By Mary Davis
In 1913, Mary F. Stafford started the first Pack Horse Library in Paintsville, Kentucky, supported by local coal baron John C. C. Mayo. When Mayo died the following year, the funding died with him and the program ended.
In the midst of the Great Depression, the WPA (Works Progress Administration) under the Second New Deal provided government work for the unemployed. Elizabeth Fullerton worked in the women’s and professional projects at the WPA and decided to resurrect Stafford’s concept. A Leslie County Presbyterian minister provided his library if the WPA would fund personnel to take the books to people who couldn’t get to a library. This initiated the new Pack Horse Library. The Pack Horse Library Project was established under the WPA in 1935. By 1936, eight of these libraries were in operation.
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| WPA Librarians |
Pack Horse Librarians, mostly women, were hired to go into the remote parts of the Appalachian Mountains to deliver books to the residents who didn’t have access to a library. They carried approximately 100 books with them. These brave ladies (a.k.a. “Book Women”) traveled 50-100 miles a week by horse or mule and, sometimes, on foot or rowboat for $28 a month. Often, the only income their families had.
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| Librarian on Horseback |
However, the money from this program only covered salaries, so books had to be obtained by other means. Many were the old or damaged books and periodicals larger libraries no longer had use for, as well as out-of-date text books from schools and churches.
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The donated books would be repaired and readied by the head librarian at the local headquarters for delivery to individual homes and schoolhouses. Resourceful librarians made card catalogs out of cheese boxes and bent old license plates into bookends.
In the beginning, there were 800 books for 5-10,000 people, not nearly enough to go around. The residents were hungry for reading material, so librarians put together scrapbooks of newspaper and magazine clippings as well as anecdotes and local recipes. These became so popular, that the patrons made some of their own with family history, child-rearing advice, recipes, and sewing patterns to be circulated by the Pack Horse Librarians. Some 200 different books had been created by librarians and patrons.
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| Librarian at a School |
PTAs and women’s clubs helped to raise funds for new books, and communities had book drives and open houses. The program grew to 30 libraries, servicing 100,000 patrons. In addition to distributing books, the librarians provided reading lessons, would read aloud to people, and brought new ideas to these isolated areas. As outsiders, they were sometimes not welcomed.
By 1936, the collection had grown to around 33,000 books that were circulated to about 57,000 families. There was generally a one-week lending period.
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| Book Woman Reading to Man |
One book woman guided her horse across cliffs to get to her patrons. Another walked her eighteen-mile route after her mule died. And yet another walked beside her mule because it was old. The librarians had to furnish their own horse or mule, which were often leased. The Pack Horse Librarian project continued until 1943 when the government funding was withdrawn.
Whether by horse, mule, on foot, or boat, these brave pack horse librarians never wavered from their goal.
Happy Reading!
UNPUZZLING THE PAST
1990s Cozy Mystery
Written by Mary L. Chase, Edited By Mary Davis
When secrets and lies are uncovered, will Mar be able to put the pieces together to learn the truth? A year after the death of her mom, Margaret Ross discovers the proverbial skeleton in the closet. Most families have a secret or two. Some are best left alone. Others need to be brought to the light of day to heal old wounds. With the help of her best friend, a lawyer, and a handsome doctor, Mar determines to hunt down all the facts. When she does, will she find what she’s searching for? Or should she let this puzzle R.I.P.?
Sources
https://settlementlibrary.blogspot.com/2009/12/pack-horse-library-project.html
