Long term needs of large users of patent information

Abstract

When the American Chemical Society published the first edition of ‘Chemical Abstracts’ in 1907, patent information had already been recognised as an important source of published information for over 50 years. Thomas Kelly’s ‘History of Public Libraries in Great Britain’ [1] refers to the enthusiastic pioneering work initiated by Bennet Woodcroft, Superintendent of Specifications at the British Patent Office as early as 1854.