Bertha Winborne Edwards: An Icon of Library Black History

Before all public libraries were desegregated, Black librarians were especially critical in providing library services to their communities. They often had to creatively marshal resources, working with modest budgets and collections. One such librarian was Mrs. Bertha Winborne Edwards, (1920-2009), librarian of the Portsmouth Colored Community Library in Virginia for its entire existence, from 1945 – 1963.