for the 21st edition of the Dewey Decimal Classification.
Dr. Bierbaum was born July 9, 1928
in Walkerville, Ontario. She received a master’s degree in
English from the University of Florida, library certification from Florida
State University, and a Ph.D. in library science from the University of North
Carolina at Chapel Hill. Upon retirement
from The University of Iowa in 1966, she was named Professor Emeritus. She returned to St. Petersburg, Florida, where
she remained active in research and writing, and volunteering at Pasadena Presbyterian
Church. She is remembered by her friends
as a person with a delightful sense of humor, a wealth of wisdom and knowledge,
and a thoughtful, giving nature. She is
survived by three children and six grandchildren.
Tribute written by Ethel Bloesch, former Program Assistant
for the University of Iowa School of Library and Information Science