National Library Week: Fast Forward

Today marks the last day of National Library Week.  My posts for the past few days featured women who were firsts. They paved the way for this remarkable young librarian--Kimberly Smothers Clayton. 

Ms. Clayton is a modern Renaissance woman, a gifted musician with degrees in music, biology, business, and education, but her love of reading drew her to librarianship. 

She is a Georgia native and her favorite author is Alice Walker. She cites The Third Life of Grange Copeland as her favorite book in Walker's oeuvre.  Just as her predecessors preserved history for future generations, Ms. Clayton does as well. She is a conscientious steward of cultural knowledge for the next generation.

Ms. Clayton has spread her love of reading by also serving as a children's librarian.

Library Chic: National Library Week (via Of Another Fashion)

Of Another Fashion is a rich virtual repository of images of women who once occupied societal margins. Consequently, their sense fashion was also marginalized. Of Another Fashion has scanned the archives, collected family photos, and accepted contributions from readers to amass a collection that will honor women of color and their place in the annals of vintage fashion.

In honor of National Library Week the two women below are trailblazing librarians:

Lucille Baldwin Brown was the first Black public county librarian in Tallahassee, Florida.

In 1924 Vivian Gordon Harsh first African American librarian to work at the Chicago Public Library.

True Fashion Icon: Dorothy Porter Wesley

Library Chic: National Library Week

Dorothy Wesley Porter (1905 - 1955). Photo taken by Carl Van Vechten (1880-1964) in New York, May 23 1951.
From Yale Collection of American Literature, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library. Retrieved from http://beinecke.library.yale.edu/dl_crosscollex/brbldl/oneITEM.asp?pid=2027251&iid=1104674&srchtype= 

Dorothy Porter was the first Black woman to be awarded a Masters of Library Science from Columbia University in 1932. Her first job was at Howard University and she remained there for forty-three years. Porter was tasked with making the Jesse Moorland collection a modern research library.  She created a logistically sound collection that served Howard's students and visiting scholars.  She expanded the collection and authenticated materials with extensive bibliographies. She was responsible for Howard's most prized acquisition, the Spingarn Collection, and the library became the Moorland-Spingarn Research Library. Porter retired in 1973 and Howard University dedicated the “Dorothy B. Porter Reading Room” in her honor.

References:
http://www.howard.edu/msrc/about/HistoryFULL.html
http://www.aaregistry.org/historic_events/view/dorothy-porter-wesley-developer-modern-research-library-black-studies
http://www.nytimes.com/1995/12/20/us/dorothy-porter-wesley-91-black-history-archivist.html

Library Chic: National Library Week, April 8 - 14, 2012

I hate|loathe|despise wearing pants. There are very few stores that tailor pants that can accommodate my ridiculous hip to waist ratio. The Gap's Premium Fit Trousers usually do the trick without spending a fortune in tailoring (but I digress).

Cardigan & Trousers: Gap | Top: Old Navy | Wedge Pumps: Jessica Simpson

Pants are an occupational hazard. Who wants to be in a dress when two little girls come into the library and ask for every book about Cinderella? We scoured the shelves from top to bottom, and sat on the floor between the stacks scanning pages for "authenticity." I wasn't exactly sure what my new friends were looking for, but they soon expanded their search to include any and all princess books.  I was excited because I was ready to pull two of my favorites: The Paper Bag Princess and Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters. The two girls quickly dismissed my suggestions; then, I realized their search criteria -- Disney princesses.

So we regrouped & found every Disney princess book available. It took all I had to keep my mouth shut and remember this was not Mini-Me! NO SOAPBOX RANTS IN PUBLIC PLACES...

The girls and their mother checked out their haul of books. They are extremely blessed with voracious appetites for reading and I was blessed to be a part of their quest for princesses. 

I still hate|loathe|despise wearing pants, possibly even more now.