Lewis I. Coulter was born in Ohio in 1836, the son of John P. Coulter and Elizabeth. He married Kate K. Thurston in Des Moines, Iowa on April 26, 1860 and had two children, a son, Edward and daughter, Jessie F. in Des Moines. Lewis Coulter was a…
John P. Coulter was born about 1803 in Pennsylvania. He became a physician, moved to Wooster, Ohio and married Elizabeth. John and Elizabeth had four children in Ohio: Lewis, Edward, Elnora, and Flora. The family moved to Cedar Rapids, Linn County,…
Blanche Annette Smith was born in Monroe, Iowa, on Aug. 26, 1887, the daughter of Otis E. Smith and Annie Slusser. She attended schools in Des Moines, Shenandoah, and Indianola, Iowa, graduating from Simpson College in 1908. Blanche taught at the…
Barry Lavon Porter was born in Cedar City, Utah on Oct. 3, 1942, the son of LaVon Porter and Alta Haycock. Barry received his Bachelor of Science degree from South Utah State College and his Masters in Library Science from Brigham Young University. …
Sharman Bridges Smith was born in Lambert, Mississippi. Before coming to Iowa, Smith was director of Library Services at the Mississippi Library Commission in Jackson. Other positions she held there included director of Library Operations and…
Ada E. Miles was born in New York in 1841, the daughter of Rev. Milo N. and Mary Miles. In 1865 she married Major George J. North, Governor Stone’s Military Secretary. In 1870 George died, leaving his widow with two small children, Howard and…
Theodore Sutton Parvin was born in Cumberland County, New Jersey, Jan. 15, 1817. He graduated from Woodworth College, Ohio in 1833, and from the Cincinnati Law School in 1837. Between these dates, he made for himself a reputation in Ohio as a…
Mary H. MacGinnitie was born in Clarion County, Pennsylvania on July 24, 1842, the daughter of John P. and Marilla B. MacGinnitie. She came with her parents to Eddyville, Iowa in 1862 and taught in the public schools in Eddyville and Ottumwa. In…
Mary Wegner was named State Librarian in 2001, and prior to that served as Assistant State Librarian for one year. Before joining the State Library of Iowa, she worked for more than 20 years as the director of the libraries at Iowa Methodist, Iowa…
J. Maurice Travillian served as Director of the Marshalltown Public Library from 1964 to 1970 when he became Assistant State Librarian at the State Library. Maurice initiated the first Iowa Governor’s Conference on Libraries and formulated a five…
