[padg] Ellen McCrady

[Ellen Cunningham-Kruppa <e.cunnk@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Dear Friends and Colleagues:

It is with sadness that I send news of Ellen McCrady's passing.

Ellen Cunningham-Kruppa


McCrady, Ellen Ruth

Age 81, died March 5, 2008. She was born in 1926 to Archie and Gladys
(Burnett) McCrady. She graduated from the University of Michigan and later
did graduate work in library science and book preservation at Michigan and
Columbia Universities. Ellen had an adventurous spirit, and long wanted to
explore the Mississippi River. In 1951, she recruited companions to help
construct a raft from oil drums and scrap lumber, and they floated down the
river from Pittsburgh to New Orleans. For several years, she operated the
Academy Book Bindery in Dexter and Ann Arbor, binding journals and restoring
old books. When research made it clear that a large portion of the paper
produced after the beginning of the 19th century was deteriorating at an
alarming rate because of the acid residue from the manufacturing process,
she launched a crusade to persuade paper manufacturers to change their
practices so as to leave an alkaline buffer in the paper. She invented and
distributed widely a simple device which enabled librarians and archivists
to test the paper in their collections and identify the ones which urgently
needed remedial action. She also wrote and published the "Alkaline Paper
Advocate" (1984-1997), a publication designed for users and makers of
alkaline paper. And, late in her life, she became active in the fight
against toxic mold and produced a newsletter entitled the Mold Reporter. She
worked for the UM library bindery and later at the National Archives, the
Library of Congress, and Brigham Young University. From 1975 until 2004, she
published the Abbey Newsletter, which reached a circulation of 1,000 and
circulated in over 40 countries. It was recognized as an important venue for
sharing research about book and paper conservation. According to Carl
Mendoza, Vice President of Crocker Technical Papers, Fitchburg,
Massachusetts: "Ellen had a profound effect on our path and how we chose to
do business. Her role as the Guardian Angel with a Martin Luther-like
approach inspired us to take notice. Her theses affected the world of
conservation and preservation more than most might know. The research she
inspired has had its effect on all forms of conservation and preservation
from documents housed in archival libraries to X-ray film, textiles,
microchips, automotive machinery, and aircraft components." In 2002, she
received the Banks/Harris award from the American Library Association for
"significant contributions to the library and archives preservation field."
She is survived by her sister, Carol Rees (Gerald Rees); nephews David Rees,
James Rees (Sarah Casello), and Jonathan Rees (Oakley Hoerth); and a dear
friend, Jocelyn Vinograd, of Austin, Texas. Memorial contributions may be
sent to Arbor Hospice or to NAMI Washtenaw, 1100 N. Main Street, Ann Arbor.
--
Ellen Cunningham-Kruppa
Director
The Kilgarlin Center for Preservation of the Cultural Record
School of Information
The University of Texas at Austin
1 University Station D7000
Austin TX 78712-0390
Phone: 512.471.8287
FAX: 512.471.8285
E-mail: e.cunnk@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx