ALA Past Presidents
This page contains links to archived information about ALA's Past Presidents. Please view this Pinterest board from American Libraries for a pictorial listing of the all of the past ALA Presidents.
| Photo | Name | Years of service | Death date |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Emily Drabinski | 2023-2024 | |
 |
Lessa Kanani'opua Pelayo-Lozada | 2022-2023 | |
 |
Patricia "Patty" Wong | 2021-2022 | |
 |
Julius C. Jefferson, Jr | 2020-2021 | |
 |
Wanda Kay Brown | 2019-2020 | |
 |
Loida Garcia-Febo | 2018-2019 | |
 |
James "Jim" Neal | 2017-2018 | |
 |
Julie B. Todaro | 2016-2017 | |
 |
Sari Feldman | 2015-2016 | |
 |
Courtney Young | 2014-2015 | |
 |
Barbara Stripling | 2013-2014 | |
 |
Maureen Sullivan | 2012-2013 | |
 |
Molly Raphael | 2011-2012 | |
 |
Roberta A. Stevens | 2010-2011 | |
 |
Camila Alire | 2009-2010 | |
 |
Jim Rettig | 2008-2009 | August 17, 2022 |
 |
Loriene Roy | 2007-2008 | |
 |
Leslie Burger | 2006-2007 | |
 |
Michael Gorman | 2005–2006 | |
 |
Carol A. Brey-Casiano | 2004–2005 | |
 |
Carla D. Hayden | 2003–2004 | |
 |
Maurice J. (Mitch) Freedman | 2002–2003 | |
 |
John W. Berry | 2001–2002 | |
 |
Nancy Kranich | 2000–2001 | |
| Sarah Ann Long | 1999–2000 | ||
| Ann Symons | 1998–1999 | ||
| Barbara J. Ford | 1997–1998 | ||
| Mary R. Somerville | 1996–1997 | ||
| Betty J. Turock | 1995-1996 | ||
| Arthur Curley | 1994-1995 | April 1, 1998 | |
| Hardy R. Franklin | 1993-1994 | August 21, 2004 | |
| Marilyn L. Miller | 1992-1993 | May 22, 2014 | |
| Patricia G. Schuman | 1991-1992 | ||
| Richard M. Dougherty | 1990-1991 | ||
| Patricia Wilson Berger | 1989-1990 | March 27, 2011 | |
| F. William Summers | 1988-1989 | August 12, 2016 | |
| Margaret E. Chisholm | 1987-1988 | November 20, 1999 | |
| Regina Minudri | 1986-1987 | June 18, 2021 | |
| Beverly P. Lynch | 1985-1986 | ||
| E. J. Josey | 1984-1985 | July 3, 2009 | |
| Brooke E. Sheldon | 1983-1984 | February 11, 2013 | |
| Carol A. Nemeyer | 1982-1983 | June 30, 2008 | |
| Elizabeth W. (Betty) Stone | 1981-1982 | March 6, 2002 | |
| Peggy A. Sullivan | 1980-1981 | April 13, 2020 | |
| Thomas J. Galvin | 1979-1980 | February 18, 2004 | |
| Russell Shank | 1978-1979 | June 26, 2012 | |
| Eric Moon | 1977-1978 | July 31, 2016 | |
| Clara Stanton Jones | July 1976-1977 | September 30, 2012 | |
| Clara Stanton Jones (Acting President) | April 11-July 22, 1976 | September 30, 2012 | |
| Allie Beth Martin | 1975-April 1976 | April 11, 1976 | |
| Edward G. Holley | 1974-1975 | February 18, 2010 | |
| Jean E. Lowrie | 1973-1974 | November 9, 2014 | |
| Katherine Laich | 1972-1973 | November 16, 1992 | |
| Keith Doms | 1971-1972 | September 26, 2009 | |
| Lillian M. Bradshaw | 1970-1971 | February 9, 2010 | |
| William S. Dix | 1969-1970 | February 22, 1978 | |
| Roger McDonough | 1968-1969 | December 2, 2001 | |
| Foster E. Mohrhardt | 1967-1968 | June 7, 1992 | |
| Mary V. Gaver | 1966-1967 | December 31, 1991 | |
| Robert Vosper | 1965-1966 | May 14, 1994 | |
| Edwin Castagna | 1964-1965 | November 26, 1983 | |
| Frederick H. Wagman | 1963-1964 | November 30, 1994 | |
| James E. Bryan | 1962-1963 | May 10, 2007 | |
| Florrinell F. Morton | 1961-1962 | January 1990 | |
| Frances Lander Spain | 1960-1961 | January 20, 1999 | |
| Benjamin E. Powell | 1959-1960 | March 11, 1981 | |
| Emerson Greenaway | 1958-1959 | April 1990 | |
| Lucile M. Morsch | 1957-1958 | July 3, 1972 | |
| Ralph R. Shaw | 1956-1957 | October 17, 1972 | |
| John S. Richards | 1955-1956 | December 1979 | |
| L. Quincy Mumford | 1954-1955 | August 15, 1982 | |
| Flora Belle Ludington | 1953-1954 | March 23, 1967 | |
| Robert Bingham Downs | 1952-1953 | February 24, 1991 | |
| Loleta Dawson Fyan | 1951-1952 | April 1990 | |
| Clarence R. Graham | 1950-1951 | January 28, 1989 | |
| Milton E. Lord | 1949-1950 | February 12, 1985 | |
| Errett Weir McDiarmid | 1948-1949 | April 27, 2000 | |
| Paul North Rice | 1947-1948 | April 16, 1967 | |
| Mary U. Rothrock | 1946-1947 | January 30, 1976 | |
| Ralph A. Ulveling | 1945-1946 | March 21, 1980 | |
| Carl Vitz | 1944-1945 | January 28, 1981 | |
| Althea H. Warren | 1943-1944 | December 21, 1958 | |
| Keyes D. Metcalf | 1942-1943 | November 3, 1983 | |
| Charles Harvey Brown | 1941-1942 | January 19, 1960 | |
| Essae Martha Culver | 1940-1941 | January 2, 1973 | |
| Ralph Munn | 1939-1940 | January 22, 1975 | |
| Milton James Ferguson | 1938-1939 | October 23, 1954 | |
| Harrison Warwick Craver | 1937-1938 | July 26, 1951 | |
| Malcom Glenn Wyer | 1936-1937 | December 31, 1965 | |
| Louis Round Wilson | 1935-1936 | December 9, 1979 | |
| Charles H. Compton | 1934-1935 | March 17, 1966 | |
| Gratia A. Countryman | 1933-1934 | July 26, 1953 | |
| Harry Miller Lydenberg | 1932-1933 | April 16, 1960 | |
| Josephine Adams Rathbone | 1931-1932 | May 17, 1941 | |
| Adam Strohm | 1930-1931 | October 30, 1951 | |
| Andrew Keogh | 1929-1930 | February 14, 1953 | |
| Linda A. Eastman | 1928-1929 | April 5, 1963 | |
| Carl B. Roden | 1927-1928 | October 25, 1956 | |
| George H. Locke | 1926-1927 | January 28, 1937 | |
| Charles F. D. Belden | 1925-1926 | October 23, 1931 | |
| Herman H. B. Meyer | 1924-1925 | January 16, 1937 | |
| Judson Toll Jennings | 1923-1924 | February 8, 1948 | |
| George Burwell Utley | 1922-1923 | October 4, 1946 | |
| Azariah Smith Root | 1921-1922 | October 2, 1927 | |
| Alice S. Tyler | 1920-1921 | April 18, 1944 | |
| Chalmers Hadley | 1919-1920 | May 11, 1958 | |
| William Warner Bishop | 1918-1919 | February 19, 1955 | |
| Thomas Lynch Montgomery | 1917-1918 | October 1, 1929 | |
| Walter Lewis Brown | 1916-1917 | October 16, 1931 | |
| Mary Wright Plummer | 1915-1916 | September 21, 1916 | |
| Hiller Crowell Wellman | 1914-1915 | February 3, 1956 | |
| Edwin Hatfield Anderson | 1913-1914 | April 29, 1947 | |
| Henry Eduard Legler | 1912-1913 | September 13, 1917 | |
| Theresa West Elmendorf | 1911-1912 | September 4, 1932 | |
| James Ingersoll Wyer | 1910-1911 | November 1, 1955 | |
| Nathaniel Dana Carlile | 1909-1910 | November 25, 1927 | |
| Charles Henry Gould | 1908-1909 | July 30, 1919 | |
| Arthur Elmore Bostwick | 1907-1908 | February 13, 1942 | |
| Clement Walker Andrews | 1906-1907 | November 20, 1930 | |
| Frank Pierce Hill | 1905-1906 | August 28, 1941 | |
| Ernest Cushing Richardson | 1904-1905 | June 3, 1939 | |
| Herbert Putnam | 1903-1904 | August 14, 1955 | |
| James Kendall Hosmer | 1902-1903 | May 18, 1927 | |
| John Shaw Billings | 1901-1902 | March 11, 1913 | |
| Henry James Carr | 1900-1901 | May 21, 1929 | |
| Reuben Gold Thwaites | 1899-1900 | October 22, 1913 | |
| William Coolidge Lane | 1898-1899 | March 18, 1931 | |
| Herbert Putnam | Jan.-Aug.1898 | August 14, 1955 | |
| Justin Winsor | July-Oct.1897 | October 22, 1897 | |
| William Howard Brett | 1896-1897 | August 24, 1918 | |
| John Cotton Dana | 1895-1896 | July 21, 1929 | |
| Henry Munson Utley | 1894-1895 | February 16, 1917 | |
| Josephus Nelson Larned | 1893-1894 | August 15, 1913 | |
| Melvil Dewey | 1892-1893 | December 26, 1931 | |
| William Isaac Fletcher* | 1891-1892 | June 6, 1917 | |
| K. August Linderfelt* | Oct. 1891-May 1892 | March 18, 1900 | |
| Samuel Swett Green | July-Nov. 1891 | December 8, 1918 | |
| Melvil Dewey | 1890-July 1891 | December 26, 1931 | |
| Frederick Morgan Crunden | 1889-1890 | October 28, 1911 | |
| Charles Ammi Cutter | 1887-1889 | September 8, 1903 | |
| William Frederick Poole | 1885-1887 | March 1, 1894 | |
| Justin Winsor | 1876-1885 | October 22, 1897 |
Past ALA Officers Photo Name Years of Service Molly Raphael 2011-2012 Roberta A. Stevens 2010-2011 Camila Alire 2009-2010 Jim Rettig 2008-2009 Loriene Roy 2007-2008 Leslie Burger 2006-2007 Michael Gorman 2005–2006
Carol A. Brey-Casiano
2004–2005
Carla D. Hayden
2003–2004
Maurice J. (Mitch) Freedman 2002–2003 John W. Berry 2001–2002 Nancy Kranich 2000–2001 Sarah Ann Long 1999–2000 Ann Symons 1998–1999 Barbara J. Ford 1997–1998 Mary R. Somerville 1996–1997 Betty J. Turock 1995-1996 Arthur Curley 1994-1995 Hardy R. Franklin 1993-1994 Marilyn L. Miller 1992-1993 Patricia G. Schuman 1991-1992 Richard M. Dougherty 1990-1991 Patricia Wilson Berger 1989-1990 F. William Summers 1988-1989 Margaret E. Chisholm 1987-1988 Regina Minudri 1986-1987 Beverly P. Lynch 1985-1986 E. J. Josey 1984-1985 Brooke E. Sheldon 1983-1984 Carol A. Nemever 1982-1983 Elizabeth W. (Betty) Stone 1981-1982 Peggy A. Sullivan 1980-1981 Thomas J. Galvin 1979-1980 Russell Shank 1978-1979 Eric Moon 1977-1978 Clara Stanton Jones July 1976-1977 Clara Stanton Jones (Acting President) April 11-July 22, 1976 Allie Beth Martin 1975-April 1976 Edward G. Holley 1974-1975 Jean E. Lowrie 1973-1974 Katherine Laich 1972-1973 Keith Doms 1971-1972 Lillian M. Bradshaw 1970-1971 William S. Dix 1969-1970 Roger McDonough 1968-1969 Foster E. Mohrhardt 1967-1968 Mary V. Gaver 1966-1967 Robert Vosper 1965-1966 Edwin Castagna 1964-1965 Frederick H. Wagman 1963-1964 James E. Bryan 1962-1963 Florrinell F. Morton 1961-1962 Frances Lander Spain 1960-1961 Benjamin E. Powell 1959-1960 Emerson Greenaway 1958-1959 Lucile M. Morsch 1957-1958 Ralph R. Shaw 1956-1957 John S. Richards 1955-1956 L. Quincy Mumford 1954-1955 Flora Belle Ludington 1953-1954 Robert Bingham Downs 1952-1953 Loleta Dawson Fyan 1951-1952 Clarence R. Graham 1950-1951 Milton E. Lord 1949-1950 Errett Weir McDiarmid 1948-1949 Paul North Rice 1947-1948 Mary U. Rothrock 1946-1947 Ralph A. Ulveling 1945-1946 Carl Vitz 1944-1945 Althea H. Warren 1943-1944 Keyes D. Metcalf 1942-1943 Charles Harvey Brown 1941-1942 Essae Martha Culver 1940-1941 Ralph Munn 1939-1940 Milton James Ferguson 1938-1939 Harrison Warwick Craver 1937-1938 Malcom Glenn Wyer 1936-1937 Louis Round Wilson 1935-1936 Charles H. Compton 1934-1935 Gratia A. Countryman 1933-1934 Harry Miller Lydenberg 1932-1933 Josephine Adams Rathbone 1931-1932 Adam Strohm 1930-1931 Andrew Keogh 1929-1930 Linda A. Eastman 1928-1929 Carl B. Roden 1927-1928 George H. Locke 1926-1927 Charles F. D. Belden 1925-1926 Herman H. B. Meyer 1924-1925 Judson Toll Jennings 1923-1924 George Burwell Utley 1922-1923 Azariah Smith Root 1921-1922 Alice S. Tyler 1920-1921 Chalmers Hadley 1919-1920 William Warner Bishop 1918-1919 Thomas Lynch Montgomery 1917-1918 Walter Lewis Brown 1916-1917 Mary Wright Plummer 1915-1916 Hiller Crowell Wellman 1914-1915 Edwin Hatfield Anderson 1913-1914 Henry Eduard Legler 1912-1913 Theresa West Elmendorf 1911-1912 James Ingersoll Wyer 1910-1911 Nathaniel Dana Carlile 1909-1910 Charles Henry Gould 1908-1909 Arthur Elmore Bostwick 1907-1908 Clement Walker Andrews 1906-1907 Frank Pierce Hill 1905-1906 Ernest Cushing Richardson 1904-1905 Herbert Putnam 1903-1904 James Kendall Hosmer 1902-1903 John Shaw Billings 1901-1902 Henry James Carr 1900-1901 Reuben Gold Thwaites 1899-1900 William Coolidge Lane 1898-1899 Herbert Putnam Jan.-Aug.1898 Justin Winsor July-Oct.1897 William Howard Brett 1896-1897 John Cotton Dana 1895-1896 Henry Munson Utley 1894-1895 Josephus Nelson Larned 1893-1894 Melvil Dewey 1892-1893 William Isaac Fletcher 1891-1892 Samuel Swett Green July-Nov. 1891 Melvil Dewey 1890-July 1891 Frederick Morgan Crunden 1889-1890 Charles Ammi Cutter 1887-1889 William Frederick Poole 1885-1887 Justin Winsor 1876-1885 -->
* Mr. Fletcher is listed as serving as President 1891-92 since on May 21, 1892, the Executive Committee accepted the resignation of K. August Linderfelt who was elected in October 1891, with the stipulation that his name would be expunged from the presidential rolls. Please see Executive Board minutes cumulated index, volume 47, or reach out to the ALA Archives.
