The Unquiet Library: Fifty years of Robarts Library

Host Jesse Carliner explores how the John P. Robarts Research Library at the University of Toronto evolved from an intimidating “Fort Book” into a more welcoming, student-centered hub through architectural changes, service innovations, and shifts in engagement culture. Retired U of T Libraries manager Gabriela Bravo describes efforts to improve navigation, promote reference help and instruction, and build a stronger service culture through staff training and morale initiatives. Retired reference librarian Eveline Houtman recounts how digital tools and end-user searching reshaped reference work, reducing reliance on imposing service desks and repositioning librarians as educators. Former head of user services Lari Langford highlights accessibility advances, from physical upgrades and a relocated entrance to the ACE accessible content ePortal and collaborative alternate-format services. Professor Emerita Lynn Howarth reflects on Robarts becoming a safe, inclusive space supporting students’ academic, physical, and emotional wellbeing, including 24/7 exam access.  

00:00 Unquiet Library Episode 4: From Fort Book to the Heart of Campus  

01:29 Introduction  

02:19 Interview with Gabriela Bravo  

10:49 Interview with Eveline Houtman  

15:22 Interview with Lari Langford  

25:45 Interview with Lynn Howarth  

30:47 Conclusion 

To learn more about the history of Robarts Library, visit uoft.me/robarts50. Follow us @unquietlibrarypodcast on Instagram, Blue Sky or TikTok for additional content and updates.   

Additional Information:  

Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), 2005: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accessibility_for_Ontarians_with_Disabilities_Act  

Accessible Content e-Portal (ACE): https://ace.scholarsportal.info/  

Theme music:  

Felipe Sarro, Bach-Siloti - Prelude BWV 855a 

Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication 

Sound credits: 

analogue_phone_ring_004.flac by lorenzosu -- https://freesound.org/s/72064/ -- License: Attribution NonCommercial 4.0   

picht-type-writer2.flac by ondrosik -- https://freesound.org/s/203989/ -- License: Creative Commons 0 

moretube.wav by NoiseCollector -- https://freesound.org/s/65325/ -- License: Attribution 3.0   

2 08 Br Lib amb 5.wav by ERH -- https://freesound.org/s/51632/ -- License: Attribution 4.0 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Reference Service at Robarts Library in the 1970s and 1980s 

Host Jesse Carliner explores Robarts Library’s intimidating reputation beyond its brutalist architecture, tracing how the building was intended as a formal, graduate student and faculty focused research facility until undergraduate protests led to full access when it opened in 1973. Through 2021 oral-history interviews, retired librarians Patricia Bellamy and Susan Johnston recall the busy 1970s–80s fourth-floor reference room—imposing service desks, constant phone questions, and pre-digital tools like card catalogs, microfiche, and rotating files—where librarians’ deep knowledge inspired awe but could also feel intimidating or even unwelcoming. Professor David W. Smith describes reliance on exceptionally skilled reference librarians, especially Mary McTavish, remembered as formidable and indispensable. Debbie Green, Eveline Houtman, and Suzanne Tabor discuss a perceived culture of elitism and hostility that gradually shifted toward friendlier, user-centered service.  

Index 

00:00 Unquiet Library Episode 3: The Gatekeepers 

00:29 Introduction 

03:05 Patricia Bellamy 

10:14 Susan Johnston 

14:39 Professor David Smith 

18:47 Mary McTavish 

19:46 Debbie Green 

23:13 Eveline Houtman 

28:30 Susanne Tabur 

32:48 Conclusion 

To learn more about the history of Robarts Library, visit uoft.me/robarts50. Follow us @unquietlibrarypodcast on Instagram, Blue Sky or TikTok for additional content and updates. 

What is a library catalog? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Library_catalog

What is a bibliography? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bibliography

Who were the United Empire Loyalists? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Empire_Loyalist

About Rosedale, Toronto: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosedale,_Toronto

Theme music:  

Felipe Sarro, Bach-Siloti - Prelude BWV 855a 

Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication 

Sound credits: 

OFFICE SELF INKING STAMP ON PAPER 01.wav by sengjinn -- https://freesound.org/s/178650/ -- License: Attribution 4.0 

escaleras_mecanicas_interior_-_metro.mp3 by sonsdebarcelona -- https://freesound.org/s/70146/ -- License: Attribution NonCommercial 3.0   

Price Tower Elevator 2 by Filmscore -- https://freesound.org/s/823076/ -- License: Creative Commons 0 

Walking Up Stairs by qubodup -- https://freesound.org/s/210430/ -- License: Creative Commons 0     

British Library sounds 

2 08 Br Lib amb 5.wav by ERH -- https://freesound.org/s/51632/ -- License: Attribution 4.0 

picht-type-writer2.flac by ondrosik -- https://freesound.org/s/203989/ -- License: Creative Commons 0 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of 'The Unquiet Library' podcast delves into the historical context and architectural significance of the John P. Robarts Research Library at the University of Toronto. Hosted by Jesse Carliner, it features insights from architectural historian Mary Louise Lobsinger, preservation architect Michael McClelland, urbanist Shawn Micallef, librarian and photographer Thomas Guignard, and Diamond Schmidt principal architect Gary McCluskie.

The interviews explore the brutalist style of the building, its evolution in public perception, and its place in the cultural and educational landscape of Toronto.  

The episode also touches on personal anecdotes, the broader impact of brutalism in Canada, and the growing appreciation for modernist architecture.  

To learn more about the history of Robarts Library and see archival images, visit uoft.me/robarts50. Follow us @unquietlibrary on Instagram, Blue Sky or TikTok for additional content and updates.  

00:00 A student’s opinion of Robarts Library 

00:23 Introduction 

01:24 Interview with Mary Louise Lobsinger 

07:37 Is the architecture of Robarts Library Canadian?  

08:50 Is Robarts Library a canonical building?  

09:51 Interview with Michael McClelland 

12:32 Interview with Shawn Micallef 

15:22 Brutalism and higher education in Canada 

17:28 Brutalism becomes fashionable again 

20:01 Interview with Thomas Guignard  

22:07 The beauty of brutalism 

23:27 Interview with Gary McCluskie 

25:57 Conclusion 

Learn more about concrete architecture in Toronto:  

McClelland, Michael, and Graeme Stewart. 2004. Concrete Toronto: A Guide to Concrete Architecture from the Fifties to the Seventies. 1st ed. Coach House Books: https://chbooks.com/Books/C/Concrete-Toronto3 

Sound credits 

Theme music: 

Felipe Sarro, Bach-Siloti - Prelude BWV 855a 

Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication 

Sound effects 

120120_walking_through_building.wav by reinsamba -- https://freesound.org/s/142929/ -- License: Attribution 4.0 

littleitaly.mp3 by salgoodsam -- https://freesound.org/s/54282/ -- License: Attribution 4.0 

escalator-close.wav by sarana -- https://freesound.org/s/81831/ -- License: Attribution 4.0 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of 'The Unquiet Library' podcast explores the criticisms and emotional reactions surrounding the John P. Robarts Research Library—an iconic and controversial brutalist structure in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Host Jesse Carliner introduces its massive scale and unique design, which has drawn both admiration and ire since its opening in 1973.  

Featuring experts urbanist Shawn Micallef, architectural historian Mary Louise Lobsinger, preservation architect Michael McClelland, and Diamond Schmidt principal architect Gary McCluskie, the episode delves into themes of architectural brutalism, historical context, and the library's profound impact on Toronto’s cultural and architectural landscape.  

The episode also addresses the visceral reactions people have towards the building, debates on whether it is ugly or sublime, and the architectural significance of its design. 

00:00 One student’s opinion 

00:23 Episode Introduction 

02:22 Interview with Shawn Micallef 

11:56 Interview with Mary Louise Lobsinger 

18:01 Interview with Gary McCluskie 

21:48 Interview with Michael McClelland 

28:16 Conclusion 

To learn more about the history of Robarts Library, visit uoft.me/robarts50. Follow us @unquietlibrarypodcast on Instagram, Blue Sky or TikTok for additional content and updates. 

Learn more about concrete architecture in Toronto:  

McClelland, Michael, and Graeme Stewart. 2004. Concrete Toronto: A Guide to Concrete Architecture from the Fifties to the Seventies. 1st ed. Coach House Books: https://chbooks.com/Books/C/Concrete-Toronto3 

Learn about the architect Ron Thom here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronald_Thom

Learn about Massey College, designed by Rom Thom here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massey_College,_Toronto

Theme music:  

Felipe Sarro, Bach-Siloti - Prelude BWV 855a 

Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication 

Sound credits: 

yonge_street_02.flac by tim.kahn -- https://freesound.org/s/35556/ -- License: Attribution 4.0 

escaleras_mecanicas_interior_-_metro.mp3 by sonsdebarcelona -- https://freesound.org/s/70146/ -- License: Attribution NonCommercial 3.0   

2 08 Br Lib amb 5.wav by ERH -- https://freesound.org/s/51632/ -- License: Attribution 4.0 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to The Unquiet Library: Fifty years of Robarts Library, a podcast exploring the John P. Robarts Research Library at the University of Toronto—an iconic, debated, and often misunderstood building that has stood at the heart of Canada’s largest university for 50 years. Through interviews with architects, librarians, staff, administrators, alumni, and faculty, the series goes behind the scenes of “Fort Book” to uncover the social, political, and architectural forces behind its history.  

For more on Robarts history and to see archival images visit uoft.me/robarts50, and follow @unquietlibrary on Instagram, Blue Sky, or TikTok for additional content and updates.  

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.