by Shannon Butler
We all know the importance of having literary skills. Being able to read for both knowledge and pleasure is essential in our everyday lives. Sometimes, having a good novel to read is the greatest tool for opening our minds and imaginations, and escaping from the real world for a while. Libraries are the best places to go to satisfy our need for books, especially in tough times. In 1918, nobody understood the need for reading better than the head librarian for the City of Poughkeepsie, John Sickley.
Sickley was originally born in New Jersey in 1850 and was the great-grandson of John Bradbury, a famous English botanist and travel writer. By 1870, Sickley and his mother had moved to Poughkeepsie. He graduated from Poughkeepsie High School in 1873 as valedictorian and went on to study law under Judge Nelson. Within a few years, he was admitted to the bar, but it soon became clear that he preferred the work of a librarian more than the work of the law. So in January of 1884, Sickley was appointed the librarian of what was essentially a fairly new collection. It was only a few years before, in 1881, when the city realized the need for a library, and the city charter was amended so a fixed sum could be added for spending on books. The library moved around a bit, and by the time Sickley began serving in his new role, the collection was located in the same building as the high school (on Washington Street). The amount of books continued to grow in these early years and space quickly became limited (as seen in this previous blog entry). By 1892, Sickley’s salary was about $1,000. According to the Poughkeepsie Eagle News, he expanded the library’s holdings and presided over the circulation of over 40,000 books and materials!
When America became involved in the first World War, Sickley was eager to do his part. He ventured to South Carolina, where he served as the librarian at the army training facility Camp Wadsworth. During the war, the American Library Association created a War Service Committee in order to set up libraries within military training camps, the idea being that educating soldiers would lead to a brighter future. By the summer of 1918, there were 41 camp libraries with over 200 camp librarians at work. Sickley found himself in a heated battle of words with fellow librarian (and proud suffragist) Beatrice Winser of Newark. Winser argued that women should be allowed to work as librarians in the military camps. When Sickley claimed that women lacked “the strength and endurance required for service,” Winser rebuked him by arguing “Superior physical strength does not necessarily endow men with superior gray matter, and it would seem to be high time for men to disabuse themselves from the notion, in spite of the world cataclysm, that brute force is the only thing that moves the world.” (Tell ’em, sister!)
When he wasn’t arguing with feminists, Sickley kept himself busy shipping books overseas to soldiers serving on the front lines. He wrote home to the Poughkeepsie Eagle News in May of 1919 about the need to fill a quota of books for our troops. During his time in service, he managed to save records concerning the local war efforts, which are still kept here in the Local History room. Sickley was certainly interested in preserving local history, as he was one of the founding members of the Dutchess County Historical Society. He was also a major fan of tennis and helped form the Poughkeepsie Tennis Club. Both of these organizations are still part of the community today. After serving as the city librarian for over 38 years, Sickley died in November of 1920 and is buried in the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery.
References:
“Propaganda, Censorship, and Book Drives: The Newark Public Library in WWI” by George Robb, NJS: An Interdisciplinary Journal, Winter 2019.
Poughkeepsie Daily Eagle – 27 Jun 1873, 7 Sep 1895, 13 May 1919
Sunday Courier – 21 Nov 1920
LH Collections – WWI Collection – Box 7 – ALA records
Images:
01 – John Sickley in military uniform at Camp Wadsworth, 1918 – LH Collections
02 – Article from the Poughkeepsie Daily Eagle, 1918
03 – WWI Propaganda poster, by C.B. Falls, 1917 – Library of Congress
04 – WWI Propaganda poster, for Adriance Library, by F.R. Booth, 1918 – LH Collections
05 – Pieces of WWI Propaganda, ALA – LH Collections
06 – Bookmark from the American Library Association, 1918 – LH Collections
