Robert H. Goddard Library

The Robert H. Goddard Library is the primary library of Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts, United States. The library was named after rocketeer Robert H. Goddard, who earned a M.A. and Ph.D. at Clark in the 1910s. The building was built in 1969[1] and remodeled in 2009. The brick and concrete building was designed by architect John M. Johansen in the Brutalist style.[2][3]

Robert H. Goddard Library
Goddard Library in 2020
42°15′6″N 71°49′23″W
LocationWorcester, Massachusetts, United States
Established1969
Access and use
Population servedClark University
Other information
WebsiteGoddard Library at Clark University

Dedication

Two months before the opening of the library, Willard Rockwell's Rockwell Foundation gave 75,000 dollars towards the establishment of a periodical room in the library.[4] On May 19, 1969, United States Senator Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts opened the Goddard Library in which he called for the shifting of resources used in aerospace exploration to "pressing problems here at home".[5] Also in attendance at the dedication were John Leland Atwood, president of Rockwell International; library architect John M. Johansen; astronaut Buzz Aldrin; and Goddard's widow Esther Goddard.[2] Aldrin was honored with an honorary degree at the dedication ceremony.[2]

Fifty years later, on March 13, 2019, Clark University commemorated the anniversary of the building's opening, and paid tribute to namesake Robert H. Goddard, with an evening of lectures by Clark administrators and distinguished guests.[2]

Academic Commons at Goddard Library

The Academic Commons at Goddard Library is a study space opened in January 2009 as part of the building's renovations. It includes Clark's primary computer lab, a cafe and study space.[6]

Collections and features

The Dr. Robert H. Goddard Collection and the Robert Goddard Exhibition Room are housed in the Archives and Special Collections area of the library. Outside the library lies a structure depicting the flight path of Goddard's first liquid fuel rocket. In 2008, the library digitized Goddard's collection through a 40,000 dollar grant from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services.[7]

References
  1. Library honors rocket science pioneer March 27, 2002, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
  2. Gibson, Anne (4 March 2019). "Clark community to celebrate 50 years of Goddard Library". Clark University. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  3. Bluffton.edu
  4. Rockwell gives 75,000 March 29, 1969, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
  5. Cut Space Priority: Kennedy May 20, 1969, The Milwaukee Journal
  6. Revamped library welcomes Clark University students back from break January 12, 2009, Clark University
  7. Goddard materials now online November 26, 2008, Worcester Telegram and Gazette
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