Robert B. Downs

Robert Bingham Downs (May 25, 1903 – February 24, 1991) was an American writer and librarian. Downs was an advocate for intellectual freedom, and spent the majority of his career working against literary censorship. Downs authored many books and publications regarding the topics of censorship, and on the topics of responsible and efficient leadership in the library context. He was the seventh child of eight of Mr. John McLeod, an educator and local part-time politico, and Clarissa Catherine Hartley Downs.

Educational background

Downs attended a one-room schoolhouse called Shady Grove until his high school years when his family relocated to Asheville, North Carolina. Robert B. Downs Intellectual Freedom Award established in 1969 to celebrate Downs' 25th year as director of the School of Information Sciences at the University of Illinois. Melvil Dewey Medal. 1974 American Library Association Honorary Membership. 1976.

Works The following "Works" section is a direct reflection of data from the source: Contemporary Authors Online, Gale, 2008.

(With Louis R. Wilson) Report of a Survey of the Libraries of Cornell University, Cornell University Press, 1948. Books That Changed the World, New American Library, 1956, 2nd edition, American Library Association, 1978. (With others) Family Saga and Other Phases of American Folklore, University of Illinois Press, 1958. Molders of the Modern Mind: 111 Books That Shaped Western Civilization, Barnes & Noble, 1961. Strengthening and Improving Library Resources for Southern Higher Education, Southern Regional Education Board, 1962. The Kabul University Library, University of Wyoming Education Program, 1963. (Editor) The Bear Went over the Mountain, Macmillan, 1964. Famous Books, Ancient and Medieval, Barnes & Noble, 1964. Resources of North Carolina Libraries, Governor's Commission on Library Resources, 1965. How to Do Library Research, University of Illinois Press, 1966, 2nd edition, 1975. Resources of Missouri Libraries, Missouri State Library, 1966. (With Frances B. Jenkins) Bibliography: Current State and Future Trends, University of Illinois Press, 1967. Resources of Canadian Academic and Research Libraries, Association of Universities of Canada, 1967. University Library Statistics, Association of Research Libraries, 1968. Books That Changed America, Macmillan, 1970. Famous American Books, McGraw, 1971. Books and History, University of Illinois Library School, 1974. Horace Mann, Twayne, 1974. Heinrich Pestalozzi, Twayne, 1975. Famous Books, Littlefield, 1975. Books That Changed the South, University of North Carolina Press, 1977. Henry Barnard, Twayne, 1977. Friedrich Froebel, Twayne, 1978. Australian and New Zealand Library Resources, Mansell, 1979. British and Irish Resources, Mansell, 1981. Landmarks in Science, Libraries Unlimited, 1982. (With others) Memorable Americans, Libraries Unlimited, 1983. Perspectives on the Past, an Autobiography, Scarecrow, 1984. (With John T. Flanagan and Harold W. Scott) More Memorable Americans, Libraries Unlimited, 1985. Books in My Life, Library of Congress (Washington, DC), 1985. (Compiler) Images of America: Travelers from Abroad in the New World, University of Illinois Press, 1987. Scientific Enigmas, Libraries Unlimited, 1987. A Dictionary of Eminent Librarians, High Plains Publishing (Worland, WY), 1990. (With Jane B. Downs) Journalists of the United States: Biographical Sketches of Print and Broadcast News Shapers from the Late seventeenth Century to the Present, McFarland (Jefferson, NC), 1991.