The Louis A. Lerner Papers

Louis Abraham Lerner was born on June 12, 1935 to Lerner newspaper founder Leo A. Lerner and wife Deana. Born and raised in Chicago, Lerner studied at the University of Chicago and attended Scandinavian study seminars in Copenhagen from 1956-1957. He received his bachelor’s degree from Roosevelt University in 1960 and took over as editor and publisher of Lerner Newspapers upon his father’s death in 1965. He then worked to keep Lerner Newspapers the largest chain of weekly newspapers in the world, where it stayed until it was sold in 2005.

In addition to publishing newspapers, Louis Lerner was an active member in many of Chicago’s cultural organizations. He was on the Board of Directors for the Lyric Opera Guild of Chicago; worked as a director, vice president and Chairman of the Committee on Facilities at Chicago Public Library (CPL)); served as Commissioner of the U.S. National Commission on Library and Information Science (NCLIS); was a member of the Illinois Advisory Committee on the State Library; and served as Ambassador to Norway in the Carter Administration.

As director, vice president and chairman of the CPL’s Committee of Facilities, Louis A. Lerner reviewed the renovating, remodeling and building of various branches of the Chicago Public Library. Nominated and appointed by President Richard M. Nixon in 1971, Lerner served as NCLIS Commissioner from 1971-1977. As Commissioner, Louis Lerner worked to appraise and assess library and information resources and services, and to develop plans for meeting national library and information needs. Lerner served as Ambassador to Norway during the Carter Administration from 1977-1980, and as a member of the Illinois Advisory Committee on the State Library from 1969-1977. Lerner was also an active member of the Planned Parenthood Foundation, the American Council for United States and Italy, and a trustee of the American Scandinavian Foundation.

Louis A. Lerner died of cancer on November 14, 1984, at the age of 49.