William Andrew Moffett (January 25, 1933 – February 20, 1995)[1]: B8 was a historian and librarian who was named "100 of the Most Important Leaders We Had in the 20th Century" by American Libraries in 1999.
[2]: 44 He is primarily known for aiding in the capture of a prolific library thief, James Richard Shinn, and, more famously, opening access of the Dead Sea Scrolls for scholarly use, both of which news stories made the front page of the New York Times.
[5]: 157 Eventually, Moffett moved to a new post at Oberlin College where from 1979 to 1990 he occupied the position of Azariah Smith Root Director of Libraries.
[5]: 158 William Andrew Moffett's name rose to fame in April 1981 when he helped capture a renowned book thief who was discovered to have stolen $50,000 worth of material from various libraries.
[6]: 36 He worked to establish the Rare Books and Manuscripts (RBMS) division of the ACRL which was a pioneering organization in library security, helping to connect institutions and warn of potential and reoccurring thefts.
On September 22, 1991, Moffett's name was splashed across newspaper headlines yet again when he announced the Huntington Library's decision to open access to over 3000 photographic negatives of the Dead Sea Scrolls for scholarly use.