She was the longest serving regional director in the history of the Chicago Public Library system, and yet left too soon in the view of many of Sulzer Regional Library’s staff and users. Leah Steele officially retired on Jan. 31 after serving the system for 33 years.
“It’s still a bit sad and not the way I would have preferred to retire, but I have been privileged to have served the library and its patrons,” said Steele who, at only 54, presumably still has many years left to further pursue her career in the library sciences.
Steele, who first served as a library page at the Rogers Park Branch while in high school in 1964-65, was Sulzer’s only director until she was forced out of the position against her will by Commissioner Mary Dempsey in August of 2001. Greta Bever now serves as the director.
“Leah was very easy to get along with and loved by everyone,” said Barbara Parker, Steele’s administrative assistant of nine years. “She’s a good person, she understands and tried to help as much as she could. She believed in treating her staff fairly.”
Dempsey never would say publicly why Steele was being forcefully removed from her post. That move—and a highly controversial concurrent purging of the fiction collection in August—caused a protracted fight between library administration and Sulzer’s staff and users which still simmers to this day. The community is still waiting to see when (or if) the Woodson collection will also be weeded. Dempsey and her staff told North Side groups that Sulzer was only the first in a routine weeding project, but it appears to be the one and only purge in the system.
“The city and library commissioner could have been nobler and permitted her to continue to work until she was ready to leave,” said Victoria Khamis, a member of the Friends of the Conrad Sulzer Regional Library, a volunteer organization which fought along with other community groups to keep Leah on as director. “We’re not fools. We can remember a time here in America when quality, intelligence and culture meant something. Now we get rid of the brains and leave the dummies, and our librarians know that, and that’s why they’re leaving the Chicago system in such great numbers now.”
Steele, who served under seven library commissioners and at the pleasure of seven mayors, was instrumental in getting Sulzer Regional Library, 4455 N. Lincoln Ave. built in the first place. Named as director of the old Hild Regional Library in 1979 ( now the Old Town School of Folk Music, 4544 N. Lincoln Ave.), she help to design and then oversaw the construction of Sulzer, which opened on Sept. 14, 1985. She managed the transition from
branch library to a full-fledged regional library by expanding collections, departments, and services before the move one block south on Lincoln Ave.
“Those were exciting times and I wouldn’t trade those memories for anything,” said Steele. “ Lincoln Square is a fantastic community and the mix of people makes it so great. There are nearly 100 languages spoken by Sulzer users and we tried to serve all their needs.
“It is very rewarding to hear that people travel quite a distance to come to Sulzer. It means that the regional library concept works well in this city of neighborhoods and surrounding suburban communities. During the first year, library professionals, dignitaries, and architects came from all over the world not only to see the award-winning building, but to study regional library services and what was accomplished in Chicago,” said Steele.
Steele says she will also miss her loyal staff, colleagues, patrons, and library volunteers. “ They were really the key to what made this library so special, what makes any library special... They are my friends and I still stay in contact with many of them to this day. The cards and letters from long-time users are a joy to read and I am grateful to everyone for their support and kindness.”
Sulzer Library was ahead of the national trend in using video and audiotapes for teaching and enhancing learning. Today, the video collection makes up nearly half of the library’s entire circulation. Steele and her staff worked closely with area schools and tried to meet the demand of the teachers’ curricula each year, and used audio-visuals to enhance reading and encourage the reluctant reader.
With a grant from the Friends of the Conrad Sulzer Regional Library, a parenting collection was expanded. Also, the emphasis on reaching the young child from birth to three years of age in Spanish and English books and media moved to the forefront of the City’s initiative to stimulate reading.
The Hild Library under Steele was also the first library in Chicago to seek out special collections for the hearing-impaired, following in the footsteps of another Hild librarian who began regional library services to the blind in the Hild basement in the 1930’s. Sulzer is still the center for deaf collections, holds sign language classes and has a reference telephone for the hearing impaired (TDD).
Due to its unique programming, strong in-depth collections, and wide patron support, annual circulation under Steele grew from approximately 100,000 in the early 80s to nearly 900,000 when she was forced out. The drive to open libraries on Sunday began with the Sulzer community delivering a petition with over 3,000 signatures to the then-library commissioner, John Duff.
Budget constraints delayed the opening for several years, but it was the Sulzer initiative that led to the opening of Woodson Regional and the Harold Washington Library Center on Sunday a few years ago. Its success can be measured by the crowds that descend upon Sulzer for four hours each Sunday to use the collections and attend concerts.
Steele also has fond memories of working with the North Side children who came in droves to Sulzer yearly for the Chicago Metro History Fair, sponsored by the Ravenswood Lake View Historical Association. “The creativity of the children never ceased to amaze me. We had fantastic exhibits and excellent essays. The annual awards night was a big event.”
Steele was the initiator of the Young Artists Competition at Sulzer, which followed the successful fundraising effort to purchase a grand piano. “Suburban libraries, especially Skokie, had a wonderful program for young musicians. I wanted the children to have a lovely setting with a quality instrument to showcase their talents. We had professional musicians from around the Chicago area judge the children and the winners performed in recital for the general public.”
A young, and then unknown, violinist from Lincoln Square, Rachel Barton, was one of the early performers at Sulzer. The centennial celebration for Lake View Township, which was centered at Sulzer Library, also stands out as a significant event in Steele’s tenure.
“This was not just a job,” said Steele, who grew up in Andersonville as the daughter of a Chicago policeman. “ I never looked at this as just a paycheck, this was my profession. Most librarians feel this way. Public service was my passion, managing Sulzer, and for a little while, the Jefferson Park Branch, allowed me the challenge of administration and the joy of librarianship serving people. I achieved that goal for much of my career, so I am grateful.”
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