Francis Aubie Sharr (1914–2002) was a state librarian of

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

, the first to be appointed after the formation of a board in 1956 to oversee the state's

library system A library is a collection of Book, books, and possibly other Document, materials and Media (communication), media, that is accessible for use by its members and members of allied institutions. Libraries provide physical (hard copies) or electron ...

. F. A. Sharr, known as Ali, was born in England in 1914, the only child of Ethel Lucy ''née'' Bennett and her husband Francis Joseph Sharr. He worked in British public libraries after graduating in London at

University College In a number of countries, a university college is a college institution that provides tertiary education but does not have full or independent university status. A university college is often part of a larger university. The precise usage varies f ...

and completing post graduate study at the University of London School of Librarianship. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

he was enlisted in the Royal Artillery. While serving as the city of Manchester's Deputy City Librarian, after completion of his military service, he was appointed to become the first State Librarian of Western Australia in 1956. Sharr held dual roles as state librarian and secretary of the library board, established as the coordinating body for local and regional collections and the

State Library of Western Australia The State Library of Western Australia is a research, education, reference and public lending library located in the Perth Cultural Centre in Perth, Western Australia. It is a portfolio agency of the Western Australia Department of Local Gover ...

; he held these positions from the time of his first arrival until retiring in 1976. Ali Sharr worked at other institutions and coordinating bodies, acting as a consultant to the Northern Nigerian government during 1962–1963, attended international conferences on establishing other nation's library services, and on committees formed in Australia. Sharr was the recipient of several awards, including the

1977 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1977 are appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms to celebrate the year passed and mark the beginning of 1977. The awards were announced on 30 December 1976 in the United Kingdom,United Kingdom: Australia,Australia: N ...

list, and an honorary Doctorate of Letters from

Curtin University Curtin University (previously Curtin University of Technology and Western Australian Institute of Technology) is an Australian public university, public research university based in Bentley, Western Australia, Bentley, Perth, Western Australia. ...

in 1991. An award, originally a medal, is named for Sharr, the recipients receiving recognition for excellence in works undertaken in the first few years after graduation. He died shortly after the death of his wife, librarian Florence McKeand, on 16 November 2002. The works of F. A. Sharr include his recollections of public service and a book ''Western Australian plant names and their meanings: a glossary'', published in 1978 and revised in 1996.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sharr, F. A. Australian librarians 1914 births 2002 deaths