Bibliophile, Belle da Costa Greene

a book review: A black woman, the daughter of a black activist and the personal librarian of Mr. J.P. Morgan, passed as white.

A bibliophile is a person who loves and collects books, but Belle da Costa Greene was much more than that. She was an art collector, socialite, historian, librarian, and director of the Pierpont Morgan Library, now known as the Morgan Library and Museum. Even with all of her knowledge, and work experience, she would have been tossed out on the street if she had walked into the office of Mr. J.P. Morgan and disclosed her racial identity.

As a financier and banker during the early 1900s, John Pierpont Morgan invested in many major American corporations, influencing the economy and policies. One of his prized possessions was his personal library, in which he collected art, rare historical books, manuscripts, and artifacts worth millions of dollars. With his great desire to own the wealthiest library in the world, he chose the most unexpected person to run this operation. His auction competitors, middle-aged conservative white men, might have expected Morgan to send one of their own to…