Miss Estelle Lutrell: an exhibit about UA Library History

A Story About the University of Arizona Library and How It Evolved

A Brief Synopsis of the Original Exhibit

Estelle Lutrell circa 1930
Estelle Lutrell circa 1930.

This website presents an online version of an exhibit that was curated by Dr. Carl Berkhout, Professor of English at the University of Arizona. The original display was shown at the University’s Main Library in the Fall of 2004.  Estelle Lutrell was the first full-time librarian at the University, and the exhibit celebrated the 100th anniversary of her coming to Arizona in 1904.

Please note that this site does not contain all of the materials used in the original physical exhibit because of space and format limitations; nor is it an all-encompassing biography of Miss Lutrell’s life. Instead, it focuses on her outstanding career and achievements in the University of Arizona Library and in the development of libraries in the state of Arizona. It is anticipated that this web presentation can be used to study such things as UA campus architecture, how the University of Arizona Library evolved, the achievements of an amazing woman in the first half of the 20th Century, or to experience a major chapter in the rich history of the University of Arizona.

This website was created as a School of Information Resources and Library Science internship arranged with Bonnie L. Travers, Associate Librarian at the University of Arizona Library’s Special Collections. All materials presented here, unless otherwise noted, are located at Special Collections where they can be consulted. Most photograph captions used here were created by Dr. Berkhout for the original exhibit.     

Synopsis of the Original Lutrell Exhibit

The “Miss Estelle Lutrell: An Exhibit about UA Library History”  was shown September 29-October 27, 2004 at the University of Arizona Main Library. The exhibit presented a wide array of photographs, documents and other materials highlighting her career and the development of the University Library in the early twentieth century. Dr. Carl Berkhout, Professor of English and curator of the exhibit, presented the opening lecture, “Estelle Lutrell: A Centennial Remembrance” on Thursday September 30, 2004 in the Main Library on the UA campus.