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Uncover the incredible life story of the first director of The Morgan Library & Museum and the secret she hid!
If you have ever visited The Morgan Library and Museum, you may have seen a bust of Belle da Costa Greene on display inside the East Room of the library. It's easy to overlook this artifact while distracted by the room's opulent decor and stacks of rare books, but many of those books wouldn't be there without Greene. For more than forty years, Greene dedicated herself to building and curating Morgan's spectacular collection, first as his personal librarian and then as the first director of the library when it became a public institution. This month, Greene's life's work is highlighted in a retrospective exhibition, Belle da Costa Greene: A Librarian's Legacy, part of the library's year-long centenary celebration.
If you are an Untapped New York member at the Insider tier or higher, you can join an exclusive guided tour of the exhibit on November 14th!
Not a member yet? Join today and get 10 days free. Registration for this tour opens on October 31st at 12 pm ET.
Get an inside perspective on the first-ever retrospective exhibit dedicated to J.P. Morgan's personal librarian!
Greene was born Belle Marion Greener in Washington, D.C. in 1879. She was the daughter of a racial justice activist Richard T. Greener—the first Black graduate of Harvard College—and musician and educator Genevieve Ida Fleet Greener. Despite her father's prominence and the family's tight-knight bonds within their Black community, Greene, her mother, and her siblings would hide their true race later in life.
Greene's parents separated when she was 16. In an effort to help her children navigate a deeply segregated nation, Genevieve changed their last name from Greener to Greene and distanced the family from their Black heritage. Belle adopted the middle name "da Costa" and spent the rest of her life passing as white, claiming to be of Portuguese descent. Documents uncovered at the Morgan in 2021 suggest that J.P. Morgan may have known the truth about Greene's racial identity, but it had no bearing on his trust in her abilities as a librarian. No one can say for sure whether Morgan knew or not.
As an aspiring librarian, Greene took the Fletcher Course in Library Economy at Amherst College Summer School. She was working in the Princeton University Library when Morgan hired her as his personal librarian in 1905. For the next eight years, Greene managed, documented, and grew Morgan's collection into one of the most prominent libraries in the world. She traveled across the globe to attend auctions, acquire new artifacts, and forge relationships with international dealers and collectors. Before women even had the right to vote, Greene became a formidable figure in her industry and a vibrant part of New York society.
Greene acquired countless remarkable works for Morgan's collection. One of the most important early acquisitions she made was that of Thomas Malory’s Le Morte d’Arthur (1485), printed by English publisher William Caxton on the earliest form of a printing press introduced in Britain. The Morgan now has the third-largest collection of Caxtons in the world. This tricky deal was described in a New York Times feature about Greene published in 1912. At just 26 years old, the librarian was for her intelligence, tenacity, and business savvy.
Upon Morgan's death in 1913, Greene continued working for the institution under his son, J.P. Morgan Jr.. Morgan's heir transformed the private collection into a public institution with Greene spearheading the charge. She served as the library's director until retiring in 1948, just two years before her death at the age of 71.
Throughout her tenure, Greene always sought for the library's treasures to be accessible. She mounted exhibits at various institutions, mentored colleagues, facilitated loans, and led ambitious photographic services. Though she was passionate about gaining visibility for the Morgan's collection, she was protective of her own private life. Before she died, Greene burned most of her diaries and personal correspondence.
In the exhibit, Belle da Costa Greene: A Librarian's Legacy, displays of medieval manuscripts, rare printed books, archival records, and photographs create a portrait of Greene as a librarian, scholar, curator, and cultural executive. Though there are some secrers Greene took to the grave, visitors can get to know her through the objects she acquired and the initiatives she led.
Registration for this tour opens on October 31st at 12 pm ET
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