The CLEVELAND HEALTH SCIENCES LIBRARY was created in Feb. 1965 by Western Reserve Univ. (see CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIV.) and the CLEVELAND MEDICAL LIBRARY ASSN. An agreement joined the university's libraries of medicine, dentistry, and nursing with the library of the association in an administrative entity controlled by a joint trustee committee and a joint executive council, and advised on operations by a joint advisory council. Each organization retained its independent status. The libraries existed in close proximity for years, with considerable duplication of collections; they also complemented each other in some areas.
The Cleveland Health Sciences Library began formal operations on 1 July 1966 under the direction of Robert G. Cheshier, with the libraries of the university departments of biology and nutrition added in 1971. In 1972 all of the university libraries involved were physically combined in the Health Center Library, located in Sears Tower, 2119 Abington Rd., adjacent to CWRU's health-sciences schools. As of 1995, this library had over 140,000 monographs and 2,800 current journals. The Cleveland Medical Library Assn. collection remained in the Allen Memorial Medical Library at 11000 EUCLID AVE., its home since 1926. While the collection at the Health Center Library has served primarily students and faculty, the Allen Library has been oriented toward practicing health-sciences professionals. The Allen collection also has a large historical component, including rare books, an archives, and the DITTRICK MUSEUM OF MEDICAL HISTORY.
See also LIBRARIES, ARCHIVES & HISTORICAL SOCIETIES, MEDICINE.