The cross-fertilization of the U.S. Public library model and the French documentation model (IIB, French correspondent of FID) through the French professional associations between World War I and World War II

Abstract

The aim of this article is to study the beginning and growth of associations for documentation in France after World War I: i) The Bureau Bibliographique de France (BBF) created in 1899, which is the French affiliate of the International Institute of Bibliography (IIB) founded in 1895; ii) Union Francaise des Organismes de Documentation (UFOD) founded in 1932, which grouped French specialized libraries together; and iii) L'Association pour le Developpement de la Lecture Publique (ADLP) born in 1936, which promoted public libraries in France. This presentation investigates three avenues: It shows the aims of these associations and, in a biographical manner, the ideas of their founders, with particular emphasis on the fundamental role of technical and industrial documentation and the involvement of IIB. It determines the links between specialized libraries (called Centres de Documentation in France) and public libraries developed by active social librarians. It shows the results of the influences of founders' ideas after World War II: The development of public libraries and the creation of schools for documentalists. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.