Because municipalities in the South provided little to no public library service to African Americans through the 1910s, philanthropic efforts often provided their only access to library books.[1] James J. H. Gregory, a white seed salesman who had seen the plight of southern blacks during his time as a Union Civil War soldier, recognized the harm done when they were denied access to public libraries;[2] Gregory believed everyone should have access to "character-forming books".[3] In addition to his other philanthropy, Gregory sought to send books to "schools intended for the children of the poor, particularly the Negroes and the mountain white people".[4]
In cooperation with George Sherwood Dickerman, Gregory solicited suggestions in 1908 for appropriate titles from black colleges and universities, as well as Southern public libraries that had collections for African Americans.[4] Gregory selected and purchased each of the 2,000 titles in the collection and stamped the books "Marblehead Libraries"; the libraries began circulating in 1910.[5][6]
The Marblehead Libraries consisted of 60 separate libraries with approximately 48 titles each; they were available to any institution or individual that would agree to be responsible for the collection.[7] Each collection could be kept for up to one year and then exchanged for a different collection.[7] The program was administered by Atlanta University, which encouraged circulation and kept track of the collections.[4][8] The libraries visited black schools and organizations throughout the South.[9]
Gregory died February 20, 1910, shortly after funding the Marblehead Libraries.[10] The program continued for twenty years with the administrative funds provided by Gregory.[7]