Carol M. Newman Library was opened in 1955, after receiving a donation of one million dollars from the Old Dominion Foundation and another one million from the Virginia General Assembly. The library was then renovated and had a six-story section added in 1981, and was later renovated again in 2009.

Photoduplication services began to be offered by the University Libraries when Newman Libarary opened in 1955, based out of a "photoduplication laboratory of commercial quality" as described by Seymour Robb, library director from 1947-1961.

By the late-1970s, photocopy services were listed in printed guides to library services. The library offered self-service coin-operated copy machines for 5¢ each. Patrons could also drop off jobs at the Photocopy Desk to be picked up within 24-hours for the same price.

Beginning in 1980, guides to library services also mentioned the option to use auditrons, a copier feature that allowed users with a code to use machines and tracked their total usage for later payment. Codes were often issued to users on small cards they could carry with them.

Sources: Carol M. Newman Library

Robb, Seymour. Carol M. Newman Library of Virginia Polytechnic Institute. Virginia Polytechnic Institute, 1956.

Carol M. Newman Library (Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University), editor. Information Guide to Newman Library. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1978.

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, editor. Faculty Guide to Library Services. Revised July 1980, University Libraries, VPI & SU, 1980.