Sweet Auburn in Atlanta in Fulton County, Georgia — The American South (South Atlantic)
Auburn Avenue Branch
Auburn Avenue
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, November 20, 2021
1. Auburn Avenue Branch Marker
Alice Dugged Carey, the first principal of Morris Brown University (now College), along with Dr. W.E.B. DuBois and others led the fight to gain a library for African-Americans. The main library Downtown was segregated and there was no library facility for African-Americans until the Auburn Branch opened in 1923. The Library was a landmark in the community and its weekly children's reading hour was one of the most popular activities.
In the 1930s, Annie McPheeters became head of the branch and worked to acquire material by and about African-Americans. The Auburn Avenue Collection served as the basis for the West Hunter Street Branch and the Black Studies Collection at the Downtown Branch, later renamed the Samuel Williams Collection. The same collection serves as the core of the Auburn Avenue Research Library, located at the west end of Auburn Avenue.
Caption: The Auburn Branch of the Carnegie Library of Atlanta, pictured circa 1935, opened in 1921 and closed in 1959. It was the city's first public 1brary branch for African Americans. (Marker Number 12.)
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans
this page online
Location. 33° 45.326′ N, 84° 22.607′ W. Marker is in Atlanta, Georgia, in Fulton County. It is in Sweet Auburn. Marker is at the intersection of Auburn Avenue NE and Hilliard Street NE, on the right when traveling east on Auburn Avenue NE. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Atlanta GA 30312, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Alice Dugged Cary (here, next to this marker); Religious and Fraternal Institutions (a few steps from this marker); Prince Hall Masonic Building (a few steps from this marker); Wheat Street Baptist Church (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Dobbs Plaza (about 300 feet away); Soul Food Row (about 300 feet away); Haugabrooks Funeral Home (about 300 feet away); Cox Brothers Funeral (about 500 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Atlanta.
Also see . . .
1. Auburn Branch Library, Atlanta, Georgia (1921-1959). BlackPast article by Matthew Griffis, posted February
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, November 20, 2021
2. Auburn Avenue Branch Marker
2. History. History of the Auburn Avenue Research Library, from its origins in the Auburn Avenue Carnegie Library to its current facility, built in 1994. (Submitted on November 22, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)
Unknown / Public domain, circa 1906
3. Alice Dugged Carey (1859-1941)
The educator as pictured in Sara J. Duncan's "Progressive Missions in the South and Addresses with Illustrations and Sketches of Missionary Workers and Ministers and Bishops' Wives," 1906.
via Georgia State University Library/Fair use, November 23, 1948
4. Annie McPheeters (1902-1994)
She headed Atlanta Public Library's Auburn Avenue Branch, maintaining the Negro History Collection there and later at the West Hunter Branch. After retiring from the public library, she became the first African American librarian at Georgia State University (1966-1971).
via Atlanta Fulton Public Library System
5. Auburn Avenue Carnegie Library
The branch library, Atlanta's first for African Americans, opened on July 25, 1921. It closed in 1959 and was demolished the following year.
Credits. This page was last revised on February 8, 2023. It was originally submitted on November 21, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 88 times since then and 8 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on November 21, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on November 22, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
