Terry Belanger

Terry Belanger is a historian, collector, and protector of one of humankind’s greatest inventions: the book. To support the study of the book’s long history, Belanger created a teaching and archive facility, the Rare Book School (RBS), in 1983 as part of Columbia University’s School of Library Service; in 1992, he moved it to its current home at the University of Virginia. Terry Belanger received a B.A. (1963) from Haverford College and an M.A. (1964) and Ph.D. (1970) from Columbia University. He was on the faculty of the School of Library Service at Columbia University (1971-1992), where he served as assistant dean (1980-86). He established the Book Arts Press (1971) at Columbia as a bibliographical laboratory for the training of rare book and special collections librarians and antiquarian booksellers. In 1983, he instituted the Rare Book School, also at Columbia. Belanger moved both the Book Arts Press and Rare Book School to the University of Virginia in 1992, where he now holds the position of University Professor and Honorary Curator of Special Collections.