Rest in Peace, Richard

Richard Seidel, CARA Treasurer, Historiographer and Archivist for the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago and consulting archivist for the Chicago Board of Education, died on the evening of March 25, 2013.  Trained as a librarian at Rutgers University and earning a M.T.S. from Seabury-Western School Theological Seminary in 1992.  Richard was an archivist par excellence. 

After graduating from Rutgers University he became an acquisitions librarian at the newly-built University of Illinois Chicago Circle Campus. He enjoyed building the new library collection and became friends with Mary Lynn Bryan, the first curator of Hull House and later Editor of the Jane Addams Papers.  He subsequently left the university in 1971 and worked many years for the Newberry Library as a technical services librarian.  Retiring from the Newberry Library in 1990, Richard became a free lance archivist.  His greatest joy was his volunteer work for the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago as the historiographer and archivist.  Every Saturday from 1990-2012, Richard faithfully travelled to the church center and processed and collected diocesan related materials.  The value of the collection is a tribute to his active collection policy and detailed analysis of archival materials.

In 2001, he was employed by the Chicago Board of Education as a consulting archivist. Working part-time, Richard built an archive from the ground up and solicited materials from former teachers and collected materials from schools that were closed.  The materials found today in the Board of Education office are a tribute to his skill as an archivist and historian.

Perhaps Richard’s greatest gift was his collaborative approach to building an archival collection and the assistance he provided to visiting scholars.  Always wanting to learn from others, Richard became a friend to many.  Besides these jobs, Richard was a part-time archivist for the Richard Nickel Committee and recreated a catalog of Louis H. Sullivan’s library.  He will be missed by his friends within the Episcopal Church and archives community. May God continue to bless the work that he has initiated.

A memorial service will be held at Saint James Cathedral on the corner of Wabash and State Streets within the next two weeks. Details about the service will be forthcoming.