Preserving the history of America's first Black library

Founded in 1905 under segregation, Louisville's Western Library helped lay the foundation of Black librarianship in the U.S. The oldest library in the U.S. run independently by and for African Americans, Western was also the earliest training ground of Black librarians from around the South. Yet for years, the history of Western and its pioneering first librarian, Thomas Fountain Blue, was little known even by locals, says Western's manager, Natalie Woods. Ms. Woods, whose life was transformed by the history of the library, has been working to preserve it for posterity. In this video, we dive into scenes from Western's past, as well as Ms. Woods' preservation work today.
Over the Christian Science Monitor’s 110-year history, we’ve built a legacy of high-quality, distinctive journalism because we recognize that news is more than facts. It’s the story of how we are each trying to make our homes, communities, and nations better. What matters are the values and ideals that drive us, not just the who, what, when, and where of the news. Visit us online at: www.csmonitor.com/daily
Subscribe to our CZcams channel: / csmonitor100
Follow us on Facebook: / christiansciencemonitor
Follow us on Twitter: / csmonitor