Ada E. North
Building a Better Library
Mrs. North soon secured the attention and earnest cooperation of the Governor, Judge Cole and General Ed. Wright who was then Secretary of State. The State Library was in its infancy and had recieved little attention, the appropriations had been small and it had not been considered a very important department. At her suggestion, bills were passed by the 14th General Assembly, providing for a board of trustees, consisting of the Governor, Secretary of State, Superintendent of Public Instruction, and Judges of the Supreme Court to appoint the State Librarian. Also an appropriation bill passed that made the Librarian a State Officer with a salary of $1,200 a year. For eight years Mrs. North retained the office by reappintments from the board, a post she held until 1878.