Murlin Croucher, the Slavic Librarian of Indiana University-Bloomington, 1980-2005

Abstract

ABSTRACT Murlin Lee Croucher (1941–2010) served as the third Slavic librarian of Indiana University (IU) from 1980 to 2005 during which he built one of North America’s premier Slavic collections at IU’s Bloomington campus. There have been a few biographical accounts of Croucher that highlight his achievements as a professional area studies librarian in the United States and his contributions to Slavic and East European studies and librarianship. Drawing on unpublished documents provided by the Indiana University Archives as well as published sources, this essay expands existing accounts dedicated to Croucher by providing more details on his personal background and career experiences prior to his tenure at IU. It also incorporates the story of IU’s emergence as a stronghold of Slavic studies in the Midwest, the rise of its Slavic collection before Croucher, and brief biographical sketches of his two predecessors, Dr. Fritz T. Epstein (1898–1979) and Dr. Andrew (Andrij) Turchyn (1912–2004). These sketches serve as background that place Croucher’s work in a broader context and illuminate his achievements as a professional Slavic area studies librarian.