Did Your Family Have an Encyclopedia?

Toddlers. Vietnam. Ben Franklin. Did Your Family Have an Encyclopedia?

World Book Encyclopedia, in Braille

The young woman at the door was a pretty, warm and enthusiastic encyclopedia saleswoman.

I gave her 15 minutes to give her pitch.

But, my husband was a new 2^nd lieutenant in the Army. I had dropped out of college when he got drafted. We had a toddler.

Just supporting a family of three on one income was difficult enough. Knowing that he would be in Vietnam within the year meant it was even more important to save our pennies.

I told her no.

She started to cry.

“I’ve never had anyone say no before.”

Every Family Needs an Encyclopedia

I invited her in so she could calm herself.

I explained to her the reason for my decision and showed her our bookshelves. Books were crammed in tightly so our toddler wouldn’t pull them out and try to eat them.

“Our son will be surrounded by books. We just can’t afford to buy a set of encyclopedias.”

And, she left.

The World Book Described Everything

We had the World Book Encyclopedia when I was growing up.

I loved being able to look up the answer to pretty much anything in them.

In school, we could use the encyclopedia as a source. But, we were required to have three sources and the encyclopedia could only be one of them.

Today, of course, our grandchildren use the Internet for their research. Even with its flaws, it is like having access to a worldwide library on your computer.

What the Internet doesn’t have is:

The assurance that an article, once found, will still be there when you go back.

A trusted third party checking the sources used for information.

A short, clear explanation of whatever the topic is you are looking up.

Still.

Using the Internet is almost like walking into the Library of Congress anytime you have a question and asking the librarian there to find you the answer – in seconds.

Even at the Library of Congress you have to wait 20 minutes for them to bring you your books.

And, you can’t take them home with you. It is not a lending library.

How Did It All Start?

Pliny the Elder, a Roman, was the first to try to compile all the knowledge of his day in an encyclopedia, in 77 AD.

There were many more such efforts over the centuries, but it was the printing press, invented in 1440, that finally made widespread access to encyclopedias possible.

The Encyclopedia Britannica, now in Chicago, Illinois, was one of the first of the modern encyclopedias that were produced cheaply enough for popular distribution.

Founded in Scotland, where its first volume was printed between 1768 and 1771, it moved its operations to the U.S. in 1901. Here, the company introduced direct, door-to-door sales.

At thirty-two volumes, it is still in print and available on CD and online. In a nod to its roots, it maintains a dual dedication, to the President of the United States and the Queen of England.

The World Book, which calls itself the number-one selling print encyclopedia, was first published in 1917. Its 22 volumes are still being published today. Its headquarters is also in Chicago, Illinois.

In 1998, the World Book, in addition to print and CD-ROM, went online. There are now electronic versions for Windows and the Mac.

And, now, everyone has Wikipedia, the free, online encyclopedia that has nearly 4 million articles in English, 20 million altogether. Launched in 2001, it is a non-profit, supported by the Wikimedia Foundation.

Though almost anyone can edit the articles, the organization has about 100,000 active contributors.

How Did It Turn Out?

We never did buy a set of encyclopedias.

But, I did keep an almanac by the dining room table to settle dinner disputes.

And, by the time our second son was in high school, the Internet was in full swing.

When he wrote a paper on Benjamin Franklin, he found a letter Franklin had written to his son as part of his research and his autobiography.

He also found pictures of Franklin’s children that he could include in his paper.

As for that toddler? He got a scholarship to graduate school at the University of Chicago.

When he graduated, he helped the Encyclopedia Britannica go online.

Did you grow up with a set of encyclopedias in your house?

Did your parents or grandparents read them to you?

Do you still have encyclopedias in your house to read to your grandchildren?