USF began as an idea, a large plot of sand on a country road, an upstart university with no buildings, no students, no library, and no books. In 1956, the Florida Legislature passed a bill ordering the creation of Florida’s fourth state university, and appointed Dr. John Allen president the following year. An astronomer and administrator at the University of Florida, Allen recruited young and bright faculty members who brought energy and optimism to USF. Allen firmly believed that libraries served as the heart of any excellent university, and USF’s would be a destination for study, socializing, and the free exchange of ideas with a faculty lounge on the top floor. He chose Elliott Hardaway as director of the nascent library, USF’s first professional employee, and by his own account “a fanatic believer in the printed word.”     

Together, they set up offices in the Hillsborough County Courthouse, hiring cataloger Mary Lou Harkness, who recalled, “The thing that I was most conscious of was the enthusiasm and the sense of being involved in something new and different and exciting. The first student body wasn’t until ‘60, so when I came, we still had two years of planning.”  

In 1958, Allen’s small team occupied a large frame house at 349 Plant Avenue, a former home and doctor’s office. In 1959, the entire library staff and collection moved to a small residence on campus (now occupied by the University Police) known as the “little house.” There, the library became the first operational unit on campus, with only landscaping and construction workers nearby. 

Cataloger Judy Keeth worked at the little house shortly after being hired by the library, recalling:  

“Acquisitions and serials were in the living room area, cataloging was in the bedroom, physical processing was in the kitchen. We had all these books in the garage. For a new library, we had old books, because a lot of the books we had were donations. Being so small, it was a close-knit group. The maid had to clean while we were there. She used to eat her lunch out on the pond and go fishing.  We used to go out and play badminton on our lunch hour. We actually got together on weekends and made homemade ice cream.” 

In the meantime, President Allen announced plans for one of USF’s first five buildings: a five-story library with space for a quarter-million volumes, seats for two thousand users, and “the usual administrative and technical facilities necessary to provide service.” In addition to a government document section, plans also called for a listening room in the building, where “in a comfortable and relaxing atmosphere a person may hear good music played continually on high-fidelity equipment [turntable].” Construction began in February 1958. When USF opened for classes, the library (present-day Student Services) building had not been completed. In the fall of 1960, staff improvised a library in the ballroom of the University Center, now known as the Marshall Center.