AGSL News and Events

• Obituary: Dr. Roman Drazniowsky, former AGSC curator
• AGS Library name change

Dr. Roman Drazniowsky, 1922-2006

Roman Drazniowsky joined the staff of the American Geographical Society in 1962 as map curator.  As the financial position of the Society began to deteriorate in the early 1970s, "Dr. D" as he was called, assumed added responsibility, taking charge of the library and the editorship of Current Geographical Publications.  When the library and map collection came to be seeking a new home, Roman became a key figure in the selection process--the process that ultimately selected UW-Milwaukee as the new home of what came to be called the "AGS Collection."

It was only natural that Roman should follow the Collection to Milwaukee in 1978, to become its first Curator: he oversaw the Collection's move, its unpacking and its redeployment in its new space here at UWM.  In his fifteen years in Milwaukee, he was able to pass on not only his knowledge of the collection, but also much of the lore of the Society and his deep understanding of map librarianship as a profession.

In addition to his role in the AGSC, Roman also held adjunct faculty appointments in the Geography Department and the School of Library and Information Science (now SOIS), and taught courses on map librarianship (as he had done at Columbia University before moving to Milwaukee).

Roman retired from UWM in 1993, only to pursue an active second career at the Free University of Ukraine, in Munich, Germany, where he taught, and served as rector.

Roman's busy retirement did not permit many return visits to the library. He served on the AGSC Advisory Committee, and he did make it to a few staff retirements, the last of which was in 2001. Roman will definitely not be forgotten by the staff members who came to know him.

AGS Collection Now Called AGS Library

In late summer of 2002, the American Geographical Society Collection changed its name to the American Geographical Society Library. The name change is intended to better reflect AGSL's standing as a major, internationally renowned library in its own right.

The AGSL joins other recently renamed University of Wisconsin Libraries units, such as the Multimedia Library, Music Library, and the Curriculum Library.

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