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Previous decade: 1860s

1870s

1873 - Congress passes the Comstock Act

1875 - Madison (WI) Free Library opens (31 May 1875)

1876 - American Library Association founded

1876 - Justin Winsor becomes the first president of the American Library Association

1876 - Melvil Dewey publishes the first edition of Decimal Classification, the first version of what is now known as the Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC).

Next decade: 1880s