The Story of J.P. Morgan’s Personal Librarian, Belle da Costa Greene

Belle da Costa Greene, pastel portrait by Paul César Helleu, circa 1913. Public Domain

“The ancient librarian is always pictured as having a gray beard and as wearing a skull cap. But here is one with a vivacious laugh, with brown eyes and rosy cheeks, who speaks delectable French, and who picks up a musty tome as gracefully as a butterfly alights on a dusty leaf.” These were the words that the New York Times used in 1912 to describe Belle da Costa Greene, the personal librarian of J.P. Morgan and, later, the first director of the Morgan Library.

The Morgan Library & Museum celebrates its centenary this year, and the museum is using this occasion to highlight the career of its unconventional inaugural director. She was a vivacious young woman whose work was integral to the institution’s founding and flourishing. The major exhibition currently gracing the gilded halls of the museum tells the story of Greene’s life and work.

Uncovering the life story of Belle da Costa Greene is difficult because the librarian changed her identity in her early years and burned her personal papers before her death. Still, researchers have pieced together some facts about this remarkable woman’s journey from obscurity to the peak of New York society.

A Change of Identity

Belle da Costa Greene. Morgan Library & Museum

She was born Belle Marion Greener in Washington in 1879. Her mother was Genevieve Ida Fleet and her father was Richard Theodore Greener, a black graduate of Harvard University. Her birth certificate, which was discovered in 1999, was marked with a “C,” identifying her as “colored,” though she spent most of her life passing for white due to her light skin.

Greene’s parents separated and later divorced in the 1890s, at which time Genevieve and the children changed their last name from “Greener” to “Greene” to further distance themselves from Richard.

Richard Greener refused to support his children beyond the age of 18, so Greene couldn’t afford to attend college. Instead, she got a job at the Princeton University library, where her love of rare books was ignited. Her charming manner and knowledge of history and literature impressed a nephew of J.P. Morgan, who brought the bright young woman to his uncle’s attention.

Morgan took to the young lady at once, appointing her as his private librarian, with the job of sorting through and organizing his jumble of rare books and manuscripts. He also made her his agent, attending overseas auctions and purchasing further items for the collection. She proved highly adept at driving bargains in the auction room, and took advantage of these trips abroad to deepen her knowledge of books and art.

Still in her 20s, a fashionable and fetching young woman in a position typically occupied by dusty old men, Greene attracted much attention. Alongside her erudition and connection to a financial titan of the day, Greene’s sparkling personality, quick wit, and presence on the New York party circuit made her a subject of newspapers of the time—one of which even called her “the cleverest woman in the country.”

A Librarian for All People

Though at the time she was still working for a private collector, Greene vehemently argued in 1911 for the importance of public collections of rare scholarly materials that could make reference material available to everyone. She also castigated the art world for raising the prices on certain items, making them harder for public institutions to afford. In a New York Times article, she said, “My point is that there are certain books which have a standard value and which are necessities to the student for reference. ... When the price of these volumes is raised, you injure the general public.” She determined to work for the widespread accessibility of rare books.

East library of the Morgan Library & Museum, in New York. Mike Peel/CC BY-SA 4.0

An event in 1924 allowed Greene to fulfill this professional mission: After the death of J.P. Morgan, his son decided to turn his father’s collection into a public institution, naming Greene as director. She fulfilled this role as librarian and curator with great skill for 24 years, transforming the Morgan Library into an international center for research and scholarship that included lectures and exhibits. So popular was the library, that, in its early days, hopeful visitors had to stay on a waiting list for months.

Greene continued to travel abroad, adding to the collection until her declining health made it impossible. She retired from her distinguished post in 1948 and passed away in 1950.

An exhibit to mark her retirement and also the 25th anniversary of the library opening to the public was held at the library in 1949. That celebration is now echoed in 2024 by the museum’s current exhibit, which aims to tell the story of Greene’s life and her pivotal role at the esteemed library. It features many items from the collection, including medieval manuscripts, portraits, and rare books, through which the museum reveals Greene’s legacy—the legacy of one of the most important librarians in American history.

To learn more about the exhibit, visit TheMorgan.org 

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