History of the UC San Diego Libraries

• Libraries and Collections at UCSD
• UCSD Library Milestones

In 1958, before a University Librarian had been named, the Scripps Institution of Oceanography Library, established in 1903, initiated the task of acquiring materials for the Graduate School of Science and Engineering. The Scripps Institution of Oceanography Library staff began the all-consuming process of establishing a major university library.

The UCSD Libraries officially began in 1960 with the founding of the UC San Diego campus and the hiring of Melvin J. Voigt as the first University Librarian.

Between 1961 and 1963 Scripps Institution of Oceanography Library became the physical staging area for the new main library. When the main library finally moved to the upper campus, the Scripps Institution of Oceanography Library became a branch library of the UCSD library system. The main library was housed in the basement of what is now known as Galbraith Hall.

William Pereira & Associates designed the Central University Library (as it was called then) in the late 1960s. The building is an eight-story concrete structure situated at the head of a canyon near the center of campus. The lower two stories form the pedestal for the six-story, stepped tower that has become a visual symbol for the University.

During 1992 the building was functionally updated, east and west wings were added, and the "tower", as it is called, was restored to the floor plan similar to the one originally designed by Pereira. The addition was designed by Gunnar Birkerts and Associates. The stacks received additional reinforcement for seismic occurrences and a third public elevator was added. The tower, floors 4 through 8, houses much of the Library's collection and study space, while floors 1 and 2 house service desks and staff work areas. The renovation was completed in 1993 and the library was rededicated as the University Library Building.

On December 1, 1995 the University Library Building was renamed Geisel Library in honor of Audrey and Theodor Seuss Geisel for the generous contributions they made to the library and their devotion to improving literacy.