Clara M. Edmunds and the Library of the United States Information Service, 1934-1948

As President Franklin Roosevelt was transforming the nature of the federal government in the 1930s, Clara M. Edmunds, the head librarian of the president's public information service, sought to keep pace by transforming the librarianship of government documents. She conceived, developed, and directed a library with a comprehensive collection of all relevant federal documents. It was updated hourly, if necessary, to keep pace with the latest developments on Capitol Hill and in the White House, the executive branch agencies, and the courts. Edmunds, a former New York City grade school principal, fought unsuccessfully to maintain the unique collection when the Republican Eightieth Congress, elected in 1946, was intent on undoing as much of the Roosevelt revolution as it could. This article recounts the history of this forgotten chapter in the librarianship of government information.