http://philobiblos.blogspot.com/2008/08/only-good.html Tuesday, August 05, 2008 Only the Good, &c. Simmons College, the library community, and the world at large have lost a man who epitomized the phrase "a scholar and a gentleman". Allen Smith - who was, among other things, a longtime professor in the Simmons library school, a well-known farrier, and a reference expert par excellence - died on Saturday 2 August following a shockingly brief illness. In an email sent this afternoon, Simmons president Helen Drinan writes "In his life at Simmons, Allen’s contributions were many and his dedication was great. Allen joined the GSLIS faculty in 1978, served as Associate Dean from 2006 to 2007, and was recognized just this past spring for 30 years of service to the College. He lectured in reference, humanities, oral history, and computer programming, and was devoted to those he taught. An integral part of Simmons, he was fondly considered by many 'the parliamentarian of the GSLIS faculty.' One faculty member remembers him by saying 'He loved Robert’s Rules.' Allen was also a member of the Simmons Breakfast Club for the past 15 years, a group who had early morning coffee together in the College Center. Allen was highly accomplished professionally, having earned his Masters at the University of Denver and his Ph.D. at the Institute of Dialect and Folklife Studies, University of Leeds, England. He lectured at the College of Librarianship in Aberystwyth, Wales, for nearly ten years prior to his time at Simmons. His publications include Directory of oral history collections (1988) and Catalogue of pre-revival Appalachian dulcimers (1983), as well as serving as column editor of 'Guide to the Professional Literature' in The Journal of Academic Librarianship." I only had the opportunity to take one class with Allen at Simmons, but boy what a class it was! His Reference section was regarded as the toughest, but also the most interesting and worthwhile. I can personally testify that it was all of those things (the sixty-page syllabus was enough to scare off more than a few potential students every term). He knew reference materials inside out, backwards, and upside down, and he loved sharing his knowledge about books, databases, and other sources - I think he really enjoyed watching over the course of every term as his students discovered just how many sources are out there, the different ways to use them, and as they slowly come to grasp the all-important lesson that there will always be new sources out there that you didn't know about. Like me, he enjoyed watching the progression of reference sources through history; one of the papers I wrote for him was about lexicographical histories, and it is no exaggeration to say that receiving words of praise from him for that paper was one of the highlights of my Simmons career (because I knew that if Allen liked it, it must have been up to snuff). Allen was a fan of Webster's Second (the second edition of Webster's New International Dictionary, published in 1934), bow ties, motorcycles, and sailing. He abhorred exclamation points (one quote I have written in my notes from his class reads "If you were born before 1960, you have three exclamation points to use in your life; if born after 1960, you have six, because of inflation"). That's one of a great many pithy and memorable quotes from Allen Smith, every one of which was good advice. For reference services, he liked to say, "it all comes down to 'be nice to people.'" And it does. On librarianship: "The best part of being a librarian is, everything counts. The more you know, the better you're going to be." And I will never forget his take on management: "get to know everyone, make sure they know what they're doing, make sure you're doing what you should be doing, ... and get everyone bagels now and then. They'll appreciate it." Perhaps Allen's favorite and most oft-used reference-exhortation, though, was "Make it smoke." He (strongly) encouraged his students to test out the databases or reference books we were examining by trying to answer tough questions in new and different ways, by stretching the capabilities of the indexes and search tools to their very limits. So, in Allen's honor, go out and make it smoke (I'd use an exclamation point there, but I'm all out). The world of reference has lost a giant. [A farrier friend of Allen's has posted reminscences here. Details on memorial services are not yet available]. Posted by JBD at 5:32 PM Email ThisBlogThis!Share to TwitterShare to FacebookShare to Pinterest 15 comments: Rachel said... Such sad news. I never knew him, but that quote about exclamation points is right on. -rachel -fadetheory.com 10:59 PM ima2 said... Allen Smith was my favorite professor at Simmons. I took refernece with him and, although I wanted to be a medical librarian (which I am) I thought it would be wise to branch out and took Literature of the Humanities. I loved his sense of humor. I am stunned to hear of his death. Chris 7:57 PM james at 10engines said... i was lucky enough to have been in the last reference class (just this spring) and was hugely inspired by Allen... had planned to take his oral history class in the spring (was one of the reasons i started this degree at simmons) and i am really gutted... "if the guys at the fire department don't know who you are, then you aren't doing your job..." there are a million classic quotes...please share. 4:04 PM meaghan said... Hi Jeremy - There's a Facebook group called "Remembering Allen Smith" where a lot of people are posting memories, quotes, and photos (I linked to your post on the group). Dave Dwiggins also has a wiki page where people are contributing quotes from their 407 notebooks. You can find it here: http://gslis.simmons.edu/wikis/dwiggins/Allen_Smith_Quotations. FYI, Allen requested that there not be a memorial service. Dean Cloonan and Candy Schwartz are working on an appropriate tribute, but we don't know what that will be yet. Best, Meaghan 4:09 PM calebtr said... thanks for this 4:55 PM Liam Hegarty said... I took literature of the humanities with Prof. Smith in 2001. Instead of a paper he let me construct a three dimensional model of a citation analysis of the book Neuromancer, by William Gibson. It was a 3'x3'x3' wooden cube with horizontal criss-crossing wires at inch intervals (each inch being a year). Wires rose from the center bottom. The further out from the middle you were the more citations. It was scalable, in that I had room for five more years. It was also portable as I mounted it on shopping cart wheels. Although Prof. Smith seemed genuinely pained by my carpentry skills, he enjoyed the concept. I can't imagine anyone else letting me do that. That was the funnest class I had at Simmons and I was learning all the time. What a great man. 6:28 PM rockinruby said... Thanks for a lovely tribute, Jeremy. I believe we took Reference together in the Spring of '07. It's really gratifying to see how many others were touched by Allen as I was - I have always heard a lot more from those that were scared of him and the coursework. A giant, indeed. - Jill Martin Clements 1:13 PM Justine Shaffner said... I had Allen for Reference in 1995 and it was so much fun I took the Humanities Reference too. I adored the classes and became a reference librarian as a result, so thank you Allen for 11 of the happiest years of my career. Reference instruction will never again reach this level. You will be greatly missed. 12:16 PM Jill said... Thanks so much for this blog on Allen. I had him for reference way back in 1983. He has always been my reference hero. I've hired two of his disciples for my ref staff, as I know I will have quality reference librarians if they loved his class. Jill Erickson 10:53 AM Unknown said... This comment has been removed by the author. 12:48 PM Unknown said... This comment has been removed by the author. 12:54 PM Unknown said... I'm devastated by this news, despite the fact that it's been over 11 years since I took Reference with Prof Smith. I went to Simmons to be an archivist, but after that darned reference course, he had turned me to the other side, and reference became my career path. I remember the final exam in that class...the only one I had in grad school. Match 100 reference sources with their descriptions. Did he still do that? We all came in with our cards and stacks and notes and furiously matched away. I also have him to thank for my foundational training in Dialog (which he probably didn't do anymore, right? a shame). I don't do dialog anymore, but I can think in nested boolean phrases like nobody's business. Karen Governale Gelles, GSLIS '98 12:56 PM Unknown said... oh yeah... long live margaret knight! 12:57 PM Unknown said... I, too, am proud to say I am a product of Allen Smith's reference class(Hi Jill and Jeremy). It was THE class that confirmed my decision that traveling from Florida to Boston to attend Simmons GSLIS was a sound one. He made the pursuit of information exciting, invigorating, and,at times, frustrating, but always rewarding. He instilled a lifelong love of reference in me and may his name be forever linked with the words "make it smoke." Farewell Allen. Cynthia Peterson, GSLIS '07 3:28 PM Unknown said... Allen was the most inspirational teacher I ever had, and not just in the classroom, but in the way he lived his life. I wanted to be him. I still want to be him. My favorite quote: "What's the ideal reference interview? You know the answer." Russell Miller ===== Boston Globe 7ix2008 SMITH, Dr. L. Allen It is with great sadness that our family must inform the friends and students of the passing of Dr. L. Allen Smith of Marion, Massachusetts on Aug. 2, 2008. Dr. Smith led two distinguished careers simultaneously. He was a highly admired and capable professor at Simmons College of Boston, in the College of Library Science, for 31 years. In addition to academics, he also was a highly skilled Farrier, a shoer of horses, in the Massachusetts area. Allen was the son of Lloyd and Mary Ellen Smith of Jackson, Ohio. His pre-teen years were occupied with Cub Scouting, 4-H, kite flying, horse riding, and music. While at Jackson High School, he led "The Rhythm Kings", a well known orchestra in Southern Ohio for high school and public functions. Because of his musical abilities on the clarinet and saxophone, he was selected twice to the All Ohio Boys Band at the Ohio State Fair. It was during this time in 4-H that he began to develop his interest in parliamentary procedure and Robert's Rules of Order. His mother assisted in this endeavor to the extent that this organizing skill became a defining characteristic of his personality until his death. After high school, Allen attended Ohio University, Athens, Ohio, where he was president of Beta Theta Pi fraternity. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree and teaching certificate in 1963. It was also during the late 50's and early 60's Folk's Music Era that Allen began to develop his interest in the banjo and the Appalachian Dulcimer. After a short teaching period in Ohio, Allen was accepted for a Master of Library Science program at the University of Denver. It was in Denver that he met Merrill Wadsworth, an exceptional young lady from New York, and someone quite different from the "Hills of Ohio". They were to become lifelong partners. Also while in Denver, Allen studied and graduated from the Hillcraft School of Horseshoeing. As a newly married couple, Allen and Merrill moved to Urbana, Ohio, where Allen taught high school and began to build dulcimers. However, further academic ambition called, and he was accepted to a teaching position at the University of Aberystwyth, Wales, U.K. While living in a 400 year old converted grist mill, Allen taught at the university, shoed Welsh ponies, and Merrill became a well known weaver of woolen rugs. After nine years in Wales, Allen was awarded a position at Simmons College in the College of Library Science, at which he remained until his death. His courses were extremely popular with students as were his eccentricities of dress. He often combined formal bow ties with horsehair cowboy belts, bicycles, and motorcycles. It was during this time that his interest in the Appalachian dulcimer resurfaced. For several years he toured the Southern Appalachian regions cataloging and measuring instruments and interviewing owners of those instruments. With this information, he published his book, A CATALOGUE of PRE-REVIVAL APPALACHIAN DULCIMERS, and was awarded a Doctorate of English from Leeds University. Never to sit still, he was twice elected president of the National Horse Shoeing Association, and was well known regionally and nationally for his shoeing and organizational abilities. While at Simmons, Merrill introduced him to sailing. It became their favorite hobby endeavor. They eventually found the ideal home at Marion, Mass., and Buzzards Bay. Allen and Merrill's plans for retirement were sadly altered when Merrill passed away in 2006 after a long illness. Allen continued with teaching and shoeing until, after a short illness, he died at home in Marion. Dr. Allen Smith was preceded in death by his wife Merrill. He is survived by his brother and sister-in-law, Robert S. and Anne B. Smith of Leavenworth, WA, two nephews and their wives-David and Alyssa Smith of Seattle, WA , Todd and Julie Smith of Seattle, WA, and an uncle-David "Buck" and Joyce Simmons of Jackson, OH. The family of Allen Smith would like to thank the many, many friends for their extraordinary comments and condolences about Allen. Although Allen was a private person and requested that no memorial services be held, The College of Library Science, Simmons College has established a Scholarship fund in his name, and will accept donations in his honor. Checks can be mailed to: Professor Smith Scholarship Fund, Simmons College GSLIS Attn: Professor Smith Scholarship Fund, 300 The Fenway, Boston, MA 02115. === https://slis.simmons.edu/allen-smith.html Allen Smith Quotes The quotes below were all uttered by Allen Smith while teaching his famous LIS 407 Reference class at Simmons College. "Librarianship is the field where ANYTHING you know will only help you - Anything." "There are no emergencies in librarianship. I can't conceive of it." "A librarian is what you are when you have failed to do all of the things you want to do and have succeeded in avoiding all the things you don't want to do." "There is no space for timidity in this field... You want to make the OPAC smoke." "In librarianship, everything you do counts toward your work." "Ask yourself: 'Of what possible use is this?'" On progress: "It used to be you had to have 25 T.A.'s in the locked in the basement -- feeding them granola and Hershey Bars -- to find all the mineral terms derived from the Dutch in the 18th century." "I see nothing in the literature of librarianship that would demand the use of exclamation points. If you were born before 1960, you have three exclamation points for life. If you were born after 1960, you get six. Some of you are in debt." In regard to teaching reference: "The answer is inconsequential. It's how we go about finding the answer." "This is my final reminder. It's spelled Nexis and Lexis. It's not an automobile." "Can you imagine turning the lights off in a library science classroom? It just invites naps." "One never knows what to expect from this book. What is an idea? Why do they call it an idea? Why is it a pivotal idea? The history of the idea of game theory. The history of the idea of infinity... The history of the idea of symmetry and asymmetry. Or the history of the idea of chance. Now, aren't you going to take this to the airport? I do." On meetings: "We should have classes on meetings. Rule one: no meetings over twenty minutes, and no one can sit down." On parliamentary procedure: "It's good to know how to obstruct. Legally." On passing on your knowledge: "On a bus, sit down beside someone who looks curious and say 'let me explain how these databases are onstructed...'" On student reprisals: "After I give a quiz in Dialog, I have to find a way home that doesn't cross a bridge. At the end of one of the courses a semester or two ago, someone stood up and gave me a map of how to get to Sherborn and Marion without crossing a bridge. It was very well thought out." "The parsing out of boolean operators is complicated. If you're doing brain surgery, you need to know that. We're sticking with minor surgery." On Dialog's pricing structure: "I consider Dial Units to be an exotic currency more complicated than the Euro." "I saw a yawn... I have to turn around and pretend to write on the board to do that. It'll just teach you never to turn out the lights, especially in library school." On the 1909 edition of Webster's New International Dictionary: "I sat on it for years so that I could eat at the same table as everyone else. After that I was allowed to read it at the table because it was there anyway." On the 1934 Second New International Dictionary: "That's the one I rescued from under the faculty refrigerator." "Where I grew up, you worsh your clothes, hang 'em in the booshes, and go feeshin' in the crick." "I always like to go to faculty offices and see what dictionaries are there." "The best training for reference librarians would be to intern at the sausage stands at Fenway to learn how to handle people. I'm convinced of that." "Show me a town that denies funding to a library, and I'll show you a librarian who stays in the office. Show me a town that funds its library, and I'll show you a librarian who takes donuts down to the police department. Who goes down to the city hall and goes into offices asking if they need anything. Who goes to community meetings to schmooze and shake hands. You have to be proactive. It might come as a shock to some of you, but a large part the success of that library is your personality and the way you treat people." "Each library must determine what it is to accomplish and then develop a policy for each situation. You do this, and you'll find that people aren't stressed anymore... If someone jumps up nude on the reference desk, you don't panic. You have a policy." On why he chose to become a librarian: "It's a clean, classless job." And, of course, everyone's favorite: "Could you please help me find the name of the woman who invented the square-bottom paper bag?" Here are some quotes from my notes from Allen's 407 class (Spring '08) -- Shurlow "Be Prepared, Be Professional, Be Nice" On how to take notes on each of the reference materials: "Begin with a description of what it is - in spite of what it calls itself." What to tell someone who asks what you are in school for: "I'm studying to take bibliographic control." "We cannot study reference service in the abstract. We cannot say that the purpose of reference service is..." And here are some from my notes (407, Spring '07) -- Megoc "It's my job to convert you to deliberate searching." "Sense will only be fleeting." "The president should send you at birth a copy of the US Government Manual and a five string banjo. And we'd all be better off." "Gale is the publisher that sells you what you already own in a different alphabet." "Find out what they call it, then select it." EE = enlightened enthusiast DDL = drop down list "There is some serendipity still, but it isn't as gracious." "Until we get universal bibliographic control, we'll all be a wreck." "You're a librarian. You're in charge of knowing that." "Classifiers' SWAT team resides in Britain, where arguing about classification is a way of life." "The 70s were a wild time in librarianship. I can remember some of it." On using Dialog: "You're learning how to drive in reverse with an articulated lorry." "If I were going to be thorough about it..." And some from my notes (407, Fall '07) -- helman2 "Online databases are just casseroles, you're not quite sure what's in it. If it's a church casserole you know you're pretty safe. If not you'd best not go there." Good overall advice: "Satisfy your curiosity." "Searching Google is like giving yourself over to a robot with bad batteries." On collection development: "Supplement what is available in the community. If everyone is already subscribed to the the best magazine you don't have to. Getting the ones they don't have will them to your library." "Criticizing the Britannica was something like stomping on an apple pie." My favorite: "Uninformed discussion is a waste of time." These were uttered in class and outside of it, but they are my favorite -- medina2 Allen: "What are you making? It smells good." Me: "Just heating up some falafel." Allen: "Oh, feel-awful?" From the sign posted on the 3rd floor fridge "To the bottom feeder - throw our your garbage." (I think he almost used an exclamation point.) "You want to know what the worse thing about the first day of school is? You have to wear pants and real shoes." "There's an encyclopedia of American shipwrecks. Isn't that amazing? What a wonderful resource." These were in my notebook from LIS 413, Fall 2007 - I felt like I could never write fast enough -- schwarts For our annotated bibliographies, we should have "the ability to describe the source in 2-3 sentences, NOT beginning with a verb. Start with what it is, not what it covers" He said on the first day of class that he envisioned the bibliographic structure of a discipline graphed by incidence of material available. Library instruction is giving that vision. PIP = Put It in Perspective About a source that I won't name here - "smells unreliable" On Webster - "Not a very good linguist or historian" These were in my notebook from LIS 407, Spring 2005 -- kirkpatr That's what we're here for -- to fight! Department of Defense = PowerPoint Rangers "citation manipulation" -- the urge to feel important Cite yourself and friends as much as possible. Noah Webster: betrayed into errors by his "natural indolence" Know your public: learn to schmooze; do not stay in the library. T.J. Wyse -- think carpet slippers, Irish setters, and port! Wanted us to read Worlds of Reference by Tom McArthur, and threatened to quiz us on graduation day!