John James Beckley
John James Beckley ( August 4, 1757 - April 8, 1807 ) was the first director of the Library of Congress .
Life
John James Beckley was born in England . He came to Virginia at the age of eleven to work as a clerk in a trading house. Beckley was a political friend of President Thomas Jefferson and was appointed by him in 1802 to the dual office of Clerk of the US House of Representatives and Head of the Library of Congress. These two offices were not separated until 1815. The Library of Congress then comprised about 740 volumes and three maps.
His son Alfred Beckley founded the town of Beckley in West Virginia .
Web links
Beckley | Magruder | Watterston | Meehan | Stephenson | Spofford | Young | Putnam | MacLeish | Evans | Mumford | Boorstin | Billington | Hayden
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Beckley, John James |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American librarian, first director of the Library of Congress |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 4th August 1757 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | England |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 8, 1807 |