Bäumker - The most important german hymnologist
The collection of the Catholic theologian and important german hymnologist Friedrich Wilhelm Bäumker was handed over to the Cologne City Library after his death in 1905. Bäumker's library, which presumably consisted of at least 2000 volumes, including 900 hymn books and song collections, is now located in the UCL Cologne, as well as a small part of the manuscript collection. His theological and musicological books were placed in the existing signature groups of the old Cologne City Library. The hymnbook collection was placed under the BAEU signature group. It will continue to be supplemented by the UCL, i.e. hymnbooks of other provenances of the Bäumker collection will also be added.
After Bäumker's death, Joseph Gotzen endeavoured to ensure that the private library would be handed over to the Cologne City Library. According to the records of the city council meeting, an " Anregung der Bibliotheks-Verwaltung bzw. (...) das Zusammentreten einer Anzahl opferwilliger Bürger von Cöln " (suggestion of the library administration or (...) the meeting of a number of sacrificial citizens of Cologne) had preceded this in order to " vor der Zersplitterung zu bewahren (...) und sie der Stadtbibliothek zum Geschenk zu machen" (save the collection from fragmentation (...) and to make it a gift to the city library) (Council resolution of 20 July 1905). In addition to books with the proverbs and psalms of David, it contains numerous hymnbooks for various regions of Germany (in particular Cologne), as well as devotional books of various brotherhoods and various congregations on certain feasts or saints, devotional exercises and devotional orders. Prayer books for the mission are represented as well as pilgrim books and pilgrimage literature, in addition theoretical works, above all to the Gregorian chant. The USB Cologne has further hymnbooks at its disposal.
In addition to the various hymnals, the USB also owns the Gotzen-Kartothek. This consists of around 55,000 handwritten postcard-sized index cards, which show the location of texts and melodies for Catholic hymns. The life's work of librarian Joseph Gotzen can be viewed in the Historical Collections Reading Room. The digitalised version of the cartotheque is provided by the hymnbook archive of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz in collaboration with Mainz University Library, USB Cologne and the "Kirchenlied und Gesangbuch" research centre.
It can be accessed at Gutenberg-Capture.
Friedrich Wilhelm Bäumker (1842 -1905)
Friedrich Wilhelm Bäumker was born on 25 October 1842 in Elberfeld. After his graduation from the Elberfelder Gymnasium (1863) he studied Catholic theology and philosophy in Münster and Bonn. In 1866 he entered the seminary in Cologne and was ordained a priest on September 1, 1867. As a priest and school vicar he worked in Bergerhof near Waldbröl, later in Alfter near Bonn and Niederkrüchten and finally in the small parish of Rurich in the Erkelenz district. Father Bäumker spent decades collecting and cataloguing hymns. On 26 November 1889, the University of Breslau awarded him an honorary theological doctorate for his music-historical works. Friedrich Wilhelm Bäumker died in Rurich on 3 March 1905.