Notable Veterinary Medical Librarians
Marjan MERALA (1922-2005)
- 27 years in veterinary librarianship
- First veterinary medical librarian and Director, Health Sciences Libraries, University of California, Davis, 1959-1986
- Charter member, Veterinary Medical Libraries Section/MLA, 1973
- VMLS Chair, 1981-1982
- Compiler, “Chapter D: Animal Sciences,” Guide to Sources for Agricultural and Biological Research, 1981.
- First compiler, “Directory of Information Sources” AVMA Directory, 1984-1986.
Major Contributions to Veterinary Librarianship:
Marjan Merala’s leadership and exceptional collection development knowledge were widely recognized by his veterinary medical library colleagues and his influence extended well beyond his responsibilities at the University of California, Davis.
Originally from Slovenia, Marjan earned a Licenciado en Medicina Veterinaria (equivalent to a B.Vet.Sci.) from the University of Madrid in 1949. After immigrating to the United States in the early 1950s, he obtained a B.S. in library science at the University of Illinois, and then worked at the John Crerar Library in Chicago. In 1959, he was appointed the first librarian of the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine branch library.
Marjan continued to focus his attention and subject expertise on developing health sciences libraries at UCDavis through the remainder of his career. In the mid 1960s when the School of Medicine was established, he took responsibility for expanding and transforming the veterinary branch library into the more comprehensive Loren D. Carlson Health Sciences Library to support both research and education in the basic medical sciences. That included redesigning and upgrading a clinical medicine library in Sacramento to serve the UCDavis Health System.
Early on Marjan designed one of the first library instruction courses on the resources of veterinary epidemiology and veterinary preventive medicine. For many years this was a core course in the Master of Preventive Veterinary Medicine (M.P.V.M.) curriculum at the UCDavis School of Veterinary Medicine.
His knowledge of the use of materials, fluency in nine languages, and a strong service orientation helped him develop exceptional collection development skills and a reputation as an excellent bibliographer. Marjan contributed four sections to Chapter D, Animal Sciences (veterinary medicine, animal husbandry, poultry husbandry, and wildlife and wildlife management), a total of over 1,160 annotated citations, for the Blanchard and Farrell Guide to Sources for Agricultural and Biological Research. In 1984, Marjan initiated the “Directory of Information Sources” published annually in the American Veterinary Medical Association’s Membership Directory and Resource Manual, and he coordinated its updates until his retirement. At the national level, he contributed to the collection development policies in comparative and veterinary medicine at both the National Agricultural Library and the National Library of Medicine.
During his career at UCDavis, Dr. Merala advanced in rank to become an Assistant University Librarian. When he retired in 1986 he was the Associate University Librarian for the Health Sciences and director of both the Carlson and Blaisdell libraries. In 2000 Marjan’s colleagues and friends created an endowment fund to honor him and his wife, Marija.
Following retirement, he was a consultant on the design of health sciences libraries at the University of Florida, Gainesville, and at the University of Veracruz, Mexico, and he continued to receive requests for consultation from the World Health Organization.
By attending the “unofficial” breakfast meeting held at Kansas City in 1973, those present decided to seek official MLA recognition. Thus Marjan became one of the 12 founding members of the Veterinary Medical Libraries Group of MLA, as it was known at that time. Remaining an active participant in VMLS activities, he often attended annual meetings through the years and served as its chair in 1981/1982.
Marjan Merala contributed greatly to veterinary librarianship by developing the Carlson Health Sciences Library with its strong subject collection at the University of California, Davis. In turn, the information resources foundation he built has undoubtedly enabled the UCDavis School of Veterinary Medicine to achieve its current ranking as an outstanding veterinary school.
Selected Publications:
Merala M. Directory of Information Sources. 1984 AVMA Directory. Schaumberg, IL: American Veterinary Medical Association; 1984. p. 546-552.
Merala M. Veterinary medicine; animal husbandry; poultry husbandry; wildlife and wildlife management. In: Blanchard JR, Farrell L, eds. Guide to sources for agricultural and biological research. Berkeley: University of California Press; 1981: p. 287-339.
Honors and Awards:
The Marjan and Marija Merala Endowment Fund. Health Sciences Libraries: Carlson Health Sciences and Blaisdell Medical Library. [Internet]. Davis, CA: University of California, Davis; 2010. [cited 1 Mar 2010]. < http://www.lib.ucdavis.edu/dept/hsl/about/collections/merala/ >.
Publications About Marjan Merala:
Anderson DC. Marjan Merala, 1922-2005. [Obituary]. J Med Libr Assoc. 2006 Jul;94(3):369-70. [cited 17 Mar 2010].
< www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi?artid=1525309&blobtype=pdf&tool=pmcentrez>.
Boorkman JA. In memoriam: Marjan Merala, 1922-2005, LDO VET, MS (Library Science). UCDavis Library News. 20 Dec 2005. [cited 17 Mar 2010].
< http://library.ucdavis.edu/ul/news/index.php?item=1016>.
Boorkman JA. Remembering Marjan Merala, LDO VET, MLS 1922-2005. Highlights & News Notes. 2005 fall;56:5.
Marjan Merala [obituary]. Davis Enterprise. 5 Dec 2005, Monday. [cited 17 Mar 2010].
< www.cagenweb.com/yolo/yolobits/mcf-me.htm>.
Personals: Marjan Merala. MLA News. 2006 Feb:7-8.