Organizer of the Information Bureau (for the 150th Anniversary of the Birth of A.A. Borzov)

Abstract

The article is devoted to the outstanding geographer Alexander Alexandrovich Borzov (1874—1939), who founded the Information Bureau at the Rumyantsev Museum Library, which performed the reference and bibliographic functions and became the prototype of the reference and bibliographic service of the Russian State Library. The main stages of A.A. Borzovʼs life and work are presented, and the successes and challenges of the Information Bureau in the early years of its existence, when it was headed by Alexander Alexandrovich (1918—1926), are reflected. Despite that difficult period, information service was growing, which reflected in an increase in the number of references performed and the replenishment of the collection of bibliographic and reference publications. Thanks to A.A. Borzov and the staff of the Information Bureau, a functional and organizational model of reference and bibliographic service was formed, which later spread to the countryʼs libraries and became common. The traditions laid down by the first professional bibliographers are still carefully preserved by the staff of the libraryʼs reference and bibliographic service sector.