Mountaineers Library Reorganization

Background

For several years, the Mountaineers Library has been in transition as we adjust to a smaller space and turnover of volunteers. Previously, the entire library collection was stored in the Summit Room in the Mountaineers Program Center at Seattle's Magnuson Park. In October 2010, the Mountaineers Board voted to move the library contents out of the Summit Room and reconfigure the space for other club uses.

Beginning in 2012, the process of downsizing the Summit Room collection was undertaken by members of the Mountaineers History Committee chaired by Lowell Skoog. Books, periodicals, and other materials were boxed into several categories, reflecting initial judgements about whether the materials were within the library's primary scope ("Mountaineer core activities in the Pacific Northwest") and whether we were likely to retain or dispense them. The Summit Room was reconfigured to retain eight locked, glass-front bookcases along the southeast and south walls (see map). Other materials were moved into the archives storage room and a basement storage area. The History/Library Committee is continuing to reorganize and re-catalog the collection to make library materials available to researchers.

These pages describe the state of the reorganization project.