Marie Tremaine, 1902-1984

Abstract

One of the first important projects embarked upon by the nascent Arctic Institute of North America in 1949 was a bibliography of literature concerning the arctic regions of the world. As project director and editor of the Arctic Bibliography Project the Institute chose Marie Tremaine, at that time and until her death last summer Canada's foremost bibliographer. Born in Buffalo, New York, in 1902 to Canadian-born parents, Marie Tremaine came to Canada in 1911. She was educated at the Humberside College Institute in Toronto and Victoria College of the University of Toronto, where she honoured in English and history, attaining her Bachelor of Arts in 1926. The following year Marie Tremaine joined the Reference Division of the Toronto Public Library. In 1929, having won the first Canadian fellowship for study abroad awarded by the Carnegie Corporation, Marie Tremaine attended the University of London School of Librarianship .... On her return to the Toronto Public Library, Marie Tremaine became involved in the library's contribution to the centennial of the city of Toronto: the listing of the library's significant collection of Canadiana. ... This important bibliography authority, containing 4646 titles (8286 if the supplement is included), is used extensively by librarians, booksellers and others interested in early works on Canada. In 1935 Marie Tremaine was awarded a second Carnegie fellowship. For two years she attended Yale University, carrying on research into early Canadian bibliography and beginning her comprehensive bibliography of works published in Canada before 1800 .... In 1941 Marie Tremaine was appointed associate head of the Reference Department of the Toronto Public Library. Then in 1947, the Arctic Bibliography Directing Committee ... approached Marie Tremaine to take on the new position of project director of the Bibliography Project, the object of which was to prepare an annotated bibliography of material published dealing with the arctic regions, covering all subject fields and languages. ... In all, Marie Tremaine supervised and edited the publication of the first 14 volumes of Arctic Bibliography, which included 92 300 titles. (The complete work is in 16 volumes, with 108 723 titles.) After retiring in 1969 as director and editor, she continued to be associated with the project as editor emeritus .... These three monumental bibliographies established Marie Tremaine as Canada's foremost bibliographer. ... In 1947 she was named honorary life member of the Canadian Library Association. A founding member of the Bibliographic Society of Canada/Société bibliographique du Canada, she was elected honorary president for life and in 1970 was presented with the society's first biennial Marie Tremaine Medal, named in her honour, and presented for "outstanding service to Canadian bibliography." In 1973 the Arctic Institute of North America made her an honorary member, and in 1976 Trent University awarded her the degree of Doctor of Letters. ... With Marie Tremaine's death on 4 August 1984, the world of librarianship and bibliography has lost a good friend and respected colleague, but her three monumental works will ensure that she is never forgotten.