Library Board Members: The First 40 Years, Part III

Robert J. Bauer (1942-1961):

Robert Bauer was born to William S. Bauer and Catherine Shackelford on August 28, 1899 in Springfield, Ohio. He graduated from Springfield High School in 1918 and received his degree from Ohio Wesleyan University (where he was a member of the Phil Kappa Psi and Alpha Delta Sigma fraternities) in 1922. From 1922 to 1924, he worked as a salesman for Buckeye Incubator Company and was the manager of Continental Hatchery Company in Toledo from 1924 to 1928 (Los Angeles Public Library, n.d., pp. 1-4). From 1927 to 1930, he was the assistant manager at the Better Business Bureau division in Detroit. He moved to Los Angeles in May of 1930 and became manager of the Better Business Bureau division in that city. While in California, he held several positions of honor in several different prominent boards and associations. For instance, in 1932, he served as a member on the California Governors Bread Commission (pp. 3-4). In 1937, he was a member of the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Traffic Association. From 1930 to 1940, he served as a member on the Board of Governors of the National Association of Better Business Bureaus, Inc. and was its Secretary of Treasury from 1934 to 1935. In 1939, he was its vice-president and ultimately became president in May of 1940, serving for two years. In 1940, he became the vice-president of the Economic Round Table of Los Angeles. That same year, he became a member of the Board of Fire Commissioners and served there until 1942, when he was elected to the Board of Library Commissioners (pp. 4-5). According to the Los Angeles Times, he resigned from the Board in 1961 and retired from the Better Business Bureau of Los Angeles six years later. All that is known of his latter years is that he became a writer of handbooks for different bureaus; however, the year of his death remains unknown (“Retired Chief,” 1967).

Mary Ruth Belt (1948-1953):

Mary Belt (née Mary Smart) was a member of the Board of Library Commissioners, being appointed on March 9, 1948. She was born to John Gregory Smart and Esther Anne Cooper on May 10, 1893 in the state of Washington. It is unknown when her family moved to California; however, records show that she attended Los Angeles High School and graduated in 1912. She attended the University of California at Berkeley and graduated with honors in 1917. She then went on to attend graduate school at the University of Southern California from 1928 to 1930 (Los Angeles Public Library, n.d., pp. 1, 3). Over her lifetime, Belt was a social leader in Los Angeles and a board member or director of many cultural, social, and civic committees and organizations. Many of these were: Hospitality Commissioners of Hollywood Boulevard, Los Angeles County Museum Association, Historical Society of Southern California, Travelers Aid Society, Opera Guild of Southern California (which she co-founded), League of Women Voters, Association of American University Women, UCLA Art Council, Associated Friends of Occidental College, Citizens Advisory Commission for Music, California Centennial Celebration (in 1946), and Women’s University Club (Los Angeles Public Library, n.d., p. 4). She was also a member of the Directors Board of the University of California at Los Angeles from 1941 to 1944 and founder of The Courier, the official publication of the California Medical Association. In addition, she founded several associations such as El Salon Español (1936) and was co-founder of Las Fiestas de las Americas and the World Affairs Council, according to the Times (Los Angeles Public Library, p. 4; “Mary Ruth Belt,” 1983).

According to the Los Angeles Times, Belt was active in society for almost 50 years of her life, spending most of her time raising fundraisers for organizations and libraries, as well as advocating on behalf of the Los Angeles public school system. She died, honored by historians and journalists alike, in February of 1983 in Los Angeles at the age of 92 (“Mary Ruth Belt,” 1983).

Edward Augustus Dickson (1948-1956):

Edward Dickson was a member of Los Angeles’ Board of Library Commissioners from July 28, 1948 until his death in 1956. He was an actor, archivist, and social leader in the Los Angeles community. He was born to William Dickson and Guria Iverson on August 29, 1879 in Shaboggan, Wisconsin. His family moved to California in 1889, when he was just ten years old. Nothing is known about his early life and education; however, he attended the University of California at Berkeley, graduating with a degree in 1901 and earned an honorary LL.D at Moravian College in Pennsylvania (Los Angeles Public Library, n.d., pp. 1, 3). In 1907, he co-founded the Lincoln Roosevelt League and the University of California at Los Angeles in 1919. From 1919 to 1931, he was the owner and editor of the newspaper Los Angeles Evening Press (pp. 3, 5). During his lifetime, he was a chairman of a large variety of different leagues, organizations, and boards. For instance, he headed the Board of Regents of the University of California system and was a member from 1913 until 1956 (p. 5). Other institutions he led included: the Board of the Department of Water and Power’s Finance Committee, (member from 1940 to 1945), Western Federal Savings and Loan Association, and the Historical Society of Southern California. He was also a member of both the Los Angeles and California Chambers of Commerce, California Club, Downtown Businessmen’s Association, Board of Directors of the Central Investment Corporation (owners of the famed Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles), and the Community Development Board, which built the Coliseum and brought the Summer Olympics to Los Angeles in 1932 (pp. 5-7).

Dickson’s involvement in the community made him much revered among his contemporaries. Belt et al. (1956) had had nothing but kind words to describe their former colleague and friend. For instance, Belt refered to him as intelligent, having a “tremendous zest for life,” devoted to his interests and endeavors, and having a remarkable leadership style (p. 4). Thomas J. Cunningham, a graduate of UCLA and former judge of the Los Angeles Superior Court, called him an unselfish man “of great vision” who had tremendous love for the University of California (p. 6). He was also known to be a book collector and lover, and he donated a large portion of his wealth to build up the UCLA Library (pp. 6-7). He died on March 9, 1956, two years before his term was to end on the Library Board. Up to this day, he is still known as “Mr. UCLA” (pp. 3, 6).

The Most Reverend Timothy Cardinal Manning (1948-1962):

Timothy Manning was a Roman Catholic bishop, community leader, and a member of the Board of Commissioners from 1948 to 1962. He was born on November 14, 1909 to Margaret Cronin Manning in Balingeary, Cork, Ireland. He attended the town’s National School and later, educational facilities operated by the Christian Brothers, a Catholic religious group. He was enrolled in Mungret College in Limerick, Ireland from 1923 to 1927, where he began preparing to enter into the priesthood. On October 15, 1928, he came to the United States and entered into St. Patrick’s Seminary in Menlo Park, California, in which he attended from 1928 to 1934. On June 16, 1934 he was ordained as a Catholic Priest at St. Vibiana’s Cathedral in Los Angeles (Los Angeles Public Library, n.d., pp. 1, 3-4). Then, from 1935 to 1938, he attended the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, Italy, and received a Doctorate degree in Canon Law. He soon after returned to Los Angeles and became a secretary to the Most Reverend John J. Cantwell, Archbishop of Los Angeles, from 1938-1946. On November 17, 1946, Manning became the Titular Bishop of Lesvi and Consecrated Auxiliary Bishop of Los Angeles. Two years later, on March 19, 1948, he was appointed Chancellor of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles (Los Angeles Public Library, n.d., p. 4; Archdiocese of Los Angeles, 1989, p. 5).

In the summer of 1948, Manning was elected to the Library Board by the city’s Mayor. From 1953 to 1967, he was the pastor at St. Gregory’s, a church in downtown Los Angeles. On November 29, 1955, he was appointed as Vicar General for the archdiocese. In 1962, he resigned from the Library Board, focusing on his religious works. He was appointed to the Diocese of Fresno on October 24, 1967. In January of 1970, he was appointed as Chief Shepherd of the Church of Los Angeles, and ultimately became the Archbishop of Los Angeles (Archdiocese of Los Angeles, 1989, pp. 5-7).

Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, according to the Los Angeles Herald Examiner, he staunchly advocated for reforms within the Catholic Church. He also retired from the post of archbishop in 1985 at the age of 75 (“Outgoing Manning," 1983). During the last years of his life, Manning was involved with activities in the Cursillo movement in Los Angeles. He died in 1989, leaving behind a staggering legacy in the Catholic religion (Archdiocese of Los Angeles, 1989, pp. 26, 29).