Margaret Enid Knox Goggin, age 93, of Gainesville, Florida, died Sunday, June 10, 2012 after a lengthy illness. She was born on February 24, 1919 in Nyack, NY, the eldest daughter of Henry Julian and Eleanor (Green) Knox. She received her education at Maryville College (A.B., 1940), Peabody College (M.S., 1942), and the University of Illinois (M.S., 1948; Ph.D., 1957).
Dr. Goggin achieved success in her profession, even after she was told that women could not handle the stressful jobs that men had difficulty with. After working in libraries in Tennessee, Ohio, in Washington, DC at the U.S. Department of Commerce and at the University of Illinois, she became an assistant professor of library science at the University of Florida in 1949. She served the University of Florida in a variety of capacities from 1949-68, including associate professor of library science, assistant director and later acting director of libraries. In 1968, the University of Denver hired Dr. Goggin as full professor and Dean of the Graduate School of Librarianship, a post she held until 1979. In 1980 she was the inspiration behind and co-founder of what is today the Colorado Antiquarian Book Seminar. She remained on the University of Denver faculty as professor until 1984, attaining emeritus status in that year. In retirement, she served as interim director of collection management at Emory University from 1986-88. She also worked as co-owner of Book Seminars, Inc. from 1986-95 and as owner of Margaret K. Goggin Books beginning in 1994.
Dr. Goggin received many professional awards and distinctions, including the Colorado Librarian of the Year Award in 1979 and the Distinguished Alumnus Award from Peabody College in 1987. She served in leadership positions in a number of library organizations, including the American Library Association (division president), the Association for Library and Information Science Education (national president), the Colorado Library Association (director), and the Mountain Plains Library Association (director). She also received Fulbright (1972), Rockefeller Foundation (1958, 1961-62) and Organization of American States (1978-79) grants. She was included in the Marquis Who’s Who in the World 2000 Millennium Edition.
Dr. Goggin is survived by her brothers James E. Knox (Arlene) of Boulder, Colorado and the Rev. Harold B. Knox of Birmingham, Alabama, as well as nine beloved nieces and nephews and numerous grandnephews and grandnieces. In addition to her parents, she was predeceased by her brother Robert E. Knox and sister Hazel Knox Horton. Dr. Goggin was also predeceased by her husband John M. Goggin, the noted cultural anthropologist.
Outside of academia, Margie had many interests. A lifelong lover of music, she played piano and sang in choirs. In Denver, she served on the board of directors and as president of the Altrusa International club, which emphasizes community service. At First Presbyterian Church in Gainesville, she was an elder and served on multiple pastor search committees. One of her greatest joys was traveling abroad to exotic locations, for example to the Great Wall of China, to Israel, and to the Galapagos Islands.
A Funeral Service will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 30, at First Presbyterian Church in Gainesville, 300 SW 2nd Ave., Gainesville, FL with burial to follow at Forest Meadows Memorial Park East.
The family would like to thank John Luckey and also Oak Hammock at the University of Florida for many years of careful attention.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be made to the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America, 322 Eighth Ave., 7th Floor, New York, NY 10001.
