The Flanner Guild Deposit Station, Paul Laurence Dunbar Branch, Crispus Attucks Branch, and the George Washington Carver Branch of the Indianapolis Public Library (Indianapolis, Indiana)

Today's blog post features historical facts relating to three former branches and a former deposit station of the Indianapolis Public Library in Indianapolis, Indiana: Flanner Guild Deposit Station, and the Crispus Attucks, Paul Laurence Dunbar, and George Washington Carver Branches. Pioneer black librarians such as Lillian Childress Hall, Hallie Beachem Brooks, Betsie Lou Baxter Collins, Edna Howard, Effie Stroud, and others spent all or part of their careers at these locations. Although these three branches and deposit station are now closed, they played an important part in providing access to library services to African Americans in Indianapolis.

Note: The Flanner Guild Deposit Station, and the Dunbar, Attucks, and Carver Branches were not built specifically for African Americans. These locations just happened to be in African American neighborhoods. From the day it opened its doors in 1873, the Indianapolis Public Library has always welcomed members of any race to all of its locations. 

The Flanner Guild Deposit Station

In 1919, the Indianapolis Public Library established a deposit station at the Flanner Guild African American Settlement (now Flanner House) in Indianapolis. Deposit stations were not branches, but were off-site locations authorized by the Indianapolis Public Library to lend books.

Sources: "New Libraries and Buildings." Library Occurrent 5.9 (1919): 316. Print. ; Downey, Lawrence J. A Live Thing in the Whole Town: History of the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library. Carmel: Guild P of IN, 1991. 156-158. Print. 

The Paul Laurence Dunbar Branch

In 1922, the Paul Laurence Dunbar Branch of the Indianapolis Public Library opened its doors. The branch was located inside of Indianapolis Public School #26, an all-black elementary school on the city’s east side. Lillian Haydon Childress Hall was the branch’s first manager (1921-1927; note: Hall was appointed as the branch manager in the summer of 1921 but the branch did not officially open until the spring of 1922).

Previously, Hall was the branch manager of the Cherry Street Branch of the Evansville Public Library in Evansville, Indiana (1915-1921).  She was the first African American graduate of the Indiana Public Library Commission Summer School for Librarians (she graduated on July 24, 1915). In addition, Hall was an alumna of Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee.

In 1927, patrons of the Dunbar Branch were treated to a special visit and poetry reading from Harlem Renaissance poet Countee Cullen at a tea hosted by the library in his honor. Hallie Beachem Brooks, former library science professor at the Atlanta University Library School, was the branch manager at the time of Cullen's visit.

Effie Stroud, a graduate of the Hampton Institute Library School, was the manager of the Dunbar Branch from 1935 until 1944. Ms. Stroud previously worked at the 135th Street Branch of the New York Public Library (now the Schomburg Center for Research on Black Culture). Olivia Mitchell Anderson, a graduate of Fisk University, was the Dunbar Branch's last manager (1962-1967).

The Paul Laurence Dunbar Branch operated for 45 years before becoming a regular school library in 1967.

 

Sources: Downey, Lawrence J. A Live Thing in the Whole Town: History of the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library. Carmel: Guild P of IN, 1991. 156-158. Print. ; "Personals." Library Occurrent 6.2 (1921): 89. Print. ; "Among Librarians." Library Journal 46.19 (1921): 912. Print. ; "News from the Field." Public Libraries 27.1 (1922): 68. Print. ; "News from the Field." Public Libraries 27.7 (1922): 458. Print. ; "District Meetings." Library Occurrent 6.10 (1923): 386. Print. ; Cain, Mary J. "History of the Indianapolis Public Library." Library Occurrent 11.4 (1933): 118. Print. ; Shores, Louis. "Public Library Service to Negroes." Library Journal 55.4 (1930): 153. Print. ; "Local News." Indianapolis Recorder 28 May 1932: 3. Print. ; "Dunbar Library Observes Week." Indianapolis Recorder 17 Nov. 1934: 2. Print. ; "Literary Corner: Book Reviews." Indianapolis Recorder 3 July 1937: 10. Print. ; "Books: Attucks-Dunbar." Indianapolis Recorder 29 July 1939: 10. Print. ; "Gives Tea for Mr. Cullen." Indianapolis Recorder 5 Mar. 1927: 5. Print. ; "Negro History Week is Observed Here." Indianapolis Recorder 11 Feb. 1939: 1-2. Print.  ; "Library Facilities Opened to the Public." Indianapolis Recorder 11 Feb. 1939. 2. Print. ; McGuire, Mary P. "Voice of the Eastside." Indianapolis Recorder 23 Feb. 1963: 4. Print. ; "School 26 PTA Meet is Dated." Indianapolis Recorder 3 Mar. 1965: 5. Print. ; McGuire, Mary P. "Voice of the Eastside." Indianapolis Recorder 26 Jan. 1963: 5. Print. ; McGuire, Mary P. "Voice of the Eastside." Indianapolis Recorder 25 Apr. 1964: 6. Print. ; "News of Indiana Libraries." Library Occurrent 11.8 (1934): 303. Print. ; McFarland, Bernard C. The Hill and the Bottoms: The Story from the Thousand Yard Stare. Virginia Beach, VA: Donning Co. Publishers, 2009. 64-68. Print. ; A Directory of Negro Graduates of Accredited Library Schools, 1900-1936. Washington: Columbia Civic Library Association, 1937. 22. Print. ; "Miss Effie Stroud Speaks." Indianapolis Recorder 22 Feb. 1936: 5. Print. ; Stroud, Effie. "Literary Corner about Books and Reviews." Indianapolis Recorder 2 May 1936: 10. Print. ; "News of Indiana Libraries." Library Occurrent 12.4 (1936): 116. Print. ; "News Notes." Library Occurrent 14.8 (1943): 223. Print. ; "News of Indiana Libraries." Library Occurrent 15.7 (1946): 552. Print. ; Fenton, Michele T. "Way Down Yonder at the Cherry Street Branch: A Short History of Evansville's Negro Library." Indiana Libraries 30.2 (2011): 37-38. Print. ; Berry, S.L. and Gadski, Mary Ellen. Stacks: A History of the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library. Indianapolis, IN: Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library Foundation, 2011. 103. Print. ; Fenton, Michele T. "Stepping Out on Faith: Lillian Haydon Childress Hall, Pioneer Black Librarian." Indiana Libraries 33.1 (2014): 5-11. Print. ; "News from the Field: Central." Public Libraries: A Monthly Review of Library Matters and Methods 27.7 (1922): 458.Print.
 

The Crispus Attucks Branch

In 1927, the Crispus Attucks Branch of the Indianapolis Public Library opened on the city’s west side. The library was located on the first floor of Crispus Attucks High School, a high school for the African American residents of Indianapolis. 

In January 1935, Lawrence Dunbar Reddick visited the Crispus Attucks Library while in Indianapolis on business. Mr. Reddick was the curator at the 135th Street Branch of the New York Public Library (now the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture) from 1939 until 1948.

The Attucks Branch ceased operation as a branch on June 30, 1959 and became a regular high school library on July 1, 1959. Lillian Haydon Childress Hall, former manager of the Dunbar Branch, was the Attucks Branch’s first manager (1927-1956). Betsie Lou Baxter Collins was the last manager (1956-1959).

Betsie Lou Baxter Collins was a graduate of the Atlanta University School of Library Science. After serving at the Attucks Branch, Ms. Collins worked at the Rauh (now closed), Broadripple, Riverside (now closed), Haughville, and College Branches. In 1972, she received the Helen L. Norris Distinguished Service Award from the Indianapolis Public Library. Mrs. Collins passed away in 2008 in Indianapolis, Indiana.

*Note: Crispus Attucks High School is still in operation today and is the home of the Crispus Attucks Museum.

Sources: "Library Has Formal Opening." Indianapolis Recorder 24 Sept. 1927: 5. Print. ; "Personals." Library Occurrent 8.3 (1927): 118. Print. ; "News of Indiana Libraries." Library Occurrent (1927): 122. Print. ; Warren, Stanley. Crispus Attucks High School: Hail to the Green, Hail to the Gold. Virginia Beach: Donning, 1998. 35. Print. ; Downey, Lawrence J. A Live Thing in the Whole Town: History of the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library. Carmel: Guild P of IN, 1991. 132, 135, 148, 160, 202. Print. ; Cain, Mary J. "History of the Indianapolis Public Library." Library Occurrent 11.4 (1933): 118. Print. ; LeMon, Lillian M. "Indiana State: Indianapolis News." Chicago Defender 9 June 1934: 18. Print. ; Shores, Louis. "Public Library Service to Negroes." Library Journal 55.4 (1930): 153. Print. ; "Neighborhood Clubs." Indianapolis Recorder 24 Oct. 1936: 5. Print. ; "Libraries Observe Garden Week; Exhibits of Miniature Gardens on Display at Attucks." Indianapolis Recorder 26 Mar. 1938: 5. Print. ; "Negro History Week is Observed Here." Indianapolis Recorder 11 Feb. 1939: 1-2. Print. ; "Library Facilities Opened to the Public." Indianapolis Recorder 11 Feb. 1939: 2. Print. ; Brascher, Nahum Daniel. "Random Thoughts: A Little Light Along the Way." Chicago Defender 25 Feb. 1939: 17. Print. ; "Social Scene." Indianapolis Recorder 9 May 1959: 8. Print. ; "Society." Indianapolis Recorder 2 Feb. 1935: 3. Print. ; Crispus Attucks High School Yearbook, 1957. Indianapolis: Crispus Attucks High School, 1958. 84. Print. ; "Names in the News." Library Occurrent 24.3 (1972): 108. Print. ; Spradling, Mary Mace. "Black Librarians in Kentucky." The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, Challenges. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. 42. Print. ; Berry, S.L. and Gadski, Mary Ellen. Stacks: A History of the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library. Indianapolis, IN: Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library Foundation, 2011. 103. Print. ; Fenton, Michele T. "Stepping Out on Faith: Lillian Haydon Childress Hall, Pioneer Black Librarian." Indiana Libraries 33.1 (2014): 5-11. Print.

 

The George Washington Carver Branch

In 1937, the George Washington Carver Branch of the Indianapolis Public Library opened. The library was located inside of Indianapolis Public School #87, an all-black elementary school on the city’s north side. Edna M. Howard was the branch’s manager from the time it opened in 1937 until its closure in 1950. After its closure, the branch was converted into a regular school library.

Ms. Howard was a graduate of the Hampton Institute Library School. Before becoming manager of the George Washington Carver Branch, she was a junior assistant at the Paul Laurence Dunbar Branch. In addition, Ms. Howard was a graduate of Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Ms. Joyce G. Taylor, former librarian at the Indianapolis Public Library and retired professor at the Indiana University School of Library and Information Science (now called the Indiana University School of Informatics and Computing), mentions visiting the George Washington Carver Branch during her childhood in her article "The Smile That Hooked Me for Life". The article was published in v. 22, no. 2 of the journal Indiana Libraries in 2003:

https://scholarworks.iupui.edu/bitstream/handle/1805/1307/The%20Smile%20That%20Hooked%20Me%20for%20Life.pdf?sequence=1

Sources: "School Board Likely to Reject Proposal to Build All-Colored Library Branch." Indianapolis Recorder 6 July 1935: 1. Print. ; "Branch Library Opens at School 87." Indianapolis Recorder 16 Oct. 1937 5. Print. ; "School 87 Gets Library Unit." Indianapolis Recorder 9 Oct. 1937 1. Print. ; "Librarian." Indianapolis Recorder 2 Oct. 1937: 4. Print. ; "News of Indiana Libraries." Library Occurrent 12.7 (1937): 212. Print. ; "News of Indiana Libraries." Library Occurrent 12.8 (1937): 250. Print. ; "Negro History Week Is Observed Here." Indianapolis Recorder 11 Feb. 1939: 1-2. Print. ; "Library Facilities Opened to the Public." Indianapolis Recorder 11 Feb. 1939: 2. Print. ; "School No. 87 PTA Plans Annual Matinee Musicale." Indianapolis Recorder 17 Apr. 1948: 5. Print. ; "School 87 PTA Plans Travelogue." Indianapolis Recorder 1949 Dec. 3: 5. Print. ; "Library Acquires Negro Collection." Indianapolis Recorder 7 Oct. 1950: 5. Print. ; Downey, Lawrence J. A Live Thing in the Whole Town: History of the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library. Carmel: Guild P of IN, 1991. 162-163. Print. ; Taylor, Joyce G. "The Smile That Hooked Me for Life." Indiana Libraries 22.2 (2003): 8-10. Print. ; Shuck, Johari. "The George Washington Carver School: An Early History of Indianapolis School 87." Traces of Indiana and Midwestern History  (2014): 24-31. Print.

See related posts: Willa Resnover and the Norwood Library (Indianapolis, Indiana) ; Lillian Sunshine Haydon Childress Hall: Pioneer in the History of Library Services to African Americans in Indiana ; and Hallie Beachem Brooks: Librarian, Professor, and Indiana Native.

Update November 26, 2022:

I wrote an article about the Flanner Guild, Dunbar, Attucks, and Carver that was recently published in the American Library Association Library History Round Table's peer-reviewed journal, Libraries: Culture, History, and Society:

Fenton, Michele. "A Light in the Circle City: A History of Public Library Services to African Americans in Indianapolis, Indiana." Libraries: Culture, History, and Society 6.2 (2022): 258-277. Print.

Bernice Appleton Wilder: First African American Director of the Gary Public Library (Gary, Indiana)

Bernice Appleton Wilder (1923-1988) was the first African American director of the Gary Public Library in Gary, Indiana. Ms. Wilder, a native of Missouri, was a graduate of Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Missouri, and received her library science degree from the University of Southern California. She also was a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority. 

Ms. Wilder began her career at the Gary Public Library in 1954 at the Roosevelt Branch as the branch’s manager (now closed, the Roosevelt Branch was located at the corner of 25th and Jackson Streets --about a block and a half from the former home of the Jackson 5). In 1956, she became an assistant in the Gary Public Library's Extension Department.

After working in the extension department, Wilder worked for the Louis J. Bailey Branch*, and in 1963, was appointed Children's Librarian at the John F. Kennedy Branch (formerly the Glenn Park Branch). Nine years later, Wilder was appointed manager of the Tolleston Branch. In 1977, she became Assistant Director of the Gary Public Library's Extension Department.

In 1978, Wilder was appointed director of the Gary Public Library. It was during Ms. Wilder's tenure that the W.E.B. DuBois Branch was built and the Gary Public Library began automating some of its services. She served as director until her retirement in 1983. On May 18, 1988, Ms.Wilder passed away at the age of 64.

*Notes:  

The Louis J. Bailey Branch was named for the first director of the Gary Public Library.  Louis J. Bailey, a former employee of the the New York State Library and the Library of Congress, was a graduate of the New York State Library School (Edward Christopher Williams, the first African American male to receive a formal library science education, was a 1900 graduate of the New York State Library School). Mr. Bailey served as director of the Gary Public Library from 1908 until 1922.

The Gary Public Library was originally housed in a rented facility on 33rd West 7th Avenue before receiving a grant of $65,000 in 1910 from Andrew Carnegie for a new building at the corner of 5th Avenue and Adams Street (Carnegie's brother-in-law, Henry D. Whitfield, served as the library's architect). The Carnegie building opened in November 1912 (Father John Cavanaugh of the University of Notre Dame gave the dedication address). The Carnegie building served as the location of the main branch of the Gary Public Library until 1962 when it was razed to make way for a new facility. The Gary Public Library's new main branch was opened in 1964 on the same spot on which the Carnegie building was built 52 years earlier.

See related posts: Etka F. Braboy Gaskin and the Gary Public Library (Gary, Indiana) ; Helen Price Sawyer Braxton: Hampton Institute Library School Graduate and Librarian at Lincoln University (Jefferson City, Missouri) ;  Annette Hoage Phinazee: Dean, Professor, Author, and Librarian ; and Dhrathula Millender: Librarian, Author, and Historian - One of Indiana's Own.

Sources: Gary Public Library. ; “Missouri Girl Is Appointed Gary Librarian.” Indianapolis Recorder 6 Mar. 1954: 9. Print. ; “Personnel Appointments.” Gary Library Bulletin 12.3 (1954): 2. Print. ; “Personnel Changes.” Gary Library Bulletin 14.2 (1956): 4. Print. ; “Bernice Wilder, Past Director at Gary Library Dies at 64.” Gary Post-Tribune (Ind.) 20 May 1988: B9. Print. ; “Final Respect Paid 10th Library Director.” Gary Post-Tribune (Ind.) 26 May 1988. Highbeam Research, n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2011. ; “Certificates Issued by the Library Certification Board – All Permanent Certificates Issued February 1 – April 30, 1961.” Library Occurrent 20.6 (1961): 176. Print. ;  “Bernice Appleton.” United States Census, 1930. FamilySearch.org, n.d. Web. 7 Jan. 2011. ; “Bernice Appleton.” United States Census, 1940. FamilySearch.org, n.d. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. ; “Bernice L. Wilder.” Social Security Death Index. FamilySearch.org, n.d. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. ; Peters, Orpha Maud. The Gary Public Library: 1907-1944. Gary: Gary Public Library, 1945. Print. ; “Roosevelt Branch Library.” Gary Library Bulletin 22.3 (1965): 2. Print. ; “History of the Alcott Branch Library.” Gary Library Bulletin 22.5 (1965): 2. Print. ; “New Library Buildings.” Library Occurrent 3.5 (1912): 93-95. Print. ;  “Bailey Honored by Librarians.” Indianapolis Star 8 Dec. 1933: 15. Print. ;  “State Library Activities Outlined by Indianan.” Indianapolis News 15 May 1929: 14. Print. ;  McPherson, Alan. Temples of Knowledge: Andrew Carnegie's Gift to Indiana. Kewanna, IN: Hoosier's Nest Press, 2003. 215, 227, 231, 234. Print.