Eleanor G. Steinke was born in Akron, Ohio, the duaghter of a surgeon She attended the Old Trail High School in Akron and graduated from Wilson College in Cambersburg, PA in 1937. She then attended library school at the Drexel Institute of Technology in Philadelphia . Medical librarianship was her chosen field of endeavor, and she began her career at the Mayo Clinic Library in Rochester, MN. She worked in hospital libraries in Ohio and Illinois before accepting a position at Vanderbilt Medical School in 1945. At Vanderbilt, Eleanor worked closely with head medical librarian, Eileen Cunningham. She co-authored the 4th and 5th editions of the Cunningham Classification for Medical Literature. When Mrs. Cunningham retired in 1956, Eleanor was appointed Librarian and directed the Vanderbilt Medical Library until her retirement in 1969. A memorial service was held for Eleanor Steinke on March 8, 2002 in the Chapel of the Sycamores Terrace Retirement Community in Donelson, TN.