Does Library History Matter? Available to Purchase

Why bother with history at all? In particular why bother with the history of a subject so narrowly specialised as libraries? This is a fair question that many people ask today, and it deserves a fair answer. On the other hand there are those who regret that the Library Association's syllabus contains so little emphasis on history; by a judicious selection of alternatives, it is quite possible to get through even the Final Examination without any real knowledge of the historical background. What are the causes of this reluctance to accept the significance of our history?