James H. Billington

13th Librarian of Congress (1929–2018)
Person human Q137576
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James H. Billington

Summary

James H. Billington is a human[1]. Born in Bryn Mawr[2], he… he was born on +1929-06-01T00:00:00Z[3]. He passed away in Washington, D.C.[4]. He died on +2018-11-20T00:00:00Z[5]. He worked as a librarian[6], historian[7], and university teacher[8]. He ranks in the top 0.73% of human entities by monthly Wikipedia readership (79 views/month, #7,258 of 1,000,298).[9]

Key Facts

  • Born in Bryn Mawr[2], James H. Billington…
  • James H. Billington died in Washington, D.C.[4].
  • James H. Billington was born on +1929-06-01T00:00:00Z[3].
  • James H. Billington died on +2018-11-20T00:00:00Z[5].
  • Burial took place at Washington National Cathedral[10].
  • James H. Billington held citizenship in United States[11].
  • James H. Billington's professions included librarian[6].
  • James H. Billington worked as a historian[7].
  • James H. Billington worked as a university teacher[8].
  • James H. Billington's field of work was history[12].
  • James H. Billington's field of work was library science[13].
  • James H. Billington held the position of Librarian of Congress[14].
  • Among James H. Billington's employers was Princeton University[15].
  • James H. Billington was employed by Harvard University[16].
  • Among James H. Billington's employers was Library of Congress[17].
  • James H. Billington's education included a stint at Princeton University[18].
  • James H. Billington was educated at Balliol College[19].
  • James H. Billington's education included a stint at Lower Merion High School[20].
  • James H. Billington received the Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres‎[21].
  • James H. Billington received the Guggenheim Fellowship[22].
  • James H. Billington received the Presidential Citizens Medal[23].
  • James H. Billington received the Order of Friendship[24].
  • James H. Billington received the Library of Congress Living Legend[25].
  • James H. Billington received the Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany[26].
  • James H. Billington was a member of American Academy of Arts and Sciences[27].

Body

Origins and Family

Born in Bryn Mawr[2], James H. Billington… he was born on +1929-06-01T00:00:00Z[3].

Education

Educated at Princeton University[18], a private university[28], in United States[29], founded in 1746[30], headquartered in Princeton[31]; Balliol College[19], a college of the University of Oxford[32], in United Kingdom[33], founded in 1263[34], headquartered in Oxford[35]; and Lower Merion High School[20], a high school[36], in United States[37], founded in 1894[38].

Career and Affiliations

Recorded occupations include librarian[6], historian[7], and university teacher[8]. Fields of work include history[12] and library science[13], an academic discipline[39]. Employers include Princeton University[15], a private university[40], in United States[41], founded in 1746[42], headquartered in Princeton[43]; Harvard University[16], a private university[44], in United States[45], founded in 1636[46], headquartered in Cambridge[47]; and Library of Congress[17], a national library[48], in United States[49], founded in 1800[50], headquartered in Washington, D.C.[51]. James H. Billington held the position of Librarian of Congress[14].

Recognition

Awards received include Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres‎[21], a grade of an order[52], in France[53]; Guggenheim Fellowship[22], a fellowship grant[54], in United States[55], founded in 1925[56]; Presidential Citizens Medal[23], an award[57], in United States[58], founded in 1969[59]; Order of Friendship[24], an order[60], in Russia[61], founded in 1994[62]; Library of Congress Living Legend[25], an award[63], in United States[64], founded in 2000[65]; and Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany[26], a grade of an order[66], in Germany[67].

Death and Burial

James H. Billington died on +2018-11-20T00:00:00Z[5]. He passed away in Washington, D.C.[4]. The cause of death was pneumonia[68]. Burial took place at Washington National Cathedral[10].

Why It Matters

James H. Billington ranks in the top 0.73% of human entities by monthly Wikipedia readership (79 views/month, #7,258 of 1,000,298).[9] He has Wikipedia articles in 13 language editions, a strong signal of global cultural recognition.[69] He is known by 20 alternative names across languages and contexts.[70]

Works attributed to him include World Digital Library[71], a digital library[72], in United States[73], headquartered in Washington, D.C.[74], written by him[75].

FAQs

Where was James H. Billington born?

Born in Bryn Mawr[2], James H. Billington…

Where did James H. Billington die?

James H. Billington died in Washington, D.C.[4].

What did James H. Billington do for work?

James H. Billington worked as librarian[6], historian[7], and university teacher[8].

Where did James H. Billington go to school?

James H. Billington was educated at Princeton University[18], Balliol College[19], and Lower Merion High School[20].

What awards did James H. Billington receive?

Honors received include Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres‎[21], Guggenheim Fellowship[22], Presidential Citizens Medal[23], and Order of Friendship[24].

References

Programmatic citations — every numbered marker resolves to a verifiable graph row below.

Direct Wikidata claims

  1. [2] . wikidata.org.
  2. [4] . wikidata.org.
  3. [11] . wikidata.org.
  4. [14] . wikidata.org.
  5. [18] . wikidata.org.
  6. [19] . Rhodes Scholar Database. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  7. [20] . Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  8. [12] . Czech National Authority Database. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  9. [13] . Czech National Authority Database. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  10. [6] . wikidata.org.
  11. [7] . wikidata.org.
  12. [8] . wikidata.org.
  13. [15] . wikidata.org.
  14. [16] . wikidata.org.
  15. [17] . wikidata.org.
  16. [10] . Find a Grave. wikidata.org.
  17. [21] . wikidata.org.
  18. [22] . Guggenheim Fellows database. wikidata.org.
  19. [23] . wikidata.org.
  20. [24] . wikidata.org.
  21. [25] . loc.gov. loc.gov. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  22. [26] . wikidata.org.
  23. [27] . wikidata.org.
  24. [68] . wikidata.org.
  25. [3] . Integrated Authority File. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  26. [5] . nytimes.com. nytimes.com. Provenance: wikidata.org.

Inverse relationships (entities pointing at this one)

  1. [71] . wikidata.org. → on this site

Inline context (facts about related entities)

  1. [28] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  2. [29] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  3. [30] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  4. [31] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  5. [32] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  6. [33] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  7. [34] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  8. [35] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  9. [36] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  10. [37] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  11. [38] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  12. [39] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  13. [40] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  14. [41] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  15. [42] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  16. [43] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  17. [44] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  18. [45] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  19. [46] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  20. [47] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  21. [48] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  22. [49] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  23. [50] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  24. [51] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  25. [52] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  26. [53] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  27. [54] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  28. [55] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  29. [56] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  30. [57] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  31. [58] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  32. [59] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  33. [60] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  34. [61] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  35. [62] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  36. [63] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  37. [64] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  38. [65] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  39. [66] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  40. [67] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  41. [72] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  42. [73] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  43. [74] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  44. [75] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site

Class ancestry

  1. [1] . Wikidata. wikidata.org.

Aggregate / graph-position facts

  1. [9] . Wikimedia Foundation. dumps.wikimedia.org.
  2. [69] . Wikidata sitelinks. wikidata.org.
  3. [70] . Wikidata aliases. wikidata.org.

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Use these citations when quoting this entity in research, articles, AI prompts, or wherever provenance matters. We aggregate Wikidata + Wikipedia + authoritative open-data sources; the stitched, scored, cross-referenced view is what 4ort.xyz contributes.

APA 4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph. (2026). James H. Billington. Retrieved April 10, 2026, from https://4ort.xyz/entity/james-h-billington
MLA “James H. Billington.” 4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph, 4ort.xyz, 10 Apr. 2026, https://4ort.xyz/entity/james-h-billington.
BibTeX @misc{4ortxyz_james-h-billington_2026, author = {{4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph}}, title = {{James H. Billington}}, year = {2026}, url = {https://4ort.xyz/entity/james-h-billington}, note = {Accessed: 2026-04-10}}
LLM prompt According to 4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph (aggregator of Wikidata, Wikipedia, and authoritative open-data sources): James H. Billington — https://4ort.xyz/entity/james-h-billington (retrieved 2026-04-10)

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Edit History

Rolling log of changes to this entity's Wikidata record. Values shown reflect the current state of each edited property — follow the history link to see the precise diff for any edit.

  1. 28d ago · Arch2bot bot · 2026-05-05 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Employer Princeton University, Harvard University, Library of Congress
    Described by source A Dictionary of Eminent Librarians
    Field of work
    Sex or gender male
    + 27 other properties edited (see Wikidata diff for full list)
    "/* wbsetreference-add:2| */ [[Property:P106]]: [[Q201788]], Add archINFORM reference"
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