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[Page S2681]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
REMEMBERING DR. JAMES BILLINGTON
Mr. ALEXANDER. Madam President, Dr. James Billington was the 13th
person to hold the position of Librarian of Congress since the Library
was established in 1800. He was nominated by President Ronald Reagan
and served under Presidents George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W.
Bush, and Barack Obama.
As Librarian of Congress Dr. Billington managed the Library of
Congress, which according to LOC, is the largest library in the world,
containing millions of books, recordings, photographs, newspapers,
maps, and manuscripts in its collections. It is the main research arm
of the U.S. Congress.
Dr. Billington doubled the size of the Library's collections during
his tenure from 85.5 million items in 1987 to more than 160 million
items. He created the Library of Congress online, which helped bring
the Library into the digital age.
In 2003, Dr. Billington testified before the Senate education
committee at a hearing I chaired called ``Putting the Teaching of
American History and Civics Back in the Classroom.''
In his testimony that day, Dr. Billington said: ``During Alex Haley's
12 years researching his groundbreaking novel, Roots, he traveled the
globe to uncover his family's story, even taking a slow Atlantic
crossing to get some feel for what his ancestors went through on the
Middle Passage. He also spent many hours in the reading rooms of the
Library of Congress, poring over American Missionary Society files from
our Manuscript Collection.
``For the first 190 years of the Library's existence, people could
access our vast collections only by traveling to Washington, D.C., and
by working in our beautiful reading rooms as Mr. Haley did, or by
tapping into our rich holdings secondhand, through books that made use
of our collections . . .
``The technology revolution of the past decade has made it possible
for the Library to reach far beyond its buildings in Washington. We now
deliver 8 million interesting and educational multimedia documents,
maps, and images of American history and culture free of charge to
stimulate curiosity and humanize the study of history.
``By exploiting the power of the internet and the incomparable
resources of our collections, the Library of Congress has emerged as
the leading provider of free noncommercial educational content on the
Web. Millions of educators, librarians, students, and lifelong learners
visit our Web sites daily for materials that once were available only
through our reading rooms on Capitol Hill.''
Dr. Billington's nearly three decades of distinguished service and
his efforts to bring the Library of Congress into the digital age will
help ensure that the Library will better preserve our Nation's history
and enlighten its people for many generations to come. His legacy will
be one of innovation and diligence.
After his passing in 2018, his successor at the Library of Congress,
Carla Hayden, said ``Dr. Billington has left an indelible legacy on the
institution he led passionately for 28 years. With his vigor for
philanthropy and tireless efforts to expand the reach and impact of the
Library, he achieved so much to advance the Library of Congress as an
enduring place for scholars and learners. He will be remembered as a
visionary leader, distinguished academic and, most of all, a great
American.''
At a recent Senate committee hearing, I spoke with Ms. Hayden about
Alex Haley and the importance of what he did: writing two bestselling
books on the African-American experience, the autobiography of Malcolm
X and his book, Roots, which tell the story of the African-American
experience in America. As Dr. Billington said, Alex did a lot of his
research at the Library of Congress, and he found the name and the date
of the slave ship that actually brought that ancestor to Annapolis in
the Library. I think Alex's example will help people understand how the
Library of Congress can be so useful to people who are trying to tell
the story of our country.
Ms. Hayden agreed saying, ``many notable films and books have started
with research at the Library of Congress. We want to emphasize the fact
that Alex Haley did research here, and also have his quotes about what
it felt like for him to be in that reading room.''
Alex Haley used to say, we should ``find the good and praise it.''
Dr. Billington's life's work will help countless Americans ``find the
good and praise it,'' when it comes to the history of our country.
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