Penn Libraries put Marian Anderson back on the world stage | Penn Current

There are 525 boxes that contain the personal diaries, programs, and scrapbooks of the world-renowned singer Marian Anderson, all bequeathed to Penn. Most of the cartons are in a storage facility in New Jersey, but they will soon be on their way back to campus.

A new grant will allow the Penn Libraries to digitize portions of the collection, making the personal papers of the Philadelphia-born contralto available to the public. Also included will be recordings of personal interviews and home studio performances.

“This will enable scholars and students who are interested in Marian Anderson to have access to materials that no one really has had access to,” says David McKnight, director of the Rare Book and Manuscript Library in the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts.