The Bethel Historical and Literary Association

The Bethel Historical and Literary Association, a literary society for African Americans, was founded in 1881 by Daniel A. Payne in Washington, D.C. The society met at Bethal Hall, a building owned by the Metropolitan A.M.E. Church. Members of the Bethel Historical and Literary Association met to discuss literature and issues of  interest and importance to African Americans. Meetings often included guest lecturers and speakers. Notable speakers included:

Frederick Douglas

Ida B. Wells Barnett

John Mercer Langston

Archibald H. Grimke

Richard Greener

Charles W. Chesnutt

John W. Cromwell

Mary Church Terrell


Note: Mary Church Terrell, an 1884 graduate of Oberlin College and a professor at Wilberforce College (now Wilberforce University), became the society's first female president in 1892.

See related posts: John Edward Bruce: Ex-Slave, Bibliophile, Historian, and Journalist and Arthur Alfonso-Schomburg, 1874-1938: Noted Bibliophile, Collector, Curator, and Scholar.

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. ; "Emancipation Meetings." Crisis 5.5 (Mar. 1913): 243-244. Print. ; Des Jardines, Julie. Women and the Historical Enterprise of America: Gender, Race, and the Politics of Memory, 1880-1945. Chapel Hill, NC: U of North Carolina, 2003. 120-121. Print.

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

John Francis Nicholas Wilkinson (1832-1912), a native of Washington, D.C., was assistant librarian in the Law Library of Congress from 1857-1912. He passed away on October 5, 1912 in Washington, D.C.

See related posts: William Henry Smith: Librarian for the U.S. House of Representatives ;  Allen Mercer Daniel: Howard University School of Law Librarian and Member of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) ; African American Officers of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) ; and African American State Law Librarians of West Virginia.

Sources: Dawson, Alma. "Celebrating African American Librarians and Librarianship." Library Trends 49.1 (2000): 62. Print. ; "Library of Congress - John F.N. Wilkinson." 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. ; Library of Congress. Report of the Librarian of Congress and Report of the Superintendent of the Library Building and Grounds for the Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 1912. Washington: G.P.O., 1912. 13. Print. ; "John Francis Nicholas Wilkinson." District of Columbia Deaths and Burials, 1840-1964. FamilySearch.org, n.d. Web. 15 Mar. 2013. ; Render, S. L. "Black Presence in the Library of Congress." Library Lectures: Numbers Twenty-One Through Twenty-Eight : September 1972 - April 1974. Ed. Caroline Wire. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Library, 1975. 63-79. Print. ; Jefferson, Julius C. "The Black Male Librarian: An Endangered Species." The National Diversity in Libraries Conference. Louisville Marriott Downtown, Louisville, KY. 3 Oct. 2008. Pdf.

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

On December 9, 1881, William Henry Smith (1833-1903) 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. William Henry Smith passed away on November 16, 1903 in Washington, D.C.

See related posts: Allen Mercer Daniel: Howard University School of Law Librarian and Member of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) ; John F.N. Wilkinson and the Law Library of Congress.

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. ; Jefferson, Julius C. “The Black Male Librarian: An Endangered Species.” The National Diversity in Libraries Conference. Louisville Marriott Downtown, Louisville, KY. 3 Oct. 2008. Pdf. ; "William Henry Smith." District of Columbia Deaths and Burials, 1840-1964. FamilySearch.org, n.d. Web. 15 Mar. 2013.