Dorothy Keefe, Sandusky’s “Globe Trotting” Librarian

Miss Dorothy Keefe, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Maurice Keefe, began working at the Sandusky Library in 1915. She was a graduate of Sandusky High School, and attended college at Chautauqua, New York and Western Reserve college in Cleveland, Ohio. She was also an outstanding musician, having studied with Professor N.E. Fox. For several years she was in charge of the library’s outreach services to various sections of Erie County. In November of 1922, she was named Librarian of the Sandusky Library. An article which appeared in the February 18, 1928 issue of the Sandusky Star Journal featured the headline “Librarian is efficient in various lines.”

Miss Keefe often spoke to community groups. She was an active member of the Harlequins, a local theatrical organization. When a musical revue was presented in 1937, for the benefit of Providence Hospital, she performed a dance solo entitled “Sea Gardens”  and appeared in the number “Castilian Castanet Dance.”  

In 1938 Miss Keefe took a five month world cruise aboard a British freighter. She traveled to the innermost parts of China, India and Africa, and took a camel caravan across the African desert. Though at times the food was terrible, and she became sick after having been bitten by fleas, Dorothy told the local Rotary Club that “she wouldn’t take a thousand dollars for her experiences, nor would she go through the same experience again for ten times that amount.”  She became known as Sandusky’s “globe trotting librarian.” 

In the Spring of 1939, Dorothy Keefe announced that she would be resigning as chief Librarian of the Sandusky Library, in order to move to England. Miss Mary McCann took over as Librarian of the Sandusky Library in September, 1939, a post she held until 1976. Miss Keefe married Frank Gordon, an engineer for a British freighter line, in November of 1939. At the time of her brother’s death in 1961, Mrs. Frank Gordon was residing in New York. Dorothy Gordon passed away in Florida in 1980. 

Here is a picture of the staff of the Sandusky Library from the 1930s; Dorothy Keefe is the second person on the left:

A Musical Revue in 1937

On Thursday evening, April 15, 1937, A Musical Revue was held at the State Theatre. Presented by the Women’s Association of Providence Hospital, the production was directed by local dance instructor, Carl Ernst, and proceeds went to Providence Hospital. One of the most outstanding features of the Musical Revue was “Largo,” from the Ballet Moderne, performed by Sandusky librarian Dorothy Keefe. Miss Keefe also performed a toe solo, “Sea Gardens” and was well received in her performance of the “Castilian Castanet Dance.” Dorothy Keefe is pictured in the group of Sandusky Library staff members below. She is second from the left.

Local musicians provided music for the revue. The orchestra members were: William Hay, Kenneth Luteman, John Hay, Frank Kleinfelder, Norbert Smith, Michael Mazur, Charles Held and Lawrence Gassman. Miss Ruth Sponseller accompanied on the piano. Several skits, dances, and songs were presented throughout the evening. An amusing comedy skit directed by Mrs. Paul Squire was entitled “If Men Played Cards as Women Do.” The April 16, 1937 issue of the Sandusky Register stated that the comedy skit caused “a great deal of merriment in the audience. An ensemble of boys and girls participated in the number “Hey Babe! Hey!”

Wedding gowns from 1800 to 1937 were modeled in the final production number. The costumes worn by the bride and groom were furnished by the M. R. Herb Co. The M.R. Herb Co. also provided furniture for the Musical Revue. Mrs. Gladys Hohler portrayed the bride, and Robert Mathes played the groom. Modeling bridal gowns were: Dolores Geason, Dorothy Stahl, Mary Lou Maus, and Miss Bernadine Meyer. Mrs. Nellie Bailey Miller sang “Her Bridal Veil” as the wedding scene was enacted.

An article in the April 13, 1937 issue of the Sandusky Star Journal stated that the Musical Revue was “a snappy show with the zip of a professional revue” and featured “unusually gay music and especially clever comedy skits.”

Charging Desk at the Sandusky Library in 1941

Below is the blueprint for the wooden charging desk which served the Sandusky Library from 1941 through the early 1980’s. The desk was purchased from Gaylord Brothers in Syracuse, New York, but was customized to meet the needs of the Sandusky Library.

An article in the August 31, 1941 issue of the Sandusky Register Star News reported that new furniture for the Sandusky Library was purchased as a result of a monetary gift bequeathed to the library by Mrs. Clifford King in her will. Along with the new charging desk, new reading tables and bookshelves were also purchased. Some of the furniture that had been used in the library prior to 1941 had originally been in use when the library was still in the Masonic Temple. At the new charging desk, books were returned at the left side of the desk, and checked out at the right side of the desk. A feature of the desk was a modern filing system, which allowed employees to sort the cards according to fiction and nonfiction. A multi-functional pencil allowed library personnel to manually write down the library patron’s library card number, and a metal device held the date due stamp, which was stamped on the slip in the back of every book that was circulated. The dates had to be manually re-set every day the library was open.

Sandusky Library’s charging desk is pictured above, in 1977. During much of the lifetime of this desk, the library did not have air conditioning. Summer days could get quite warm inside the library. In the 1960’s patrons were limited to four books, and usually no more than two books on a particular topic could be charged out.

Library personnel in the photograph below (taken prior to 1941) include: Marion Neil, Dorothy Keefe, Evelynn McDowell, Yvonne Fievet, and Mary McCann. Miss McCann is seated to the right, in front of the other four librarians. Miss Fievet and Miss McCann spent many hours at the charging desk during their long tenures at the library.