Little Known Black Librarian Facts

Miriam Matthews and the Los Angeles Public Library

2012-03-11T13:59:00.004-04:00

Miriam Matthews was the first African American librarian to work for the Los Angeles Public Library. She once served as the branch librarian for the Helen Hunt Jackson Branch of the Los Angeles Public Library (the branch was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1987). Ms. Matthews received her Certificate of Librarianship from the University of California in 1927. She passed away in 2003 at the age of 97.

Sources: Jordan, Casper Leroy, and Josey, E.J. "A Chronology of Events in Black Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 6. Print. ; Wilkin, Binnie Tate. "Tribute to Miriam Matthews: First Trained African American Librarian in California." African American Librarians in the Far West: Pioneers and Trailblazers. Ed. Binnie Tate Wilkin. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2006. 1-7. Print. ; Oliver, Myrna. "Miriam Matthews, 97; Pioneering L.A. Librarian Was Expert in Black History." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 6 July 2003. Web. 4 Dec. 2010. ; Kindig, Jessie. "Miriam Matthews." BlackPast.Org. Black Past, n.d. Web. 4 Dec. 2010. ; A Directory of Negro Graduates of Accredited Library Schools, 1900-1936. Washington: Columbia Civic Library Association, 1937. 17. Print. ; "Miriam Mathews [i.e., Matthews], Colored Library Head, on Air." Indianapolis Recorder 6 Apr. 1930: 3. Print.

The Tougaloo Nine and the Sit-in at the Jackson Mississippi Municipal Library

2012-02-29T18:46:00.000-05:00

On March 27, 1961, nine African American students from Tougaloo College were arrested for their attempt to integrate the Jackson, Mississippi Municipal Library by having a sit-in. These students became known as the “Tougaloo Nine.” The following year, four other African American students attempted to integrate the library by organizing a sit-in. They unlike their predecessors were not arrested. Eventually the Jackson, Mississippi Municipal Library was integrated. It is now known as the Jackson-Hinds Library System.

Sources: Lasseter, Cheryl. "Members of Tougaloo Nine Look Back at Historic Day." WLBT.com (Channel 3 - Jackson, Mississippi). WorldNow, 14 Oct. 2006. Web. 12 Nov. 2011. ; McBride, Earnest. "Hamer Forum Pays Tribute to Tougaloo 9." Jackson Advocateonline.com. Jackson Advocate (Jackson, Miss.), 13 Oct. 2011. Web. 12 Nov. 2011. ; "Tougaloo Nine Honored." Mississippi History Newsletter (Oct. 2011): 1. Print. ; "4 Young Negroes Integrate Mississippi Library." Jet 22.15 (1962): 24. Print.

The Suva City Carnegie Library (Suva, Fiji)

2012-02-25T10:25:00.001-05:00

In 1907, Andrew Carnegie donated $7,300 (equivalent to £1460 at the time) for the establishment of the Suva City Carnegie Library in Suva, Fiji. The library is still in operation today.

Sources: Panapasa, Geraldine. “Library Comes of Age.” The Fiji Times Online. Fiji Times Unlimited, 14 Sept. 2008. Web. 3 Feb. 2012. ; Calvert, Philip J. “Pacific Island Libraries.” International Dictionary of Library Histories, Vol. 1. Ed. David H. Stam. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn, 2001. 125. Print. ; Williams, Esther Batiri. "Fiji." World Encyclopedia of Library and Information Services. Ed. Robert Wedgeworth. 3rd ed. Chicago: American Library Association, 1993. 293-294. Print. ; "Suva City Library Celebrates 100 Years." The Fiji Times Online. Fiji Times Unlimited, 3 Sept. 2008. Web. 3 Mar. 2012.

Carnegie Non-European Library Service (Transvaal) of South Africa

2012-02-20T17:46:00.003-05:00

The Carnegie Non-European Library Service (Transvaal) was established in Germiston, South Africa in 1932. The Germiston Public Library served as the organization’s headquarters. Herbert Isaac Ernest Dhlomo, a member of the Zulu Nation, was appointed the organization’s first librarian-organizer in 1937. In 1946, the organization was moved to Pretoria, South Africa and re-named the Non-European Library Service, Transvaal. The Carnegie Non-European Library Service was discontinued in 1958.

Sources: Everts, R. Alain. “The Pioneers: Herbert Isaac Ernest Dhlomo and the Development of Library Service to the African in South Africa.” Third World Libraries 3.2 (1993):n.pag. Web. 12 Feb. 2012. ; Kalley, Jacqueline. Apartheid in South African Libraries: The Transvaal Experience. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 20, 37-42. Print. ; Rochester, Maxine K. “The Carnegie Corporation and South Africa: Non-European Library Services.” Libraries & Culture 34.1 (1999): 36-37, 39, 41, 43, 45. Print. ; Jones, Reinette. “Kentucky Carnegie Colored Libraries International Influence.” Notable Kentucky African Americans Database: Librarians. University of Kentucky Libraries, n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2012. ; Bell, Fiona. “The Carnegie Corporation Decides on Racially-Segregated Libraries in South Africa in 1928: Negrophilist or Segregationist?” Library & Information History 25.3 (2009): 184-185. Print. ; Cobley, Alan G. “Literacy, Libraries, and Consciousness: The Provision of Library Services for Blacks in South Africa in the Pre-Apartheid Era.” Libraries & Culture 32.1 (1997): 64-69. Print.

Edward C. Williams: First African American Male Library Science Graduate

2012-02-12T23:24:00.008-05:00

Edward Christopher Williams was the first African American male to receive a formal education in library science. He graduated from the New York State Library School in 1900. In addition, Mr. Williams was the first African American director of the Howard University Library System (1916-1929); was the librarian for Adelbert College (part of Western Reserve University - now Case Western Reserve University) in Cleveland, Ohio; and was one of several notable African American attendees at the 1928 Annual Meeting of the American Library Association in West Baden, Indiana.

Sources: “HUL Directors.” Library System, Howard University. Howard University, n.d. Web. 22 Sept. 2010. ; Mills, Paul T. “Edward Christopher Williams, 1871-December 24, 1929.” The Black Renaissance in Washington, D.C., 1920-1930s. District of Columbia Public Library, 20 June 2003. Web. 22 Sept. 2010. ; Jordan, Casper Leroy, and Josey, E.J. “A Chronology of Events in Black Librarianship.” Handbook of Black Librarianship, Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 3. Print. ; Scott, Diane R. Celebrating African American Librarians. Feb. 2009: 1. Print. ; Dawson, Alma. “Celebrating African American Librarians and Librarianship.” Library Trends 49.1 (2000): 62. Print. ; Latimer, Carlos. Edward Christopher Williams and His Impact on Librarianship. Springfield: ERIC Document Reproduction Service, 1994. Print. ; A Directory of Negro Graduates of Accredited Library Schools, 1900-1936. Washington: Columbia Civic Library Association, 1937. 24, 26. Print. ; Sinnette, Elinor D. V. Arthur Alfonso Schomburg, Black Bibliophile & Collector: A Biography. New York: New York Public Library, 1989. 141, 145, 150. Print. ; Josey, E.J. "Edward Christopher Williams: A Librarian's Librarian." Journal of Library History 4 (1969): 106-107. Print. ; Josey, E.J. "Foreword." Educating Black Librarians: Papers from the 50th Anniversary Celebration of the School of Library and Information Sciences, North Carolina Central University. Ed. Benjamin F. Speller, Jr. Jefferson: McFarland, 1991. ix-xi. Print. ; “West Baden, Ind.” Indianapolis Recorder 9 June 1928: 7. Print. ; Fiftieth Annual Meeting Advanced Attendance Register, May 27-June 2, 1928, West Baden, Indiana. [Chicago]: American Library Association, 1928. 14. Print. ; “Annual Conference, 1920-1929.” Past Annual Conference, 1876-Present. American Library Association, 2012. Web. 4 Jan. 2012. ; “West Baden Conference May 28 to June 2.” Library Occurrent 8.7 (1928): 255-256. Print.

Virginia Proctor Powell Florence: First African American Female Library Science Graduate

2012-02-05T20:51:00.006-05:00

Virginia Proctor Powell Florence was the first African American female to receive a formal education in library science. She was a 1923 graduate of the Pittsburgh Carnegie Library School (the school is now the University of Pittsburgh School of Information Science). Ms. Florence began her career at the New York Public Library (135^th Street Branch). She was also the first African American librarian to take New York’s certification exam for high school librarians.

Sources: “Virginia Proctor Powell Florence: A Remarkable Oberlin Alumna Librarian.” Library Perspectives: A Newsletter of the Oberlin College Library 32 (2005): 5. Print. ; Gunn, Arthur C. "A Black Woman Wants to Be A Professional: The Struggle of Virginia Proctor Powell Florence." American Libraries Feb. 1989: 154-157. Print. ; Scott, Diane R. Celebrating African American Librarians. Feb. 2009: 2. Print. ; Josey, E.J. "Foreword." Educating Black Librarians: Papers from the 50th Anniversary Celebration of the School of Library and Information Sciences, North Carolina Central University. Ed. Benjamin F. Speller, Jr. Jefferson: McFarland, 1991. x-xi. Print. ; Directory of Negro Graduates of Accredited Library Schools, 1900-1936. Washington: Columbia Civic Library Association, 1937. 10, 26. Print.

Clara Stanton Jones: ALA's First African American President

2012-01-28T17:40:00.004-05:00

In July 1976, Clara Stanton Jones became the first African American president of the American Library Association. In addition, Ms. Jones was the first African American female director of the Detroit Public Library. Ms. Jones once worked as a reference librarian at Dillard University (1938-1940) and an associate librarian at Southern University (1940-1944).

Sources: "Detroit's Top Librarian: In Race to Make City Libraries Serve Today's Needs, No One Keeps Up with Mrs. Jones." Ebony 27.1 (1971): 115-116, 118, 120, 122. Print. ; "ALA Past Presidents." American Library Association. American Library Association, n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2010. ; Battles, David M. The History of Public Library Services to African Americans in the South or, Leaving Behind the Plow. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2009. 145. Print. ; Josey, E.J. "A Dreamer-- With A Tiny Spark." The Black Librarian in America. Ed. E.J. Josey. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1970. 323. Print. ; Dawson, Alma. "Celebrating African American Librarians and Librarianship." Library Trends 49.1 (2000): 58. Print. ; Jones, Clara S. "The Black Librarian." The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, Challenges. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. 16-19. Print. ; McPheeters, Annie L. Library Service in Black and White: Some Personal Recollections, 1921-1980. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1988. 132. Print. ; Jordan, Casper Leroy and Josey, E.J. "A Chronology of Events in Black Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 11-14. Print. ; Poinsett, Alex. "1976: Year of the Black Voter." Ebony 32.3 (1977): 85. Print. ; Garner, Carla W. "Jones, Clara Stanton (1913-)." BlackPast.org. BlackPast.org, n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2011. ; DeLoach, Marva. "Clara Stanton Jones." Women of Color in Librarianship: An Oral History. Ed. Kathleen de la Pena McCook. [Chicago]: ALA, Committee on the Status of Women in Librarianship, 1998. 28-57. Print.

ALA History: 1928 Annual Conference of the American Library Association, West Baden, Indiana

2012-01-19T20:16:00.019-05:00

The 1928 Annual Conference of the American Library Association was held May 27-June 2, 1928 in West Baden, Indiana at the West Baden Springs Hotel. Etka F. Braboy Gaskin (Gary Public Library); Lillian Sunshine Hayden Childress Hall and Hallie Beachem Brooks (Indianapolis Public Library); Othella Roberts (Evansville Public Library); Elnora McIntyre Roy (Atlantic City Public Library); Rebecca M. Bond (Chicago Public Library); Edward C. Williams (Howard University); Rev. Thomas Fountain Blue and Rachel Davis Harris (Louisville Free Public Library) were among several noted African American attendees at the conference.

Sources: "West Baden, Ind." Indianapolis Recorder 9 June 1928: 7. Print. ; Fiftieth Annual Meeting Advanced Attendance Register, May 27-June 2, 1928, West Baden, Indiana. [Chicago]: American Library Association, 1928: 4, 14. Print. ; "Annual Conference, 1920-1929." Past Annual Conferences, 1876-Present. American Library Association, 2012. Web. 4 Jan. 2012. ; "West Baden Conference May 28 to June 2." Library Occurrent 8.7 (1928): 255-256. Print. ; ALA Travel Committee. "ALA Conference 1928, West Baden, Indiana, May 28-June 2." Bulletin of the American Library Association 22.3 (1928): 46-50. Print.

Henry Proctor Slaughter: Compositor for the U.S. Government Printing Office, Bibliophile, Collector, and Newspaper Editor

2012-01-17T18:20:00.002-05:00

Henry Proctor Slaughter, a graduate of Howard University, was a collector of materials on African American history. Mr. Slaughter was a friend and colleague of Arthur Alfonso Schomburg, another well-known collector of African American history materials. He and Schomburg were the editors of the Odd Fellows Journal. Mr. Slaughter also once served as editor for the Lexington Standard. In addition, Mr. Slaughter worked for the United States Government Printing Office where he served as compositor from 1896 until 1937. Henry Proctor Slaughter passed away in 1958. Slaughter's collection is housed at Clark-Atlanta University's Woodruff Library. The collection was acquired by the university in 1946.

Sources: Jordan, Casper Leroy. "African American Forerunners in Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 21. Print. ; Sinnette, Elinor D. V. Arthur Alfonso Schomburg, Black Bibliophile & Collector: A Biography. New York: New York Public Library, 1989. 3, 63, 67-68, 73-74, 80-82, 94, 154, 184, 190, 192, 214. Print. ; Black Bibliophiles and Collectors: Preservers of Black History. Ed. Elinor D. V. Sinnette, W. Paul Coates, and Thomas C. Battle. Washington, D.C.: Howard UP, 1990. 8, 10-12, 84-87, 209. Print. ; Garner, Carla W. "Slaughter, Henry Proctor (1871-1957)." BlackPast.org. BlackPast.org, n.d. Web. 26 Feb. 2011. ; Owens, Irene. "Stories Told But Unfinished: Challenges Facing African American Libraries and Special Collections in Historically Black Colleges and Universities." Diversity Now: People, Collections, and Services in Academic Libraries. Ed. Teresa Y.Neely and Kuang-Hwei (Janet) Lee-Smeltzer. Binghamton: Haworth Information P, 2011. 167. Print. ; "Slaughter, Henry Proctor." Encyclopedia of Louisville. Ed. John E. Kleber. Lexington: UP of Kentucky, 2001. 824-825. Print. ; Britton, Helen H. "Dorothy Porter Wesley: Bibliographer, Curator, and Scholar." Reclaiming the American Library Past: Writing the Women In. Ed. Suzanne Hildenbrand. Norwood: Ablex, 1996. 173. Print.

Arthur Alfonso Schomburg, 1874-1938: Noted Bibliophile, Collector, Curator,and Scholar

2012-01-07T22:27:00.002-05:00

Arthur Alfonso Schomburg (also known as Arturo Alfonso Schomburg), a native of Puerto Rico, was a noted bibliophile and scholar of African and African American history. Mr. Schomburg devoted his life, time, and energy in acquiring and archiving materials relating to the history and culture of people of African descent. In 1926, Mr. Schomburg sold his collection to the New York Public Library. Mr. Schomburg served as curator of the collection, which the New York Public Library housed at its 135th Street Branch. Schomburg also worked at Fisk University where he was instrumental in building the library's Negro history collection. Mr. Schomburg was a member of the Prince Hall Mason Lodge and the Negro Society for Historical Research. In addition, he was the president of the American Negro Academy, a co-founder of the Negro Book Collectors Exchange, and chairman of the Negro Library Association's research committee. Mr. Schomburg passed away in 1938. Schomburg's collection is still housed at the 135th Street Branch, which is now known as the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.

Sources: Sinnette, Elinor D.V. Arthur Alfonso Schomburg, Black Bibliophile & Collector: A Biography. New York: New York Public Library, 1989. Print. ; Black Bibliophiles and Collectors: Preservers of Black History. Ed. Elinor D.V. Sinnette, W. Paul Coates, and Thomas C. Battle. Washington, D.C.: Howard UP, 1990, 10, 28-29, 33-45, 48, 62, 109, 210. Print. ; Cooper, Glendora Johnson. "African American Historical Continuity: Jean Blackwell Hutson and the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture." Reclaiming the American Library Past: Writing the Women In. Ed. Suzanne Hildenbrand. Norwood: Ablex, 1996. 27-51. Print. ; "Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture." New York Public Library. New York Public Library, 2011. Web. 24 Jan. 2011. ; "Schomburg Center Celebrates 75th Anniversary." Ebony 56.1 (2000): 144-146, 148, 150. Print. ; "Schomburg Center: Harlem's Gold Mine of Black Research Material." Ebony 37.11 (1982): 62-63, 66. Print. ; "Black History Prophets and Custodians: Handful of Men and Women Created Foundations of Saga of Persistence and Creativity." Ebony 50.4 (1995): 90. Print. ; "Schomburg's Ailing Collection." Ebony 22.12 (1967): 60. Print. ; Dodson, Howard. "The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, New York Public Library." Library Quarterly 58.1 (1988): 74-82. Print. Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 5-6, 20-21, 40, 236, 243, 245, 260. Print. ; Lee, Felicia R. "Harlem Center's Director to Retire in Early 2011." New York Times 19 Apr. 2010: C1. Web. 28 Jan. 2011. ; "IU Historian Named Director of Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture." Indiana University News Room 19 Nov. 2010: n.pag. Web. 28 Jan. 2011. ; Copage, Eric V. "The Race to Save Black History: As Art Collections Deteriorate, Preservationists Struggle to Save Our Culture." Ebony 58.4 (2008): 122. Print. ; Des Jardins, Julie. "Black Librarians and the Search for Women's Biography during the New Negro History Movement." OAH Magazine of History 20.1 (2006): 15-17. Print. ; Patton, Stacey. "Guarding the Schomburg's Rich Fabled Legacy: Khalil Muhammad Becomes the First Scholar to Run the Schomburg Center." Crisis 118.1 (2011): 30-31. Print. ; Diouf, Sylviane Anna. "Schomburg, Arturo Alfonso (1874-1938)." BlackPast.org. BlackPast.org, n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2011.

Doris Hargrett Clack: Noted Cataloger, Professor, and Author

2012-01-03T16:30:00.003-05:00

Doris Hargrett Clack, a noted cataloger, was once a professor of library science at Florida State University. She also was a cataloger at Florida A&M University. Ms. Clack received her library education at the University of Michigan and at the University of Pittsburgh. In addition, Ms. Clack was the author of several books, including An Illustrative Manual for Use with AACR2; Authority Control: Principles, Applications, and Instructions; and Black Literature Resources: Analysis and Organization. She passed away in 1995.

Sources: Reason, Joseph H. "Black Librarians in Florida." The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, Challenges. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. 30. Print. ; Dawson, Alma. "Celebrating African American Librarians and Librarianship." Library Trends 49.1 (2000): 56. Print. ; Wilkes, Adeline W. "Doris Hargrett Clack, 1928-1995: Called to Teach." Cataloging and Classification Quarterly 25.2-3 (1998): 111-125. Print. ; Shockley, Ann Allen. "Librarians, Archivists, and Writers: A Personal Perspective." The Black Librarian in America Revisited. Ed. E.J. Josey. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1994. 322. Print. ; Tallman, Karen. "Doris Hargrett Clack: Not Subject to Classification." American Libraries 9.8 (1978): 467. Print. ; Stone, Alva T. " Doris Hargrett Clack, 1928-1995: Educator, Gentle Activist, and Mentor." Library Resources & Technical Services 40.2 (1996): 197-200.Print.

George Moses Horton Branch of the Forsyth County Public Library (Winston-Salem, North Carolina)

2011-12-26T21:05:00.003-05:00

The George Moses Horton Branch of the Forsyth County Public Library was established in 1927 inside the Chestnut Street YWCA in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Mary Hairston was the library's first manager. Later, Nell Brooks Wright Alford served as branch librarian from 1941 until 1964. On November 14, 1954, the library received its own building and was renamed the East Winston Branch Library. L. Quincy Mumford, then the Librarian of Congress, was the keynote speaker at the new building's dedication ceremony. The East Winston Branch was also a recipient of the John Cotton Dana Publicity Award from the Wilson Library Bulletin. The library's named was changed again in 2004 to the Malloy/Jordan East Winston Heritage Center Library.

Sources: Speller, Benjamin F. and James R. Jarrell. "Profiles of Pioneers: Selected North Carolina Black Librarians." The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, Challenges. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. 76. Print. ; "History." Eliminating Racism, Empowering Women: YWCA Winston-Salem. YWCA Winston-Salem, n.d. Web. 19 Nov. 2011. ; Grant, George, comp. "Malloy/Jordan East Winston Heritage Center Library - Forsyth County Library." In Honor of ... : Libraries Named for African Americans. Jonesboro: Grant House Publishers, 2011. 156. Print. ; Balance, Paul S., Mary C. Wiley, Jessie M. Stroup, and Mae K. Tillman. First Fifty Years of Public Library Service in Winston-Salem, 1906-1956. [Winston-Salem]: Public Library of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County, North Carolina, 1956. 14, 16-17, 19-20, 27-28, 30, 32-33, 37-41. Print. ; Carnegie Public Library of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County. Annual Report, July 1, 1949-June 30, 1950. Winston-Salem: Carnegie Public Library of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County, 1950. 5-8, 10-11, 13-15. Print. ; Dedication and Open House: East Winston Branch, Public Library of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County, Winston-Salem, N.C.: Sunday, November 14, 1954. Program. [Winston-Salem: Public Library of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County, North Carolina, 1954]. Print. ; Franklin, Hardy R. "The Black Public Librarian in the Southeast." The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, Challenges. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. 214, 218-219. Print.

Effie Lee Morris: First African American President of the Public Library Association

2011-12-21T17:47:00.003-05:00

Effie Lee Morris was Children’s Services Coordinator at the San Francisco Public Library where she worked from 1963 until 1977. Ms. Morris was also the chair of the Coretta Scott King Task Force and was the first African American to serve as president of the Public Library Association (1971-1972).In addition, Ms. Morrison was a librarian at the Cleveland Public Library (1946-1955) and the New York Public Library (1955-1963). She passed away at the age of 88 on November 10, 2009.

Sources: "Speakable Volumes." Jet 20.5 (1961): 27. Print. ; Smith, Henrietta M. "The Coretta Scott King Award - Its History." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 312, 314. Print. ; "Effie Lee Morris: Retired Children's Services Coordinator, San Francisco Public Library." African American Librarians in the Far West: Pioneers and Trailblazers. Ed. Binnie Tate Wilkin. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2006. 148-161. Print. ; Orange, Satia Marshall. "Pay It Forward for Effie Lee Morris." The Black Caucus of the American Library Association Newsletter 39.1 (2010): 5-6. Print. ; Staino, Rocco. "Effie Lee Morris, Advocate of Library Services to Children, Dies at 88." Schoollibraryjournal.com. School Library Journal, 17 Nov. 2009. Web. 18 Dec. 2010. ; "PLA Past Presidents." Public Library Association. Public Library Association, n.d. Web. 15 Jan. 2011. ; Segall, Grant. "Effie Lee Morris Jones Pioneered Library Services for Blind and Minority Children." Cleveland.com. Cleveland Live, Inc., 18 Dec. 2009. Web. 17 Dec. 2011. ; Zalusky, Steve. "Effie Lee Morris Honored for Her Work As A Librarian, Advocate for Underserved Children, and the Visual Impaired." ALA News. American Library Association, 15 June 2010. Web. 17 Dec. 2011. ; Pelosi, Nancy. "Statement on Effie Lee Morris." Congressional Record 156.87 (2010): E1063. Print.

Robert Hayden: The First African American Poet Laureate of the United States

2011-12-15T19:45:00.001-05:00

Robert Hayden was the first African American to be appointed by the Library of Congress to serve as the Consultant in Poetry (this position is now called Poet Laureate). He held this position from 1976-1978. Mr. Hayden was a professor of English at the University of Michigan. Mr. Hayden passed away in 1980.

Sources: "Library of Congress Gets 1st Black Poetry Consultant." Jet 49.24 (1976): 31. Print. ; Armenti, Peter, comp. "United States Poet Laureate: A Guide to Online Resources." Web Guides. Library of Congress, 17 Aug. 2010. Web. 1 Jan. 2011. ; "Robert E. Hayden, 66, Noted Poet-Teacher Dies." Jet 58.1 (1980): 18. Print. ; "Poet Robert Hayden Named Bingham Professor." Jet 34.20 (1968): 27. Print. ; "Ebony's Black Achievers: Recipients and Honorees." Jet 55.15 (1978): 52. Print. ; McCalope, Michelle. "Blacks Furious Over Exclusion from 'Great Books of the Western World." Jet 79.6 (1990): 18. Print. ; "Anthology Features Negro Poetry Since Johnson." Jet 24.20 (1963): 50. Print. ; "National Headliners." Jet 57.9 (1977): 13. Print. ; Scarupa, Harriet Jackson. "Robert Hayden, Poet Laureate." Ebony 33.3 (1978): 78-80, 82-83. Print. ; "Ebony Book Shelf." Ebony 31.2 (1975): 32. Print. ; "Ebony Book Shelf." Ebony 35.12 (1979): 25. Print. ; "1980 Highlights in Pictures." Ebony 36.3 (1981): 107. Print. ; Hatcher, John. From the Auroral Darkness: The Life and Poetry of Robert Hayden. Oxford: G. Ronald, 1984. Print.

Myrtle Hall Branch of the Carnegie Public Library (Clarksdale, Mississippi)

2011-12-12T18:48:00.003-05:00

The Myrtle Hall Branch of the Carnegie Public Library (Clarksdale, Mississippi) was opened on May 4, 1930. The branch served the African American residents of Clarksdale, Mississippi. In 1979, the branch became the home of the Delta Blues Museum. When the building was closed in the 1980s, the museum was moved to the second floor of the main branch.

Sources: "Clarksdale, Mississippi, Carnegie Library." Library Journal 55.14 (1930): 667. Print. ; Welly, Emily. "Building a Blues Legacy: Collection Gives Insight into Delta Blues Museum Founder." ILoveLibraries.org. American Library Association, 2011. Web. 28 Jan. 2011. ; Battles, David M. The History of Public Library Access for African Americans in the South or, Leaving Behind the Plow. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2009. 70. Print. ; McMillen, Neil R. Dark Journey: Black Mississippians in the Age of Jim Crow. Urbana: U of Illinois P, 1989. 11. Print.

Arna Wendell Bontemps: Fisk University Librarian, Poet, and Author

2011-12-07T18:47:00.005-05:00

Arna W. Bontemps was the first African American to serve as University Librarian for Fisk University (1943-1965). Mr. Bontemps, a 1943 graduate of the University of Chicago Library School, was also an author, poet, and a member of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity. He passed away in 1973.

Sources: "The Negro Writer in the United States: University of California at Berkley Plays Host to Five-Day Seminar on Negro Literature." Ebony 20.1 (1964): 126, 131-132, 134. Print. ; Jordan, Casper Leroy, and Josey, E.J. "A Chronology of Events in Black Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 7. Print. ; "Arna Bontemps Named to Library Board." Jet 4.9 (1953): 51. Print. ; "Fisk's Famed Librarian, Bontemps, Moves Out of Post." Jet 28.13 (1965): 25. Print. ; "Author Arna Bontemps Dies Reading Rosary at Wake of Meharry Physician's Wife." Jet 44.13 (1973): 44. Print. ; Campbell, Dorothy Wilson. "Curators of African American Collections." The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, Challenges. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. 191. Print. ; Shockley, Ann Allen. "Special Collections, Fisk University Library." Library Quarterly 58.2 (1988): 151, 154. Print. ; Sinnette, Elinor D. V. Arthur Alfonso Schomburg, Black Bibliophile & Collector: A Biography. New York: New York Public Library, 1989. 115, 129. Print. ; Jones, Kirkland C. Renaissance Man from Louisiana: A Biography of Arna Wendell Bontemps. Westport: Greenwood, 1992. Print.

Hallie Beachem Brooks: Librarian, Professor, and Indiana Native

2011-12-01T19:46:00.004-05:00

Hallie Beachem Brooks was a professor of library science at the Atlanta University Library School from 1942-1977. In 1964, she was appointed chairman of the Asia Foundation Grants Committee of the American Library Association. The Georgia Library Association awarded Ms. Brooks the Nix-Jones Award in 1979. In addition, Ms. Brooks was a librarian at the High School of Spelman College, an instructor in the Negro Teacher-Librarian Project, and director of the Carnegie Corporation Field Service Program for Negro School Libraries. Ms. Brooks was a native of West Baden, Indiana, and worked as a library assistant and later a librarian at the Paul Laurence Dunbar Branch of the Indianapolis Public Library from 1922-1930. She received her librarian's certificate from the Indiana Public Library Commission Summer School for Librarians in 1924, and her MLS from the University of Chicago in 1947. Ms. Brooks was a graduate of Shortridge High School and attended Butler University in Indianapolis. She passed away in 1985.

Sources: Woodson, Almeta Gould. "Fifty Years of Service: A Chronological History of the School of Library Service Atlanta University, 1941-1979; the School of Library and Information Studies Atlanta University, 1979-1989; the School of Library and Information Studies, Clark Atlanta University, 1989-1991." Georgia Librarian 28.3 (1991): 71-73, 76-78. Print. ; "Summer School Students Accepted for 1924." Library Occurrent 7.3 (1924): 69. Print. ; "News of Indiana Libraries." Library Occurrent 8.3 (1927): 122. Print. ; "Gives Tea for Countee Cullen." Indianapolis Recorder 5 Mar. 1927: 5. Print. ; " Indianapolis Girls Leave for Positions in South." Indianapolis Recorder 9 Sept. 1930: 6. Print. ; LeMon, Lillian M. "Indiana News." Chicago Defender 2 Jan. 1932: 11 . Print. ; "Atlanta U. Professor Heads Asian Study Fund." Jet 27.8 (1964): 20. Print. ; Jones, Reinette. Library Service to African Americans in Kentucky from the Reconstruction Era to the 1960s. Jefferson: McFarland, 2002. 116. Print. ; "Georgia Library Association Award Winners." Georgia Library Association. Georgia Library Association, n.d. Web. 23 Sept. 2010. ; Miller, Rosalind. "One Georgia Librarian: Hallie Beachem Brooks Remembers -1930 to 1977." Georgia Librarian 14.2 (1977): 29-38. Print. ; Totten, Herman L. "Southeastern Black Educators." The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscence, Activities, Challenges. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library, 1980. 200-201. Print. ; McPheeters, Annie L. Library Service in Black and White: Some Personal Recollections, 1921-1980. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1988. 11. Print. ; "Georgia Library Association Award Winners." Georgia Library Association Handbook, Appendices. 2003 rev. Rex: GLA, 2003. 58. Print.

The Howard Branch of the Chattanooga Public Library

2011-11-28T12:19:00.002-05:00

The Howard Branch of the Chattanooga Public Library was established in 1913 to serve the African American citizens of Chattanooga, Tennessee. Rev. Thomas Fountain Blue of the Colored Branches of the Louisville Free Public Library gave an address at the branch's opening ceremony held on October 11, 1913. The Howard Branch was later renamed the South Chattanooga Branch. Kate Brown and Ola Boatner served as librarians at the branch. The Chattanooga Public Library integrated its library facilities in 1954.

Sources: Miller, Ernest I. "Library Service for Negroes in Tennessee." Journal of Negro Education 10.4 (1941): 636-637. Print. ; Hudson, Earline H. "Library Service to Blacks and Black Librarians in Tennessee." The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, Challenges. Ed. Annette L . Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. 104-107, 110-111. Print.

Annette Hoage Phinazee: Dean, Professor, Author, and Librarian

2011-11-24T10:15:00.001-05:00

Annette Hoage Phinazee, the first African American to earn a PhD in library science from Columbia University, was also a professor at the Atlanta University Library School (1963-1969). Ms. Phinazee received her BLS and MLS from the University of Illinois. She once served as dean of the North Carolina Central University School of Library Science (1970-1983). In addition, Ms. Phinazee was the first African American president of the North Carolina Library Association and was the editor of The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, Challenges. She passed away in 1983.

Sources: Dawson, Alma. "Celebrating African American Librarians and Librarianship." Library Trends 49.1 (2000): 60. Print. ; "Yerby Shows the Way." Jet 45.16 (1974): 4. Print. ; Speller, Benjamin F. "Alethia Annette Lewis Hoage Phinazee (1920-1983)." Dictionary of American Library Biography. Ed. Donald G. Davis. Vol. 3. Westport: Libraries Unlimited, 2003. 173-174. Print. ; The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, Challenges. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. Print. ; McAllister-Harper, D., Virginia Purefoy Jones, and Mary Beth Schell. "Annette Lewis Phinazee: Visionary, Cataloger, Educator." Cataloging & Classification Quarterly 25.2 (1998): 227-241. Print.

Minnie B. Slade Bishop: 1939 Graduate of the Hampton Institute Library School

2011-11-17T19:35:00.010-05:00

Minne B. Slade Bishop, a 1939 graduate of the Hampton Institute Library School, was a librarian at Arkansas State College (now Arkansas State University) from 1940-1943. Previously, Ms. Bishop worked in Evansville, Indiana as the manager of the Cherry Street Branch of the Evansville Public Library from 1939-1940. In 1943, she was hired as a librarian at Bishop State Community College (formerly Alabama State College-Mobile), in Mobile, Alabama. Ms. Bishop was the wife of Dr. Sanford Bishop, the first president of Bishop State Community College, and the mother of Rep. Sanford Bishop, Jr. of the U.S. House of Representatives. The Minnie Slade Bishop Library of the Bishop State Community College is named for her. Ms. Bishop passed away in 2004.

Sources: "News Notes." Library Occurrent 13.3 (1939): 87. Print. ; "News Notes from Indiana Libraries." Library Occurrent 13.9 (1941): 281. Print. ; "Sanford D. Bishop, Jr." Bishop.house.gov. U.S. House of Representatives, n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2010. ; "History." Bishop State Community College. Bishop State Community College, n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2010. ; Campbell, Lucy B. "Hampton Institute Library School." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 46. Print. ; "Library Boosters Named for Cherry Street Branch." The Evansville Argus 15 Mar. 1940: 1. Print. ; "Lincoln Elementary News." The Evansville Argus 17 Nov. 1939: 6. Print. ; "News Flashes: Carolina Visitor." The Evansville Argus 14 Oct. 1939: 1. Print. ; "Derbyville: All I Hear Now..." The Evansville Argus 13 Sept. 1940: 4. Print. ; Hite, Edith E. "News About Folk Here and There: Evansville, Ind." Indianapolis Recorder 21 Oct. 1939: 15. Print. ; "Minnie Slade Bishop, Congressman's Mother, Dies at 89." AccessNorthGa.com. AccessNorthGa.com, 16 Sept. 2004. Web. 20 Nov. 2011. ; "Death Elsewhere: Minnie Slade Bishop." Rome News-Tribune 18 Sept. 2004: 5A. Print. ; "Marries in Georgia." The Evansville Argus 29 Aug. 1942: 1. Print. ; "To Spend Summer in N.C." The Evansville Argus 30 May 1941: 1. 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): 39. Print.

Carnegie Negro Library of Meridian, Mississippi

2011-11-14T21:15:00.001-05:00

The Carnegie Negro Library of Meridian, Mississippi opened in 1913. Located on the corner of 13th Street and 28th Avenue, this library was the first library for African Americans in Lauderdale County. Land for the library was provided by St. Paul's United Methodist Church, and $8,000 in Carnegie funds was allotted for the library's construction. In 1974, the library closed, and the building was torn down on May 28, 2008.

Sources: McMillen, Neil R. Dark Journey: Black Mississippians in the Age of Jim Crow. Urbana: U of Illinois P. 1989. 11. Print. ; Beal, Billie C. "Freedom Summer and Integrating the Meridian, Mississippi Public Library." Newsletter of the Black Caucus of the American Library Association 36.3 (2007): 1. Print. ; McKee, Anne. "I Could Write A Book." Meridian Star 10 Jan. 2008: n. pag. Web. 7 Aug. 2011. ; Conner, Tametria. "Former Carnegie Library Demolished." WTOK.com. News Center 11 (Meridian, MS), 28 May 2008. Web. 7 Aug. 2011. ; McKee, Anne. "The Little Museum That Could, and Did, Thrives in the Twenty-First Century." Meridian Star 26 Apr. 2007: n. pag. Web. 7 Aug. 2011. ; Battles, David M. The History of Public Library Access for African Americans in the South or, Leaving Behind the Plow. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2009. 35-36. Print.

Sadie Peterson Delaney and the U.S. Veterans' Administration Hospital (Tuskegee, Alabama)

2011-11-11T09:06:00.001-05:00

In honor of Veterans Day, we will recognize Sadie Peterson Delaney - a pioneer in library services to military veterans:

Sadie Peterson Delaney was the head librarian at the U.S. Veterans Administration Hospital in Tuskegee, Alabama and promoted the use of bibliotherapy in helping the hospital's patients.

Sources: Gubert, Betty K. "Sadie Peterson Delaney: Pioneer Bibliotherapist." American Libraries 24.2 (1993):124-125. 127, 129-130. Print. ; Jordan, Casper Leroy, and E.J. Josey. "A Chronology of Events in Black Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 6. Print. ; Jordan, Casper Leroy. "African American Forerunners Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 30-32. Print. ; Robinson, Carrie. "Alabama Association of School Librarians." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 53-54. Print. ; "Obituary." Bulletin of the American Medical Library Association 46.3 (1958): 495. Print. ; Barrett, Kayla and Bishop, Barbara A. "Integration and the Alabama Library Association: Not So Black and White." Libraries & Culture 33.2 (1998): 146-148. Print. ; King, Annie Greene. "Library Service and the Black Librarian in Alabama." The Black Librarian in the Southeast Reminiscences, Activities, and Challenges. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. Print.

Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center (Bloomington, Indiana)

2011-11-05T13:48:00.001-04:00

The Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center was established on the campus of Indiana University, in Bloomington, Indiana in 1968. Originally named Black House, the center was created to serve the university's African and African American students. In 1972 the center was known as the Black Culture Center; in 1997 the African American Cultural Center, and then in 2002, the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center. Housed within the center are the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center Library, the African American Arts Institute, and the Office of Diversity Education.

Sources: "About Us." Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center... Where You Belong. Indiana University, 28 Aug. 2008. Web. 26 Jan. 2011. ; "IU Students' Protest Prevents Black Library Closing." Jet 109.20 (2006): 32. Print.

The Mayme A. Clayton Library Museum and Cultural Center (MCL)

2011-10-30T18:14:00.003-04:00

The Mayme A. Clayton Library Museum and Cultural Center (MCL) in Culver City, California is named for Mayme Agnew Clayton. Ms. Clayton was a librarian at the University of California-Los Angeles and the University of Southern California. In the 1960s, she began assembling a collection of items relating to African American culture and history which is housed at the center. Today, the Mayme A. Clayton Library Museum and Cultural Center's collection consists of over 3.5 million items and is believed to be the largest private collection of African American history and culture. Ms. Clayton passed away in 2006.

Sources: Kaiser, Ernest. "Library Holdings on African Americans." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 272. Print. ; "Mayme A. Clayton Library & Museum: Mission & History." Claytonmuseum.org. Mayme A. Clayton Library Museum and Cultural Center, n.d. Web. 4 December 2010. ; Thompson, Kathleen, and Austin, Hilary Mac. "In Praise of Mayme A. Clayton: Images of the African American West." BlackPast.org. Black Past, n.d. Web. 4 December 2010. ; Wilkin, Binnie Tate. "Introduction." African American Librarians in the Far West: Pioneers and Trailblazers. Ed. Binnie Tate Wilkin. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2006. xviii. Print. ; Copage, Eric V. "The Race to Save Black History: As Art Collections Deteriorate, Preservationists Struggle to Save Our Culture." Ebony 58.4 (2008): 116-118, 120, 122. Print.

Susan Dart Butler and the Dart Hall Branch Library (Charleston, South Carolina)

2011-10-23T20:24:00.001-04:00

In 1927, Susan Dart Butler established the Dart Hall Branch Library for the African American citizens of Charleston, South Carolina. It became part of the Charleston Free Library in 1931. Ms. Butler served as the branch's manager from 1931 until her retirement in 1957.

Sources: Lee, Dan R. "From Segregation to Integration: Library Services for Blacks in South Carolina, 1923-1962." Untold Stories: Civil Rights, Libraries, and Black Librarianship. Ed. John Mark Tucker. Champaign: Board of Trustees of the U of I, 1998. 95. Print. ; Battles, David M. The History of Public Library Access for African Americans in the South, or, Leaving Behind the Plow. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2009. 61. Print. ; Jordan, Casper LeRoy. "African American Forerunners in Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 20-30. Print. ; Walker, Lillie S. "Black Librarians in South Carolina." The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, Challenges. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. 90-93. Print. ; Josey, E.J. "Foreword." Educating Black Librarians: Papers from the 50th Anniversary Celebration of the School of Library and Information Science, North Carolina Central University. Jefferson: McFarland, 1991. x-xi. Print.

Nella Larsen: Author and Librarian

2011-10-17T18:10:00.006-04:00

Nella Larsen, a writer and the first African American woman to receive a Guggenheim Fellowship, was a children's librarian at the 135th Street Branch of the New York Public Library. She also worked at the Seward Park and Countee Cullen branches. In 1923, Ms. Larsen received her librarian's certificate from the Library School of the New York Public Library (the school became Columbia University School of Library Service in 1926).

Sources: Potter, Joan. African American Firsts (Updated). New York: Dafina Books, 2009. 105. Print. ; "All Fellows: Nella Larsen." John Simon Guggenheim Foundation. John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, n.d. Web. 12 Oct. 2010. ; Hutchinson, George. In Search of Nella Larsen: A Biography of the Color Line. Cambridge: Belknap of Harvard U P, 2006. 8, 65, 68, 139-143, 145-152. Print, ; Davis, Thadious M. Nella Larsen: Novelist of the Harlem Renaissance: A Woman's Life Unveiled. Baton Rouge: Louisiana U P, 1994. 144-147, 149-151, 216-217. Print. ; Shockley, Ann Allen. "Librarians, Archivists, and Writers: A Personal Perspective." Ed. E.J. Josey. The Black Librarian in America Revisited. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1994. 322. Print. ; Hill, Claudia. "135th Street Library." Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance. Ed. Cary D. Wintz and Paul Finkelman. Vol. 2. New York: Routledge, 2004. 926. Print. ; Roffman, Karin. "Nella Larsen, Librarian at 135th Street." MFS Modern Fiction Studies 53.4 (2007): 752-787. Print.

Dudley Randall: Librarian, Poet, and Founder of Broadside Press

2011-10-10T15:38:00.003-04:00

Dudley Randall, a librarian, established the Broadside Press in 1965. Mr. Randall was a librarian at Morgan State University from 1954 until 1956. He also held various library positions at the University of Detroit, the University of Michigan, Lincoln University (Missouri), and the Wayne County Federated Library System. Mr. Randall received his library degree from the University of Michigan in 1951. In addition, Mr. Randall was a poet. He passed away in August of 2000.

Sources: Joyce, Donald Franklin. "Unique Gatekeepers of Black Culture: Three Black Librarians as Book Publishers." Untold Stories: Civil Rights, Libraries, and Black Librarianship. Ed. John Mark Tucker. Champaign: Board of Trustees of the U of Illinois, 1998. 153-154. Print. ; Shockley, Anne Allen. "Librarians, Archivists, and Writers: A Personal Perspective." The Black Librarian in America Revisited. Ed. E.J. Josey. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1994. 322-323. Print. ; Wright, Joyce C. "Black Librarians as Creative Writers." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 653-654. Print. ; Thompson, Julius E. Dudley Randall, Broadside Press, and the Black Arts Movement in Detroit, 1960-1995. Jefferson: McFarland, 1999. Print. ; Boyd, Melba J. Wrestling with the Muse: Dudley Randall and the Broadside Press. New York: Columbia U P, 2003. Print.

The Colored Carnegie Library of Houston, Texas

2011-10-04T17:54:00.000-04:00

The Colored Carnegie Library (Houston) was founded in 1909. The library was originally housed inside Booker T. Washington High School until 1913, when the library received a building of its own from the Carnegie Foundation. In 1922, the library's administration was returned to the Houston Public Library System after eight years of independent operation by an all-black library board. Emma Myers was the first librarian (1909-1911).

Sources: Battles, David M. The History of Public Library Access for African Americans in the South or, Leaving Behind the Plow. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2009. 35. Print. ; Malone, Cheryl Knott. "Autonomy and Accomodation: Houston's Colored Carnegie Library, 1907-1922." Libraries and Culture 34.2 (1999): 95-112. Print. ; Malone, Cheryl Knott. "Quiet Pioneers: Black Women Public Librarians in the Segregated South." Vitae Scholasticae 19.1 (2000): 4, 8-11. Print.

Allen Mercer Daniel: Howard University School of Law Librarian and Member of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL)

2011-10-01T18:07:00.002-04:00

Allen Mercer Daniel, the first African American member of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL), was also the first law librarian of Howard University (1940-1956).

Sources: Berry, Cynthia. "Allen Mercer Daniel: A Leader in Librarianship." AALL Spectrum 4 (2000): 12. Print. ; Centennial Committee of the Academic Law Libraries Special Interest Section. "Firsts in Academic Law Libraries." American Association of Law Libraries - Academic Law Libraries Special Interest Section. American Association of Law Libraries, 22 Sept. 2006. Web. 28 Sept. 2010. ; "Daniel Online Resource Guide." Howard University School of Law Library. Howard University School of Law Library, 6 Oct. 2010. Web. 28 Sept. 2010. ; "Introducing the AALL Hall of Fame." AALL Spectrum Jul. 2010: 14. Print.

Vivian Gordon Harsh and the Chicago Public Library

2011-09-25T18:34:00.001-04:00

Vivian Gordon Harsh was the first African American librarian to work at the Chicago Public Library. Ms. Harsh began her career at the Chicago Public Library in 1924. She studied library science at Simmons College and the University of Chicago. Ms. Harsh passed away in 1960.

Sources: Joyce, Donald Franklin. "Vivian Gordon Harsh Collection of Afro-American History and Literature, Chicago Public Library." Library Quarterly 58.1 (1988): 67-74. Print. ; "Black History Prophets and Custodians: Handful of Men and Women Created Foundations of Saga of Persistence and Creativity." Ebony 50.4 (1995): 90. Print. ; Harris, Kathryn M. "Generations of Pride: African American Timeline: A Selected Chronology." Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library. Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2010. ; Shaw, Spencer G. "Not What You Get, But What You Give." The Black Librarian in America. Ed. E.J. Josey. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1970. 153. Print. ; Garner, Carla W. "Harsh, Vivian Gordon (1890-1960)." BlackPast.org. BlackPast.org, n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2011.

Rev. B. C. Duke and the Tennessee Town Library (Topeka, Kansas)

2011-09-23T21:57:00.000-04:00

Rev. B.C. Duke was the earliest known African American librarian in Topeka, Kansas. He was the librarian for the Tennessee Town Library which was housed in a tavern owned by Andrew Jordan. Rev. Duke came to Kansas from Tennessee in 1887. Tennessee Town is a neighborhood in Topeka that was settled by freed slaves from Tennessee who were part of the Exodusters Movement.

Sources: Cox, Thomas C. Blacks in Topeka, Kansas, 1865-1915: A Social History. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State U P, 1982. 146-147. Print. ; Tennessee Town, Topeka, Kansas Neighborhood Plan: An Element of the Comprehensive Metropolitan Plan 2025, City of Topeka-Shawnee County, Kansas. Topeka: Tennessee Town Neighborhood Improvement Assoc. & Topeka-Shawnee County Metropolitan Planning Dept., 2001. 32-33. Print.

The Bethel Historical and Literary Association

2011-09-20T21:30:00.000-04:00

The Bethel Historical and Literary Association was founded in 1881 by Daniel A. Payne in Washington, D.C.

Sources: McHenry, Elizabeth. Forgotten Readers: Recovering the Lost History of African American Literary Societies. Durham: Duke U P, 2002. 149-165. Print. ; Albritton, Rosie L. "The Founding & Prevelance of African-American Social Libraries & Historical Societies, 1828-1918." Untold Stories: Civil Rights, Libraries, and Black Librarianship. Ed. John Mark Tucker. Champaign: U of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1998. 35. Print. ; Sinnette, Elinor D.V. Arthur Alfonso Schomburg, Black Bibliophile & Collector: A Biography. New York: New York Public Library, 1989. 51. Print.

North Carolina Negro Library Association

2011-09-15T18:16:00.001-04:00

The North Carolina Negro Library Association was founded in 1934 by Mollie Huston Lee. In 1943, the North Carolina Negro Library Association became a chapter of the American Library Association. The organization merged with the North Carolina Library Association in 1955.

Sources: Marshall, Albert P. "North Carolina Negro Library Association." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 63-68. Print. ; Speller, Benjamin F. and James R. Jarrell. "Profiles of Pioneers: Selected North Carolina Black Librarians." The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, Challenges. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. 74-75, 78, 80. Print.

Marcus Bruce Christian, Louisiana Librarian

2011-09-11T18:06:00.004-04:00

Marcus Bruce Christian was assistant librarian at Dillard University from 1944-1950. He was also a poet and author, and taught history at the University of New Orleans. Mr. Christian passed away in 1976.

Sources: Mizell-Nelson, Michael. "Marcus Bruce Christian." Harlem Renaissance Lives from the African American National Biography. Ed. Henry Louis Gates and Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham. New York: Oxford U P, 2009. 115-116. Print. ; Hessler, Marilyn S. "Marcus Christian: The Man and His Collection." Louisiana History 28.1 (1987): 37-55. Print. ; "Marcus Bruce Christian." Black Librarians Table. Chicken Bones: A Journal for Literary & Artistic African American Themes, n.d. Web. 16 Dec. 2010. ; Redding, Joan. "The Dillard Project: The Black Unit of the Louisiana Writers' Project." Louisiana History 32.1 (1991): 47-62. Print. ; Johnson, Jerah. "Marcus B. Christian and the WPA History of Black People in Louisiana." Louisiana History 20.1 (1979): 113-115. Print.

Librarian Education: Eliza Atkins Gleason

2011-09-08T18:01:00.001-04:00

Eliza Atkins Gleason was the first dean of the library school at Atlanta University (now Clark-Atlanta University). She was also the first African American to earn a Ph.D. in library science, which she earned from the University of Chicago. Before going to Atlanta University, Ms. Gleason was a librarian at Fisk University and at the Louisville Municipal College for Negroes (now Simmons College of Kentucky), and served as library director at Talladega College (Alabama) from 1940-1941. Ms. Gleason passed away at the age of 100 on December 15, 2009 in Louisville, Kentucky. In 2010, she was inducted into the University of Louisville College of Arts and Sciences Hall of Honor.

Sources: Woodson, Almeta Gould. "Fifty Years of Service: A Chronological History of the School of Library Service Atlanta University, 1941-1979; the School of Library and Information Studies Atlanta University, 1979-1989; the School of Library and Information Studies, Clark Atlanta University, 1989-1991." Georgia Librarian 28.3 (1991):71-72, 78. Print. ; Jordan, Casper and E.J. Josey. "A Chronology of Events in Black Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 7. Print. ; Dawson, Alma. "Celebrating African American Librarians and Librarianship." Library Trends 49.1 (2000): 58. Print. ; Totten, Herman L. "Southeastern Black Educators." The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, Challenges. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. 202. Print. ; "Eliza Atkins Gleason." Courier Journal (Louisville, Ky.). Courier Journal (Louisville, Ky.), 21 Dec. 2009. Web. 5 Jan. 2011. ; Freightman, Connie Green. "Historically Black College Closes its Library Studies Program." Crisis 112.1 (2005): 10. Print. ; A Directory of Negro Graduates of Accredited Library Schools, 1900-1936. Washington: Columbia Civic Library Association, 1937. 6. Print. ; "Eliza Atkins Gleason." College of Arts and Sciences, Hall of Honor. University of Louisville, n.d. Web. 1. Feb. 2011.

Librarian Education: Louisville Free Public Library

2011-09-05T20:18:00.001-04:00

Rev. Thomas Fountain Blue, head of the Colored Libraries of the Louisville Free Public Library, instituted a library training program for African Americans at the Western Colored Branch of the Louisville Free Public Library. At the time the program was established, there were no schools available in the South to train African American library workers. The training program was in operation from 1912 until 1931.

Sources: 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. 40. Print. ; Jones, Reinette F. Library Services to African Americans in Kentucky: From the Reconstruction Era to the 1960s. Jefferson: McFarland, 2006. 53-55. Print. ; Jordan, Casper LeRoy. "African American Forerunners in Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E. J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 28-29. Print. ; Du Mont, Rosemary Ruhig and William Caynon. "Education of Black Librarians." Encyclopedia of Library and Information Science. Ed. Allen Kent. Vol. 45, suppl. 10. New York: Marcel Dekker, 1990. 111. Print.

Librarian Education: Spelman College

2011-09-04T18:20:00.001-04:00

In 1930, the Southeastern Library Association held a six-week summer course to train African Americans to work in public libraries in the South. The course was funded by the Rosenwald Fund and held on the campus of Spelman College from June 14th until July 25th. A total of thirty-five students participated in the course.

Sources: "Library Institute for Negro Librarians." Library Journal 55.18 (1930): 932. Print. ; Campbell, Lucy B. "Black Librarians in Virginia." The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, and Challenges. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. 134. Print.

Charlotte Andrews Stephens, Arkansas Librarian and Teacher

2011-08-31T21:47:00.000-04:00

Charlotte Andrews Stephens, the first African American teacher in Little Rock, Arkansas, was a high school librarian and a junior college librarian. She was also the first woman in Arkansas to have a school named after her.

Sources: "Charlotte Andrews Stephens (1854-1951)." The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture. Central Arkansas Library System, 24 Nov. 2008. Web. 1 Jan. 2011. ; Mack, Thura. "Charlotte Andrews Stephens." Notable Black American Women. Ed. Jessie Carney Smith. Book II. Detroit: Gale Research, 1996. 616-617. Print. ; Gordon, Fon Louise. "Black Women in Arkansas." Pulaski County Historical Review 35 (1987): 26-28. Print. ; Kennan, Clara B. "The First Black Teacher in Little Rock." Arkansas Historical Quarterly 9 (1950): 194-204. Print.

Mattie Herd Roland and the Booker T. Washington Branch Library (Birmingham, AL)

2011-08-28T03:15:00.001-04:00

Mattie Herd Roland was the first African American librarian in Alabama. She received her library training at the Louisville Free Public Library's Western Colored Branch in Louisville, Kentucky. Ms. Roland was appointed head of the Booker T. Washington Branch of the Birmingham Public Library in 1918. The Booker T. Washington Branch provided library services to Birmingham's African American residents.

Sources: King, Annie Greene. "Library Service and the Black Librarian in Alabama." The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, Challenges. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. 21. Print. ; Graham, Toby Patterson. A Right to Read: Segregation and Civil Rights in Alabama's Public Libraries, 1900-1965. Tuscaloosa: U of Alabama P, 2002. 14, 172-173. Print. ; Battles, David M. The History of Public Library Access for African Americans in the South or, Leaving Behind the Plow. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2009. 50. Print.

Robert Robinson Branch of the Alexandria Public Library (Alexandria, VA)

2011-08-23T19:08:00.000-04:00

The Robert Robinson Branch of the Alexandria Public Library was built in 1940 in response to "The 1939 Sit-Down Strike." Five African American men entered the Barrett Branch on Friday, August 21, 1939 in an attempt to receive service from the library. When service was denied, the men refused to leave and were arrested. A law suit was filed but was later dismissed. The Robert Robinson Branch ceased operation in the 1960s as a result of integration. The branch is now part of the Alexandria Black History Museum.

Sources: "1939 Alexandria Library Sit-in." Alexandria Library. Alexandria Library, n.d. Web. 29 Jan. 2011. ; "The History of the Alexandria Black History Museum: The Sit-Down Strike." Alexandria Black History Museum. City of Alexandria, 1995-2011. Web. 29 Jan. 2011. ; Battles, David M. The History of Public Library Access for African Americans in the South or, Leaving Behind the Plow. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2009. 82-83. Print.

John F. N. Wilkerson and the Law Library of Congress

2011-08-20T16:32:00.001-04:00

John F.N. Wilkerson was assistant librarian in the Law Library of Congress from 1857-1912.

Sources: Dawson, Alma. "Celebrating African American Librarians and Librarianship." Library Trends 49.1 (2000): 62. Print. ; "Library of Congress - John F.N. Wilkerson." United States Civil Service Commission. Official Register of the United States Containing a List of Officers and Employees in the Civil, Military, and Naval Service on the 1st of July 1883, Together with a List of Ships and Vessels Belonging to the United States. Vol. 1. Washington: G.P.O., 1883. 15. Print.

Dryades Branch of the New Orleans Public Library

2011-08-17T22:50:00.001-04:00

In 1915, the Dryades Branch of the New Orleans Public Library was established to serve the African American citizens of New Orleans. Businessman and library philanthropist Andrew Carnegie gave $25,000 for the branch's construction.

Sources: Spooner, Gloria. "Establishment of African American Public Library Service in Louisiana." Louisiana Libraries 63.3 (2001): 23-25. Print. ; Smith, Norman R. Footprints of Black Louisiana. [Bloomington, IN?]: Xlibris Corp., 2010. 96-97. Print.

The Blyden Branch Library (Norfolk, Virginia)

2011-08-15T21:58:00.000-04:00

In 1921, the Norfolk Public Library established the Blyden Branch Library to serve the African American citizens of Norfolk, Virginia.

Sources: Campbell, Lucy B. "Black Librarians in Virginia." The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, Challenges. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. 135. Print. ; "History of Blyden Branch Library." Norfolk Public Library, n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2011.

Anne Spencer and the Dunbar Branch of the George M. Jones Memorial Library (Lynchburg, Virginia)

2011-08-14T19:43:00.001-04:00

Anne Spencer was Lynchburg's first African American librarian. She was the first librarian of the Dunbar Branch of the George M. Jones Memorial Library, where she served from 1923 until 1945. The branch was located inside Paul Laurence Dunbar High School and served the African American residents of Lynchburg. Ms. Spencer was also a poet and part of the Harlem Renaissance. She passed away in 1975.

Sources: Wright, Joyce C. " Black Librarians as Creative Writers." The Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 254-256. Print. ; Shockley, Anne Allen. "Librarians, Archivists, and Writers: A Perspective." The Black Librarian in America Revisited. Ed. E.J. Josey. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1994. 322. Print. ; Morrison, Ken. "A History of the Lynchburg Public Library." Virginia Libraries 52.4 (2006):2-3. Print. ; Doyle, Patricia K. "The Lynchburg Public Library Celebrates Its Fortieth Birthday." Lynch's Ferry (Fall 2005): 1. Print. ; Smith, Jessie Carney. "Black Women, Civil Rights, & Libraries." Untold Stories: Civil Rights, Libraries, and Black Librarianship. Ed. John Mark Tucker. Champaign: Board of Trustees of U of Illinois, 1998. 142-143. Print. ; Parkhurst, Erin. "Literary Luminary: Celebrating Poet Anne Spencer." Virginia Living 9.2 (2011): 17. Print.

William Henry Smith, Librarian for the U.S. House of Representatives, 1881-1891

2011-08-10T18:14:00.001-04:00

On December 9, 1881, William Henry Smith was named the librarian for the U.S. House of Representatives. A native of Washington, D.C., Mr. Smith held this position until his retirement in 1891. Mr. Smith passed away in 1903.

Sources: "Noted Negro Is Dead: William H. Smith Was Ex-Librarian of National House of Representatives." New York Times 17 Nov. 1903: 9. Print. ; "William Henry Smith Is Named House Librarian, Dec. 9, 1881." Todaysdrum.com. Today's Drum, n.d. Web. 22 Sept. 2010. ; Glass, Andrew. "William Henry Smith Is Named House Librarian, December 9, 1881." Politico.com. Politico, 9 Dec. 2009. Web. 16 Dec. 2010. ; "The Appointment of William H. Smith As House Librarian December 09, 1881." Historical Highlights. Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives, n.d. Web. 16 Dec. 2010.

Dulcina DeBerry and the Huntsville Public Library (Huntsville, Alabama)

2011-08-06T12:59:00.004-04:00

Dulcina DeBerry was the first African American librarian in Madison County, Alabama. In 1940, Ms. DeBerry opened the first African American branch of the Huntsville Public Library. The branch was named after her.

Sources: Graham, Patterson Toby. A Right to Read: Segregation and Civil Rights in Alabama's Public Libraries, 1900-1965. Tuscaloosa: U of Alabama P, 2002. 49-56, 60, 69. Print. ; Battles, David M. The History of Public Library Access for African Americans in the South or, Leaving Behind the Plow. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2009. 83-84. Print. ; Torrence, Missouri L. Dulcina DeBerry: Door Opener. Huntsville: Golden Rule, 1996. Print.

James D. Roberts and the Mt. Pleasant Library (Rush County, Indiana)

2011-08-02T20:39:00.000-04:00

James D. Roberts was the earliest known African American male librarian to work in Indiana. Although not formally trained, Mr. Roberts served as the first librarian of the Mt. Pleasant Library in Rush County from 1842-1843. The library was located inside the Mt. Pleasant A.M.E. Church which served the citizens of Rush County’s Beech Settlement. The Beech Settlement was a community settled by free African Americans who came North to Indiana from the southern United States.

Sources: O'Bryan, Ann. "Mt. Pleasant Library: Reading among African Americans in 19th Century Rush County." Black History News & Notes. Nov. 2005: n.pag. Web. 15 Jan. 2011. ; Gibbs, Wilma L. "Mount Pleasant Library (Rush County, Ind.) Records, 1842-1869." Manuscript and Visual Collections Department, William Smith Memorial Library, Indiana Historical Society. Indiana Historical Society, 2 Dec. 2004. Web. 27 Feb. 2011. ; Vincent, Stephen A. Southern Seed, Northern , Soil: African-American Farm Communities in the Midwest, 1765-1900. Bloomington: Indiana UP, 1999. 70-72, 75-76, 82, 105, 150, 159-161, 186, 195, 197, 219. Print.

Fannie C. Porter and the Evansville-Vanderburgh County Public Library

2011-07-29T21:03:00.013-04:00

Fannie C. Porter was the earliest known African American librarian to work at the Evansville Public Library (now Evansville-Vanderburgh County Public Library). Although not formally trained, Ms. Porter began her brief career at the Evansville Public Library on June 15, 1914. Initially she was trained by staff at the West Branch of the library system but was later sent to study for six weeks as an apprentice under Rev. Thomas Fountain Blue, director of the Western Colored Branch of the Louisville Free Public Library in Louisville, Kentucky. Upon completion of her training, Fannie Porter was appointed the librarian of the Cherry Street Branch (Colored Branch) of the Evansville Public Library where she remained until her resignation in April 1915. Ms. Porter was succeeded by Lillian Sunshine Haydon Childress Hall. Ms. Hall was the earliest known formally trained African American librarian to work in Indiana and the first African American graduate of the Indiana Public Library Commission Summer School for Librarians (now Indiana University School of Library and Information Science).

Sources: "Personals." Library Occurrent 3.12 (1914): 204. Print. ; Evansville Public Library. Second Annual Report, 1914. Evansville, IN: Evansville Public Library, 1915. 12. Print.; Evansville Public Library. Third Annual Report, 1915. Evansville, IN: Evansville Public Library, 1915. 12. Print.; Spradling, Mary Mace. "Black Librarians in Kentucky." The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, and Challenges. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. 40. Print.; Jones, Reinette F. Library Services to African Americans in Kentucky: From the Reconstruction Era to the 1960s. Jefferson: McFarland, 2006. 53-55. Print.; Jordan, Casper LeRoy. "African American Forerunners in Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 28-29. Print.; Du Mont, Rosemary Ruhig and William Caynon. "Education of Black Librarians." Encyclopedia of Library and Information Science. Ed. Allen Kent. Vol. 45, suppl. 10. New York: Marcel Dekker, 1990. 111. 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.

Lillian Sunshine Haydon Childress Hall:Pioneer in the History of Library Services to African Americans in Indiana

2011-07-24T13:20:00.007-04:00

Lillian Sunshine Haydon Childress Hall is the earliest known formally trained African American librarian to work in Indiana. Ms. Hall was the first African American graduate of the Indiana Public Library Commission Summer School for Librarians (now Indiana University School of Library and Information Science), receiving her certificate on July 24, 1915. She began her career at the Cherry Street Branch Library (1915-1921) of the Evansville Public Library (now Evansville-Vanderburgh County Public Library). Ms. Hall later became the first branch manager of the Paul Lawrence Dunbar Branch (1921-1927) and the first head librarian of the Crispus Attucks Branch (1927-1956) of the Indianapolis Public Library (now known as Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library). She also served as president of the Phyllis Wheatley Branch of the YWCA of Indianapolis. During the Conference of Public Librarians held in 1947 at Atlanta University, Ms. Hall gave a lecture, “Administrative Methods Which Tend Towards Better Services in the Combination School and Public Library.” After 41 years of library service, Ms. Hall retired in 1956. She passed away in 1958. Her son, William H. Childress, Jr. served as a representative in the Kentucky Commonwealth House of Representatives.

Sources: Evansville-Vanderburgh County Public Library; Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library; "Summer School 1915." Library Occurrent 4.4 (1915): 51. Print. ; Evansville Public Library. Report of the Evansville Public Library for the Year Ending 1915. Evansville: Evansville Public Library, 1916. 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. ; "Personals." Library Occurrent 8.2 (1927): 66. Print. ; "News of Indiana Libraries." Library Occurrent 8.3 (1927): 118, 122. Print. ; Crispus Attucks High School Yearbook, 1928. Indianapolis: Crispus Attucks High School, 1929. 24. Print. ; Crispus Attucks High School Yearbook, 1929. Indianapolis: Crispus Attucks High School, 1930. 28. Print. ; Crispus Attucks High School Yearbook, 1956. Indianapolis: Crispus Attucks High School, 1957. 42. Print. ; Fleming, George James and Christian E. Burckel, ed. Who's Who in Colored America: An Illustrated Biographical Directory of Notable Living Persons of African Descent in the United States, 1950. 7th ed. New York: Burckel, 1950. 234. Print. ; Cole, D.E. Who's Who in Library Service: A Biographical Directory of Professional Librarians of the United States and Canada. 3rd ed. New York: Grolier Society, 1955. 195. Print.; Williamson, C.C. and Alice L. Jewett, ed. Who's Who in Library Service. New York: H.W. Wilson, 1933, 197. Print. ; NAACP. "Along the Color Line: Social Uplift." Crisis 11.1 (1915): 8. Print. ; "Tea Party Sunday to Fete 4 Retiring Librarians." Indianapolis Star 25 May 1956: 8. Print. ; "Mrs. Hall Succumbs; Ex-Attucks Librarian." Indianapolis Star 25 Apr. 1958: 23. Print. ; "Necrology." Library Journal 83.12 (1958): 1895. 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, 160. Print. ; Warren, Stanley. Crispus Attucks High School: Hail to the Green, Hail to the Gold. Virginia Beach: Donning, 1998. 35. Print. ; Fenton, Michele T. "A Great Day in Indiana: the Legend of Lillian Childress Hall." Black Caucus of the American Library Association, Inc. Newsletter 39.2 (2010): 5-6. Print. ; Fenton, Michele T. "Building Spotlight: The Cherry Street (African American) Branch of the Evansville-Vanderburgh County, IN Public Library." Library History Roundtable Newsletter 10.2 (2011):6. Print. ; McPheeters, Annie L. Library Service in Black and White: Some Personal Recollections, 1921-1980. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1988. 11. Print. ; Hall, Lillian Childress. "Devotional Study for Missionary Societies." World Call Apr. 1939: 38. 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.

Amos Fortune and the Jaffrey Social Library

2011-07-20T20:08:00.000-04:00

Amos Fortune, a former slave, helped found the Jaffrey Social Library of Jaffrey, New Hampshire in 1795.

Sources: “Yesterday in Negro History.” Jet 27.7 (1964): 15. Print. ; Dedication of the Clay Library Building at East Jaffrey, New Hampshire, Saturday, July 4, 1896. Concord: Republican, 1896. 34-42. Print.; “Amos Fortune (Citizen of Jaffrey).” Freedom Train Theatre Works USA: A Study Guide. Keene: Colonial Theatre, 2008. 8-9. Print. ; Battles, David M. The History of Public Library Access for African Americans in the South or, Leaving Behind the Plow. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2008. 10. Print. ; Marshall, A.P. “The Black Librarian’s Stride Toward Equality.” Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities, Challenges. Durham: NCCU School of Library Service, 1980. 10. Print. ; Du Mont, Rosemary Ruhig and William Caynon. “Education of Black Librarians.” Encyclopedia of Library and Information Science. Ed. Kent Allen, Harold Lancour, and Jay Daily. Vol. 45, suppl. 10. New York: Marcel Dekker, 1990. 110. Print. ; Ziyad, Dawud B. and George R. Johnson. “Amos Fortune and the Early American Library Movement.” The Negro History Bulletin 42.3 (July/Aug./Sept. 1979): 77-78. Print.

William Howard Day and the Cleveland Library Association

2011-07-15T19:35:00.003-04:00

In 1854, William Howard Day became the first African American to serve as librarian for the Cleveland Library Association, a subscription library organization in which members paid a fee to use its services. Mr. Day, a graduate of Oberlin College, helped found Livingstone College (Salisbury, NC) and the African Aid Society. In addition, he was an abolitionist, the editor of the Cleveland True Democrat, editor of Zion's National Standard and Weekly Review, editor of the Aliened American, and in 1850 elected president of the National Board of Commissioners of the Colored People. Mr. Day passed away in 1900 at the age of 75.

Sources: "Day, William Howard." Encyclopedia of Cleveland History. Case Western Reserve University, 15, Jul. 1997. Web. 26 Feb. 2011. ; Mealy, Todd. "William Howard Day: A Mid-State Civil Rights Leader Forgotten by Time." Patriot-News 26 Feb. 2011. PennLive.com. Web. 26 Feb. 2011. ; Josey, E.J. "Foreword." Educating Black Librarians: Papers from the 50th Anniversary Celebration of the School of Library and Information Sciences, North Carolina Central University. Ed. Benjamin F. Speller, Jr. Jefferson: McFarland, 1991. vii. Print. ; Cramer, C.H. Open Shelves, Open Minds: A History of the Cleveland Public Library. Cleveland: Case Western Reserve U P, 1972. 4. Print. ; Dooley, Dennis. "C.H. 'Red' Cramer, Historian, 1902-1983." The Cleveland Arts Prize. The Cleveland Arts Prize, 2003. Web. 26 Feb. 2011. ; "Little Known Facts About Cleveland." Jet 7.3 (Nov. 25, 1954): 12. Print.

The Marblehead Libraries

2011-07-11T18:38:00.002-04:00

James H. Gregory, a native of Marblehead, Massachusetts, established the Marblehead Libraries in 1910. The Marblehead Libraries was a travelling library service to aide African Americans in the South.

Sources: Battles, David M. The History of Public Library Access for African Americans in the South or, Leaving Behind the Plow. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2009. 36-38. Print. ; Jones, Reinette. Library Service to African Americans in Kentucky, from the Reconstruction Era to the 1960s. Jefferson: McFarland, 2002. 64. Print. ; Jordan, Casper Leroy, and Josey, E.J. "A Chronology of Events in Black Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 5. Print. ; Dickerman, G.S. "The Marblehead Libraries." The Southern Workman 39 (Sept. 1910):490-500. Print.

The Freedom Libraries

2011-07-06T18:58:00.002-04:00

The Freedom Libraries were part of the Freedom Summer Project, a project designed to aid in the effort to secure voting rights and other services for African Americans in Mississippi during the Civil Rights Era. Housed in churches, old buildings, and other facilities, the Freedom Libraries provided library services and literacy guidance for many African Americans, some who had never had access to libraries before the Freedom Summer Project.

Sources: Battles, David M. The History of Public Library Access for African Americans in the South or, Leaving Behind the Plow. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2009. 133-135. Print. ; Davis, Donald G. and Cheryl Knott Malone. "Reading for Liberation: The Role of Libraries in the 1964 Mississippi Freedom Summer Project." Untold Stories: Civil Rights, Libraries, and Black Librarianship. Ed. John Mark Tucker. Champaign: Board of Trustees of the U of Illinois, 1998. 110-125. Print. ; Sturkey, William. "'I Want to Become A Part of History': Freedom Summer, Freedom Schools, and the Freedom News." Journal of African American History 95.3-4 (2010): 348-368. Print. ; Beal, Billie C. " Freedom Summer and the Integrating of the Meridian , Mississippi Public Library." Newsletter of the Black Caucus of the American Library Association 36.3 (2007): 1. Print.

Founder of BCALA and Pioneer Black Librarian: Dr. E. J. Josey (1924-2009)

2011-07-03T12:34:00.002-04:00

Two years ago today, the library world lost an awesome pioneer and leader -- Dr. E. J. Josey. Josey, founder and first president of the Black Caucus of the American Library Association, was a graduate of the State University of New York Library School in Albany. Dr. Josey held various positions at the New York State Library, the New York Public Library, Columbia University, Delaware State College, and Savannah State University. Dr. Josey was also a professor at the University of Pittsburgh’s library school. In addition, he was the second African American president of the American Library Association and the first African American member of the Georgia Library Association. During his lifetime, Dr. Josey was very active in the library field, serving on various committees and in several organizations. Dr. Josey also published several books including, The Black Librarian in America, What Black Librarians Are Saying, The Black Librarian in America Revisited, and the first and second editions of The Handbook of Black Librarianship. Dr. Josey passed away on July 3, 2009.

Sources: “Library Pioneer Dr. E.J. Josey Saluted During American Library Assn. Annual Confab.” Jet 88.10 (1995): 33. Print. ; “People.” Jet 56.2 (1979): 18. Print. ; “Librarians Group Elects E.J. Josey to Top Post.” Jet 64.24 (1983): 23. Print. ; “People.” Jet 45.11 (1973): 47. Print. ; “Racial Tension Seething in Library of Congress.” Jet 42.16 (1972): 46-47. Print. ; “Librarian Honored.” Jet 68.9 (1985): 22. Print. ; “Atlanta University Center Exhibition Hall Named for Dr. Virginia Lacy Jones.” Jet 68.16 (1985): 19. Print. ; “People.” Jet 58.22 (1980): 21. Print. ; “A Man Who Goes by the Books.” Ebony 40.9 (1985): 126, 128, 130. Print. ; Kniffel, Leonard. “To Be Black and A Librarian: Talking with E.J. Josey.” American Libraries 31.1 (2000): 80-82. Print. ; “Wilkins Scholarship Aid Goes to Seven Students.” Crisis 81.4 (1974): 138. Print. ; Josey, E.J. “A Dreamer with A Tiny Spark.” The Black Librarian in America. Ed. E.J. Josey. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1970. 297-324. Print. ; BCALA Newsletter 38.4 (2009). [Entire issue was devoted to Dr. Josey]. Print. ; Biblo, Lisa. “Black Caucus of the American Library Association: An Organization of Empowerment.” The Black Librarian in America Revisited. Ed. E.J. Josey. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1994. 324-337. Print.; Campbell, Lucy B. “Black Librarians in Virginia.” The Black Librarian in the Southeast: Reminiscences, Activities. Ed. Annette L. Phinazee. Durham: NCCU School of Library Science, 1980. 130-132. Print. ; Berry, John and Norman Oder. “E.J. Josey, Legendary Activist, Librarian, and Leader, Dies at 85.” Library Journal.com, 6 Jul. 2009. Web. Feb. 26, 2011. ; Josey, E.J. and Ismael Abdullahi. E.J. Josey: An Activist Librarian. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1992. Print.

The Faith Cabin Libraries

2011-07-01T18:43:00.000-04:00

The Faith Cabin Libraries were founded by Willie Lee Buffington, a white mill worker and Methodist minister from Saluda, South Carolina. The libraries were named so, in that they were "built on faith, and housed in cabins". From the 1930s until the 1970s, the Faith Cabin Libraries provided books and library services to African Americans in Georgia and South Carolina.

Sources: Monk, Jim. "Willie Lee Buffington." The State (Columbia, S.C.) 4 Apr. 2005:n.pag. Web. 26 Sept. 2010. ; Williams, Robert B. and Copp, Robert W.H. Adventures in Faith: Library Services to Blacks in South Carolina. Columbia: Board of Trustees of U of South Carolina, 2002. Web. 16 Jan. 2011. ; Allen, Francis W. "Faith Cabin Libraries." Library Journal 66 (1941): 187-188. Print. ; Lee, Dan R. "From Segregation to Integration: Library Services to Blacks in South Carolina, 1923-1962." Untold Stories Civil Rights, Libraries, and Black Librarianship. Ed. John Mark Tucker. Champaign: Board of Trustees of the U of Illinois, 1998. 100-101. Print. ; Battles, David M. The History of Public Library Access for African Americans in the South, or, Leaving Behind the Plow. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2009. 73, 95, 142. Print. ; Lee, Dan R. "Faith Cabin Libraries: A Study of an Alternative Library Service in the Segregated South, 1932-1960." Libraries and Culture 26.1 (1991): 169-182. Print.

U.S. National Archives and Records Administration: Harold T. Pinckett and Sara Dunlap Jackson

2011-06-28T18:01:00.001-04:00

Harold T. Pinckett was the first African American archivist at the National Archives. Mr. Pinckett worked at the National Archives 1942-1979. He also taught history at Livingstone College in Salisbury, North Carolina.

Sources: Helms, Douglas. "In Memoriam: Harold T. Pinckett." Perspectives 39.8 (2001): n.pag. Web. 2 Dec. 2010. ; Helms, Douglas. "Obituary [Dr. Harold T. Pinckett]." Agricultural History 75.3 (2001): 349-351. Print. ; "Harold T. Pinckett Minority Student Award." Society of American Archivists. Society of American Archivists, n.d. Web. 2 Dec. 2010. ; Shockley, Anne Allen. "Librarians, Archivists, and Writers: A Personal Perspective." The Black Librarian in America Revisited. Ed. E.J. Josey. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1994. 320, 322. Print.

Sara Dunlap Jackson was the earliest known African American archival assistant to work at the National Archives. Ms. Jackson worked at the National Archives from 1944-1990.

Sources: Berlin, Ira. "In Memoriam: Sara Dunlap Jackson." Documentary Editing: Journal of the Association of Documentary Editing 13.3 (1991): 69. Print. ; Berlina, Ira. "Dedication: In Memory of Sara Dunlap Jackson, May 28, 1919-April 19, 1991." Prologue 29.2 (1997): 85. Print. ; Berlin, Ira. "Remembering Sara Dunlap Jackson (1919-1991)." BlackPast.org. Black Past, n.d. Web. 26 Sept. 2010. ; "Historical News and Notices." The Journal of Southern History 57.3 (1991): 574-587. Print. ; "Sara Dunlap Jackson, Federal Archivist." South Carolina African American History Calendar, 2011. Web. 4 Jan. 2011.

ALA History: Early African American Officers of ALA

2011-06-25T17:45:00.002-04:00

Alma Jacobs was the first African American to serve on ALA's Executive Board.

Source: Jordan, Casper Leroy and E.J. Josey. "A Chronology of Events in Black Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 9. Print.

Albert P. Marshall was the first African American to serve as chair of ALA's Nominating Committee.

Sources: Josey, E.J. "Introduction." The Black Librarian in America. Ed. E.J. Josey. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1970. xi. Print. ; Jordan, Casper Leroy and E.J. Josey. "A Chronology of Events in Black Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 9. Print.

Robert Wedgeworth was the first African American to serve as Executive Director of ALA.

Sources: Jordan, Casper Leroy and E.J. Josey. "A Chronology of Events in Black Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 12. Print. ; "Voice of 3,000 Librarians: Robert Wedgeworth, Executive Director of American Library Association, Seeks to Make Librarians Visible." Ebony 28.8 (1973): 107-108, 110-112. Print. ; Dawson, Alma. "Celebrating African American Librarians and Librarianship." Library Trends 49.1 (2000): 61. Print. ; "American Library Assn. Names Black Executive." Jet 42.4 (1972): 25. Print. ; McPheeters, Annie L. Library Service in Black and White: Some Personal Recollections, 1921-1980. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1988. 132. Print.

The first African American director of the Office of Literacy and Outreach Services was Jean Coleman.

Sources: Dawson, Alma. "Celebrating African American Librarians and Librarianship." Library Trends 49.1 (2000): 56-57. Print. ; "Former OLOS Director Dies." ALCTS Network News 12.17 (1996): n. pag. Web. 30 Jan. 2011. ; Woods, Alfred L. "Chicago Black Librarians Caucus." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 117. Print.

Charlemae Hill Rollins was the first African American to serve as president of the Children's Services Division of the American Library Association.

Sources: Jordan, Casper Leroy and E.J. Josey. "A Chronology of Events in Black Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 8. Print. ; Josey, E.J. "Introduction." The Black Librarian in America. Ed. E.J. Josey. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1970. xi. Print.

ALA History: African American ALA Presidents

2011-06-24T01:20:00.007-04:00

The first African American president of ALA was Clara Stanton Jones.

Sources: Jordan, Casper Leroy and E.J. Josey. "A Chronology of Events in Black Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 12. Print. ; "ALA's Past Presidents." American Library Association. American Library Association, n.d. Web. 8 Jan. 2011. ; McPheeters, Annie L. Library Service in Black and White: Some Personal Recollections, 1921-1980. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1988. 132. Print. ; Poinsett, Alex.. "1976: Year of the Black Voter." Ebony 32.3 (1977): 85. Print. ; Garner, Carla W. "Jones, Clara Stanton (1913- )." BlackPast.org. BlackPast.org, n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2011. ; DeLoach, Marva. "Clara Stanton Jones." Women of Color in Librarianship: An Oral History. Ed. Kathleen de la Pena McCook. [Chicago]: ALA, Committee on the Status of Women in Librarianship, 1998. 28-57. Print.

The second African American president of ALA was E.J. Josey.

Sources: Jordan, Casper Leroy and E.J. Josey. "A Chronology of Events in Black Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 14. Print. ; "ALA's Past Presidents." American Library Association. American Library Association, n.d. Web. 8 Jan. 2011. ; McPheeters, Annie L. Library Service in Black and White: Some Personal Recollections, 1921-1980. Metuchen: Scarecrow, 1988. 132. Print.

The third African American president of ALA was Hardy R. Franklin.

Sources: Jordan, Casper Leroy and E.J. Josey. "A Chronology of Events in Black Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 16. Print. ; "ALA's Past Presidents." American Library Association. American Library Association, n.d. Web. 8 Jan. 2011.

The fourth African American president of ALA was Carla Hayden.

Sources: "Carla Hayden Elected New American Library Association President." Jet 101.23 (2002): 34 . Print. ; "ALA's Past Presidents." American Library Association. American Library Association, n.d. Web. 8 Jan. 2011. ; Brennan, Carol. "Carla D. Hayden Biography." Brief Biographies, N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Sept. 2010.

ALA History: 1936 Meeting in Richmond, Virginia

2011-06-21T18:18:00.006-04:00

During the 1936 ALA Meeting in Richmond, Virginia, African American librarians were not allowed to stay at the conference hotel, eat at the dining sessions, or visit the exhibits. This prompted ALA to pass a resolution to never hold any of its conferences in cities that discriminated against any of its members because of their race. It also forbade any state affiliate that practiced racism to become an affiliate of ALA.

Sources: Jordan, Casper Leroy, and E.J. Josey. "A Chronology of Events in Black Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 7. Print. ; Battles, David M. The History of Public Library Access for African Americans in the South, or, Leaving Behind the Plow. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2008. 80. Print. ; Jones, Reinette. Library Service to African Americans in Kentucky: From the Reconstruction Era to the 1960s. Jefferson: McFarland, 2006. 134. Print.

Father and Daughter Librarians: Richard T. Greener and Belle Da Costa Greene (nee Belle Marion Greener)

2011-06-19T18:07:00.003-04:00

In celebration of Fathers' Day, today's little known black librarian fact will focus on a father who was a librarian and his daughter who followed him into the profession:

Richard T. Greener, the first African American to graduate from Harvard University, was the university librarian for the University of South Carolina. His daughter, Belle da Costa Greene (born Belle Marion Greener), was the librarian for the J.P. Morgan Library in New York City from 1905-1948.

Sources: Jordan, Casper Leroy, and E.J. Josey. "A Chronology of Events in Black Librarianship." Handbook of Black Librarianship. Ed. E.J. Josey and Marva L. DeLoach. 2nd ed. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2000. 3. Print. ; Ardizzone, Heidi. An Illuminated Life: Belle da Costa Greene's Journey from Prejudice to Power. New York: Norton, 2007. Print. ; "Belle da Costa Greene." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, 2010. Web. 29 Sep. 2010. ; Josey, E.J. "Foreword." Educating Black Librarians: Papers from the 50th Anniversary Celebration of the School of Library and Information Sciences, North Carolina Central University. Jefferson: McFarland, 1991. viii. Print.

Judith Carter Horton and the Excelsior Library of Guthrie, Oklahoma

2011-06-17T18:21:00.008-04:00

Judith Carter Horton established Oklahoma's first public library for African Americans in 1908. The Excelsior Library was located in the town of Guthrie and was headed by Ms. Horton for 11 years. Ms. Horton was an 1891 graduate of Oberlin College. She also founded the first women's club for African Americans in Oklahoma.

Sources: "Men of the Month." The Crisis: A Record of the Darker Races 15.6 (1918): 279-280. Print. ; "Judith Carter Horton." Notable Oklahoma Women. Tulsa City-County Library, n.d. Web. 5 Dec. 2010. ; "Horton, Judith Ann Carter Horton (1866-1948)." Oklahoma Historical Society's Encyclopedia of History & Culture. Oklahoma Historical Society and Oklahoma State University Libraries Electronic Publishing Center, n.d. Web. 5 Dec. 2010 ; "Social Uplift." The Crisis A Record of the Darker Races 9.1 (Nov. 1914): 8. Print.

Article on Evansville, Indiana's Former African American Library Branch

2011-06-11T10:05:00.006-04:00

The Spring 2011 (v. 10, no. 2) issue of the Library History Round Table Newsletter contains an article about the former Cherry Street Branch of the Evansville-Vanderburgh County Public Library of Evansville, Indiana. Built with a donation from Andrew Carnegie, the Cherry Street Branch Library provided services to Evansville's African American community from 1914-1954. To read the article, visit the Library History Round Table Newsletter's page at: http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/rts/lhrt/popularresources/lhrtnewsletters/lhrtnewsletters.cfm

Update 03/04/2012:
There is also a longer article containing additional information about the Cherry Street Branch of the Evansville-Vanderburgh County Public Library in Indiana Libraries, v. 30, no. 2 (2011):

http://journals.iupui.edu/index.php/IndianaLibraries/article/viewFile/1839/1909

Welcome to Little Known Black Librarian Facts!

2011-06-10T18:08:00.003-04:00

Little Known Black Librarian Facts is a blog devoted to the history of African American librarians and library services to African Americans. Here you'll learn about the pioneers in the library profession, and the triumphs and struggles in making library services available to African Americans. Also, please take a look at the companion publication "Little Known Black Librarian Facts (2nd edition)", which you can access from the blog (see side bar). Enjoy!!