Glen Creason was the map librarian in the History & Genealogy department[1] at the Los Angeles Central Library, a post he held from 1979 to 2021. He is also the author of Los Angeles in Maps[2] and is a guest writer for many publications such as Los Angeles Magazine,[3][4] additionally serving as a public speaker on the topics of maps, local history, and music.[5] Creason is featured in Susan Orlean's chronicle of the Central Library, The Library Book.[6] Since 2014, Creason has been the star of a Los Angeles Public Library series called Stories from the Map Cave.[7] He retired in October of 2021.[8]
Creason's family descended from immigrants from the British Isles who came to America in the 1760s. Growing up in South Gate, Creason attended Catholic school.[9] As a kid, his father sent him to sell programs at the Coliseum for real-world job experience.[9] Over time, Creason lived in many areas of L.A., including Silverlake, Long Beach, West Los Angeles, and Culver City.[9]
Creason worked at the Herald Examiner library for two years after college, then was offered a job at a library in San Dimas as a children's librarian.[10] He started as a reference librarian at the Central Library in 1979.
Creason was the librarian called when an enormous map collection was discovered at a private residence in Los Angeles in 2012.[11] It was absorbed into the library's collection, doubling its size. Creason is featured in the L.A. Review of Books documentary, Living History: The John Feathers Map Collection,[12] about the collection's discovery.
Date | Venue/Series/Medium | Subject |
---|---|---|
Oct. 28, 2010 | Library Foundation of L.A.-sponsored ALOUD series, L.A. Central Library[13] | Maps and map history |
Jan. 6, 2011 | Google: Santa Monica offices[14] | Maps and map history |
Sept. 16, 2011 | Libros Schmibros at the Hammer Museum[15] | Maps and map history |
July 24, 2013 | California State University Fullerton video[16] | Maps and map history |
October 2013 | You Can't Eat the Sunshine podcast, Episode 39: "Maps & Montezuma"[17] | Maps and map history |
Aug. 2014 | Stories from the Map Cave; a Los Angeles Public Library series[18] | Maps and map history |