Catherine N. Norton

Catherine Norton (née Norris; January 24, 1941 – December 22, 2014) was an American librarian. She was the first Director of Information Systems at the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL).

Catherine Norton
Born(1941-01-24)January 24, 1941
DiedDecember 22, 2014(2014-12-22) (aged 73)
NationalityAmerican
Alma materRegis College
Simmons University
OccupationLibrarian

Career

She received her education at Regis College and Simmons College (Master's degree, Information Science, 1984). She began working at the MBL/Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Library in 1980,[1] and in 1991 was made head of information services. She supported both digital libraries and open access. By 1994, she was the director of the library and led a program that became the basis for the first "Encyclopedia of Life" project.[2] The idea behind the project was to enable medical researchers to utilize technology and to collect biomedical data in an easily shareable format[3] and Norton served as one of the collaborators.

The MBL designed tools for Web site delivery and worked with partners at Harvard, the Field Museum of Natural History and the Smithsonian Institution to organize the project. Norton also published information about the project for other libraries to understand both its scope and how to utilize the information.[4]

Norton had been consultant to the National Library of Medicine, and president of the Boston Library Consortium. She was also a member of the Falmouth School Committee, and Falmouth representative to the Steamship Authority's Board of Governors. She and her husband Thomas J. Norton had four children, Margaret, Michael, Kerrie, and Thomas.[5][6]

Other

In 2014 the Catherine N. Norton Fellowship at the Marine Biological Laboratory was established to cover "approved expenses" for a student or "early year fellow".[7]

Norton was a Justice of the Peace for almost four decades, marrying many happy couples on the beaches and back porches of Cape Cod.[8]

Death

Catherine N. Norton died in Falmouth, Massachusetts, aged 73, after a battle with cancer.[8]

Selected works

References
  1. "In Memoriam: Cathy Norton". "International Oceanographic Data and Information Exchange" (IODE) of the "Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission" (IOC) of UNESCO. December 22, 2014. Retrieved September 7, 2015.
  2. "Catherine Norton". Falmouth, Massachusetts: Cape News. December 23, 2014. Retrieved October 12, 2015.
  3. Parr, CS; Wilson, N; Leary, P; Schulz, KS; Lans, K; Walley, L; Hammock, JA; Goddard, A; Rice, J; Studer, M; Holmes, JT; Corrigan, RJ Jr (April 29, 2014). "The Encyclopedia of Life v2: Providing Global Access to Knowledge About Life on Earth". Biodivers Data J. 2 (2): e1079. doi:10.3897/BDJ.2.e1079. PMC 4031434. PMID 24891832.
  4. Norton, Cathy (August 4, 2008). "The Encyclopedia of Life, Biodiversity Heritage Library, Biodiversity Informatics and Beyond Web 2.0". First Monday. 13 (8). doi:10.5210/fm.v13i8.2226. Retrieved October 12, 2015.
  5. Profile, legacy.com; accessed December 27, 2015.
  6. "In Memoriam: Catherine (Norris) Norton". Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Retrieved September 7, 2015.
  7. Diane Rielinger (Fellowship administration). "The Catherine N. Norton Endowed Fellowship". Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole. Retrieved September 15, 2015.
  8. Profile, ccgfuneralhome.com; accessed December 27, 2015.
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