Meet our friend, John

"We were thought of as providing a great service, and people appreciated that very much. As long as the Co-op can continue to be of such service to the academic community, general readers, and the youngest budding readers--at 57th Street Books, it may well survive."

Meet our friend, John Modschiedler
Former manager of the Seminary Co-op from 1967-1970.

Born in Texas, John grew up in the city of New Orleans and attended Elmhurst University. After graduating, John found himself in Chicago and frequented the newly opened Seminary Co-op bookstore regularly. The bookstore, started in 1961 by UChicago students as a way to procure their texts more affordably, had humble beginnings on the inside of those students' desk drawers. Championed by the Dean of Students enthusiasm, the students were able to create the Seminary Co-op’s first home in the basement of the Chicago Theological Seminary (CTS). By 1966, the store was only 5 years old, and John had become a regular browser. After finding out John had experience working in a bookstore back at Elmhurst, Seminary Co-op’s manager Tom Mikleson had offered John a position at the bookstore. “John, you want a job? We could always use more help around here.” John would accept the job, and after a year, Tom would fully pass his management torch to John.

From its inception, the Co-op would order books for you and work with CTS professors to order CTS texts. The CTS Dean of Students was instrumental in establishing trust and credit with large publishing houses. University students would go on to find The Seminary Co-op helpful in ordering their texts, so professors from other departments began to place their orders with the Co-op as well. The bookstore, first occupying just a few rooms, would eventually grow into the entire basement, even adding a small display window. Visiting the bookstore, you might run into a professor and be able to engage with them differently than in class or if you made an appointment. The friendly, welcoming atmosphere was a big reason students and teachers alike felt so comfortable spending their time there, even beyond just picking up their books.

As John got more acquainted with his role, his knowledge of the literature would grow exponentially. He was the buyer for the store and had lots of meetings with sales teams where he’d have to decide what to order and how many. He’d say “Yes, this seems like something our community would want, I’ll take 3,” “We’ve been keeping our eye out for this, send us 10,” or “Someone may want this one day, I’ll take 1.”

Even after leaving the store in 1970, John remained a long-time member and advocate of the Seminary Co-op. In terms of legacy, John most hopes that the bookstore do well, especially given the pressures of modern technology and monopolies like Amazon. John finds the Co-op’s not-for-profit status pioneering and hopes that if it's lasted this long, it might last well past another 60 years.

Thank you so much for your wonderful work, John.
From your booksellers at the Seminary Co-op Bookstore