Old Missoula

Missoula’s 1^st Librarian Controversy – Roberta McCormick or Sue Kennett Reinhard

Missoula’s First Librarian Is Dead

Mrs. R. McCormick Passes at Age of 78 Years; Came Here in 1880.

Missoula’s first librarian is dead.

Mrs. Roberta McCormick, who came to Missoula in 1880, died last night at 6 o’clock, at her home at 220 Pattee street. Present at the time of her death was her sister, Miss Fannie Ewing. Mrs. McCormick was 78 years old on September 9, last.

Funeral services will be held at the Marsh chapel at 2 o’clock this afternoon. Rev. H. S. Gatley of the Church of the Holy Spirit, will officiate. Tomorrow morning the body will be shipped to Helena for interment in the family lot there.

For the past two years, Mrs. McCormick has been bed-ridden, the result of a fall in which she suffered a broken hip bone. She never was able to walk after the accident, which occurred on January 6, 1922.

Was Born in Missouri.

Miss Roberta Ewing was born in Lexington, Mo., on September 9, 1845. She came to Montana with her parents in 1865 and located in Helena. In 1866 she became the wife of Robert McCormick. No children were born to this union.

Mr. and Mrs. McCormick came to Missoula in 1880, when Mr. McCormick became the first post trader at Fort Missoula, which at that time was under command of Colonel Gibson. Mr. McCormick died in 1907, and was buried at Helena.

During her many years of residence in the Garden city Mrs. McCormick has been prominent in civic and club affairs. In 1890, through her efforts, a membership library was established in Missoula and Mrs. McCormick was Missoula’s first librarian. This library was the forerunner of the present public library.

Founded As You Like It Club.

In 1891 Mrs. McCormick founded the As You Like It club, the second oldest club in the state of Montana. She was for many years one of the most active of the organization’s membership.

Mrs. McCormick was a communicant of the Episcopal church and was one of the members influential in causing the growth of the congregation to its present size. She was a co-worker with Rev. George Stewart, Missoula’s first resident Episcopal pastor, who came here in 1877 – three years before Mrs. McCormick’s arrival, and was instrumental in the formation of the parish of the Church of the Holy Spirit.

Was Friend of Bishop Tuttle.

Mrs. McCormick was a close friend of the late Bishop Tuttle, who for many years was the presiding bishop of the Episcopal church in America. Bishop Tuttle’s life story is replete with incidents of his work in the state of Montana during his early life.

Also, Mrs. McCormick was instrumental in securing the construction of the new Church of the Holy Spirit, and was the first to place a memorial in the house of worship. The memorial consisted of a “Credence Table” in honor of her deceased husband.

Although she was one of the real pioneers of western Montana, Mrs. McCormick never affiliated with the Society of Montana Pioneers. There is only one person of close kin who survives Mrs. McCormick, Miss Fannie Ewing, with whom she has been living for several years and who was present at the time of her death. Miss Ewing came to Montana at the same time as Mrs. McCormick.

The above article appeared in The Daily Missoulian on January 4, 1924.

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An article in The Missoulian on April 13, 1955 added more information about the origin of Missoula’s libraries.

 

Local Library Board Dissolved

The Board of Trustees of the Missoula Public Library, in existence since 1894, dissolved Tuesday night with the resignation of its five members.

The resignation statement, issued by the board, read as follows: “So as not to impede the smooth changeover in Missoula city government now under way, the undersigned members of the Board of Trustees of the Missoula Public Library herewith tender their resignations, both individually and as members of the City Library Board of Trustees, effective forthwith.”

The signers, all the board members, were Russell L. Neal, chairman; Mae Pope Worden, vice-chairman; Chester J. Christensen, secretary; Emmet Glore, and E. S. Dragstedt.

In attendance with the board at its last session were Evelyn Swant, librarian; Walton R. L. Taylor, city manager; W. M. Sterling, city finance director; and Paul Hoylo, member of the City Commission.

Speaking for the commission Hoylo thanked the board members for their service and stated the commission hoped they would be able to serve in other public positions if their services were needed.

The board’s last action was a memorial resolution to the late John F. Patterson, long-time trustee of the board. A special collection of “Books for Librarians,” published by Caxton Printers of Caldwell, Idaho, was presented the library by the board as a tribute to Mr. Patterson. Mr. Patterson’s son, John F. Patterson Jr., accepted the books for the library.

The resolution was signed by the board members, Mrs. Swant and Hoylo.

The city ordinance creating the library was passed April 5, 1894. The library was first located in the Higgins Block and Mrs. Sue K. Reinhard was appointed the first librarian. It was opened to the public Nov. 19, 1894.

The library was moved in 1897 to the Allen Block, and through an Andrew Carnegie grant a permanent library building was constructed at the present site in 1903. The present building was completed by addition of a second story through another Carnegie grant in 1913.

J. H. T. Ryman, first president of the board, and William Aber, who served n the board from 1898 until his death in 1919, both bequeathed a large part of their private libraries to the local library.

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Mrs. Sue Kennett Reinhard’s obituary appears below:

 

First Librarian of Missoula Dead

Mrs. Sue Kennett Reinhard, Early-Day Resident Passes at Seattle.

Mrs. Sue Kennett Reinhard, aged 80 years, Missoula’s first public librarian, died at Seattle Tuesday, according to word received by George Wilcox, a niece. Mrs. Reinhard was librarian here from 1894 to 1904, when the library was in the Smith building. She was one of Missoula’s pioneer residents. Mrs. Reinhard contracted a cold while attending the funeral of a niece, Mrs. Henry Dill, at Seattle February 22 and pneumonia followed, causing her death.

Mrs. Reinhard was born at St. Louis in 1848, and came here in 1873. She made her home with her brother, Ferdinand Kennett, until her marriage in 1876. She and her husband went from here to Seattle 12 years ago.

She is survived by her husband, Jacob Reinhard, a daughter, Mrs. Robert Souders of Oakland, Cal., and a son, Lue Kennett Reinhard of San Francisco.

The above obituary appeared in The Daily Missoulian on March 10, 1928

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In one of his columns for The Missoulian on 9/29/1979, Ed Erlandson cited Mrs. Reinhard as Missoula’s first “paid” librarian.

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