Rider, Fremont

Rider, (Arthur) Fremont (1885–1962) editor, publisher, librarian; born in Trenton, N.J. He graduated from Syracuse University (Ph.B. 1905), but left the New York State Library School without graduating in 1907 to work with Melvil Dewey on revising the Decimal Classification System. He became editor of the Monthly Book Review (1909–17), and the American Library Annual (1912–17), and managing editor of Publisher's Weekly (1910–17) and the Library Journal (1914–17). His Rider Press (1914–32) published various periodicals, including the International Military Digest (1915–18), and he was vice-president of Arrow Publishing Corporation. He also produced a series of guide books to New York City, Bermuda, Washington, and California. In 1933 he became librarian at Wesleyan University (Conn.) and retired in 1953 after greatly expanding the library's resources. Among many other technical innovations, he invented the microcard, which he refused to patent out of a desire that it be freely available.