Sadie Peterson Delaney
| Sadie Peterson Delaney | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
February 26, 1889 Rochester, New York |
| Died | May 4, 1958 (aged 69) Tuskegee, Alabama |
| Occupation | Librarian |
| Nationality | American |
Sadie Peterson Delaney (1889–1958) was the chief librarian of the Veterans Administration Hospital in Tuskegee, Alabama, for 34 years. She is well known as a pioneer for her work with bibliotherapy.
Sadie Peterson Delaney, daughter of Julia Frances Hawkins Johnson and James Johnson, was born on February 26, 1889, in Rochester, New York. She attended high school in Poughkeepsie, New York, and also spent one year at Miss McGovern’s School of Social Work. She attended college at the College of the City of New York, graduating in 1919. She went on to receive her library training at the New York Public Library School from 1920 to 1921. Delaney had one daughter named Grace with her first husband, Edward Louis Peterson. They divorced in 1924, and she married Rudicel A. Delaney in 1928. Delaney had a heart attack and died in Tuskegee, Alabama, on May 4, 1958.
Delaney continued her work at the New York Public Library after she completed her training. She worked at the 135th Street Branch in Harlem through 1923. She worked diligently to increase the programs available for children of different ethnic backgrounds. She ran story hours, discussion groups, and other events for children. Some of the events were geared specifically toward juvenile delinquents, foreign-born children or blind children. Her interest in working with blind children led her to learn Braille and Moon Code, a system of reading and writing for blind people. She also worked with parents and community elders, helping them to see the value of the library for the children that they worked with at home or in community groups.
While at the New York Public Library, Delaney was integral in the development of an African American collection. She routinely met with African American authors, helping them to connect with other authors and publishers. Delaney often helped arrange artistic programs that included talks by scholars and community leaders such as W.E.B Du Bois, James Weldon Johnson, William H. Ferris, George Edmund Haynes, Hubert Harrison, and Fred Moore. She also established the first African American exhibit of art held in the New York Public Library.
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