When he retired in July 1994, Dr. H. Rupert Theobald held the record as the longest serving director of a legislative service agency in the nation. In recognition of his many accomplishments and years of service to the citizens of Wisconsin, the legislature directed that the LRB library be formally named the “Dr. H. Rupert Theobald Legislative Library” and that a bas relief be commissioned in his honor and permanently installed in the Assembly Chamber.

Born in Berlin, Germany, on March 12, 1930, Theobald attended colleges and universities in Germany before coming to Wisconsin. He won a scholarship to the University of Wisconsin as a journalism student in 1950 and became a U.S. citizen in 1955. He completed his graduate studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, earning his M.A. in political science in 1960, and his Ph.D. in the same field in 1971. His dissertation focused on legislative and congressional reapportionment.

Theobald joined the LRB staff in 1957 as a research associate. He was named coordinator of reference and research in 1960, served as acting chief in 1963, and was appointed bureau chief in January 1964.

During his 30-year tenure as chief, Theobald pioneered the development and installation of the nation’s first computerized system for bill drafting and statutory retrieval. He was also recognized for his expertise in redistricting, parliamentary procedure, the legislative process, and state government organization. In 1986, he received the first Council of State Governments’ Charles McCarthy Award for Leadership in Information Services, a special honor because the national award is named for the LRB’s founding chief.