a look to the past

as the old listening carrels come down, all the technology guts are removed. millions of miles of cables and old audio gear take a final bow. rumor has it that all this cabling once sent telegraph messages from the listening carrels to the old world.

goodbye blocks

after 40 years on display, the stylish wooden blocks that once decorated the front of the original service desk are being lovingly boxed up. they were slated to go into the giant warehouse at the Baylor physical plant (on the shelf next to the Ark of the Covenant), but crazy composition student Ben decided he wanted to make a giant maraca with them. if you see a godzilla sized mariachi band roaming the streets of Waco, you'll know who helped outfit them.

no more listening here, folks!

Mario and Jorge demolish the old listening/viewing carrels

and the walls came a tumblin' down . . .

Mario and Jorge "get crazy" on the old listening carrels. these were built inside the library and won't even fit out through the doors!

Ring the bell, win a prize

it's like a carnival up here . . . just without any barkers (all the opera students have gone home for the holidays!)

computer lab teardown

IT staff and friends disassemble the computer lab

shelf teardown party

crouch staffers spent the afternoon tearing down all the reference and LP shelving in preparation for the renovation. lots of noise. lots of dirt. lots of fun.

and away they go!

staff move all the shelves from reference and LP collections to an undisclosed and heavily guarded location (you didn't know there's a thriving black market for library shelving? we're talking SLOTTED shelving here!)

the sound of (not) silence

ever wondered what renovation sounds like? listen in to the deconstruction of the reference shelves (or is it a John Cage piece?)

you let THEM use a SLEDGEHAMMER?!?!?

library staff taking out their aggression on the old service desk

???

Chad tries to make off with the library's Amy Grant treasures thinking no one will notice in all the chaos

work crew

student workers Jenny and Lindsay look suspicous as Jamie tries to convince them that manual labor builds character

creative shelving options

since all the study carrels are full, who's going to miss the chairs!

reference collection takes over study carrels

good thing final exams are done! the reference collection will remain here until the flooring is finished and reference shelves relocated to location of existing listening/viewing carrels.

reference shelves cleared

staff and student assistants relocated the entire reference collection to prepare for floor work

before shots

this is what the media center part of the crouch library looked like before

let the destruction begin

the millions of wood blocks from the front of the old service desk begin their exit. this was a long though therapeutic process with help from staff, clients, and random passersby.

no, this isn't a garage sale!

much of the furniture moves to the lobby

better than crop circles

clever staffers leave secret messages in the soon to be removed carpet

clear the way

Today Crouch staffers James, Chad, Stephen, and Jamie, and student assistants Judy, Kyle, Cleyera, Jenny, Lindsay and Josh finished moving the reference collection AND the approxmately 30,000 item LP collection! AMAZING!

If this crew were doing the entire renovation, i think we'd be done by the end of the week!

miles and miles of LPs

LP collection takes over remaining student carrels on the third floor

welcome to the CLRB blog

this project made possible by...

Without the Library Advancement Office's hard work, this project would be just a dream! They explored lots of different funding options and had a lot of great ideas for how to raise money for this project. In the end, it was a combination of ideas that made this project happen. Funding sources included:

personal donations
foundation grant
fundraiser events (Ferguson-Clark lecture series proceeds)

schedule for renovation preparations

12/12
begin moving reference collection temporarily relocated to print side (in empty range at back of Ns and then into the study carrels along the brick wall in main stacks area.

12/14
A/V equipment to be removed from existing carrels

12/15?
David Burns' group to breakdown computer lab and public workstations across from service desk
(computer equip can be stored in seminar rm 2 and desks in 3rd floor lobby)

12/15
existing carrels to be dismantled (and removed?)

12/15 clear fall reserve materials ( spring reserve materials temporarily going to new shelving in CD room)

12/16
small furniture (study tables, chairs) and microform readers stored in seminar rm 2

12/16
relocate LP collection to study carrels along A-Bs, moody third floor

12/18
remove drawers from card catalog in LVC so movers can move it (drawers can go in CD room or an office.

12/???
prep service desk for moving?

Dust warning begins...

Today the Crouch staff began temporarily relocating the reference collection to prepare for the floor work. Photos coming soon!

Crouch Library background

The Crouch Fine Arts Library (CFAL) is located on the 3rd floor of Moody Memorial Library, the central libraries building, which was built in 1968. At that time, the Crouch Music Library was located on the west side of the floor and held the music reference, score, and recording collection. This area also housed listening carrels that were connected to an intricate system of about fifty open reel decks that were operated remotely when clients selected that channel. At that time, listening materials were available for use in the library only.

Today, CFAL has more than doubled it space and its collections and services are greatly expanded, now encompassing most of the east side of the 3rd floor as well. The east side houses all of the circulating print collections (including scores, music and art books), periodical collections, processing center (for print processing and media reformatting), staff offices, and a seminar room. The original Crouch Library, now houses, the main service desk, all media collections (open and closed stacks), music and art reference collections, 12 station computer lab, listening/view stations, graduate study carrels, staff offices, and a seminar room.

After nearly forty years, it's time for an overhaul! Thanks to the diligent work of the Library Advancement Office, the original part of the Crouch Library is undergoing renovation. Scheduled to take place between the Fall 2005 and Spring 2006 semesters, the renovation will include:


new state of the art media stations,
new location for media stations and reference collections,
new group seating,
new flooring throughout most of the public areas,
new paint, and
refurbished old service desk