Memorial Day to Memorial Library: The South Chicago Branch Library as Cultural Terrain, 1937-1947

For two decades following the stock market crash of 1929, reformists and radicals battled over the remaking of American culture. The American public library was one venue for the "cultural front." Librarians were among those white-collar workers experiencing explosive growth, and many joined with the CIO unionists to reshape the culture industry. The South Chicago Branch Library, an "experimental" interpretation of the traditional practice of library service, provided one arena of struggle in the city of Chicago.