We wish our dear colleague Linda Gross heartfelt congratulations on her retirement at the end of 2025!
Linda has been our Reference Librarian since September 2002. In those years, she has helped innumerable patrons, steered our ship of Interlibrary Loans, served on our grants committee, and provided a sharp editorial eye for our publications team. (I first visited Hagley as a graduate student back in 2013, and Linda was the staff member who helped me with my own research!) In recent years, Linda became the coordinator of our virtual reference line, Ask Hagley. If you've reached out to Hagley, odds are high that Linda either responded to you directly or made sure your question got to the right member of staff.
Linda's favorite reference questions to answer have been those that intersect with her interest in pop culture history. She has been Hagley's go-to expert for inquiries on our Avon, World's Fair, trade literature, and ephemera collections. With our former library director Terry Snyder, Linda co-wrote a book on the Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition, published in 2005. Once, her penchant for consumer culture history even assisted a forensic investigation! A detective reached out to Ask Hagley asking for assistance dating an Avon product found at a crime scene. Linda delved into Hagley's Avon catalogs to track down the origin of the evidence.
A collector as well as a librarian, Linda has donated a couple of her personal collections to Hagley. Be sure to check out the Linda Gross postcard collection of roadside attractions, motels, etc. and the Linda Gross collection of matchbook covers. With her expertise in pop culture ephemera, Linda has also made recommendations for new acquisitions and co-authored the finding aid for our large John Margolies collection of travel ephemera.
Linda's interest in pop culture is bolstered by her educational bona fides. She earned Bachelors' and Masters' degrees in Folklore and Folklife from the University of Pennsylvania, and she holds a Master of Science in Information and Library Science from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Prior to joining Hagley's team, Linda held enviable librarian roles at the Country Music Foundation in Nashville (where she helped Garth Brooks with a reference question!) and at QVC Inc. in West Chester, Pennsylvania.
We at Hagley will miss Linda's expertise and efficient handling of her reference duties, but we will also miss her kindness, thoughtfulness, and warmth. We are grateful to have had such a wonderful colleague!
Over the years, Linda has written many excellent collection newsletter articles on Hagley's collections. These will continue to be accessible via our website. Check out a few of our favorites below:
It's all Downhill from Here! : The Iconic Flexible Flyer Sled
DuPont colors for Fender guitars
It's in the Bag! The Popularity of Lucite Purses
Angela Schad is the Head of Reference Services at the Hagley Library