Opening the Pocket Doors: The Trails and Trials of Miss Edna Huntington

I recently finished processing the library correspondence sub-series of the Brooklyn Historical Society’s (BHS) Institutional archive, which contains almost all the mail library staff received from 1863 to the mid-1990s. There are reference questions, membership acceptances and resignations, correspondence to and from other institutions, RSVPs, and much more. Looking at these records provides insight into the activities of the library, particularly in regard to reference work and collection management practices at LIHS/BHS. Much of the early correspondence is incoming, and there are few records of what LIHS library workers sent in response to its correspondents. However, in 1943 staff began including copies of outgoing mail. These letters gave me a glimpse into the life of Miss Edna Huntington, and I’m dedicating this Photo of the Week to her.

Edna Huntington was born in Greenwich Village in 1895 to Mary and William Huntington, a champion chess player. The family, which also consisted of sons Wilbur and Clifford Huntington, moved to Brooklyn in 1901. Huntington attended P.S. 131 in Brooklyn and later completed Columbia University's Home Study courses in Librarianship. In 1926, she came to LIHS from the Montague Street branch of the Brooklyn Public Library to work under Miss Emma Toedteberg, the society's third librarian. When Toedteberg died in 1935, Huntington took over the position. As head librarian, she curated exhibitions, edited the society’s quarterly journal, managed memberships, performed reference and genealogy work, published a booklet on historical markers and monuments in Brooklyn, cataloged materials, and increased LIHS’s holdings. She was particularly proud of her work expanding the society’s photograph collection. Inspired by the work of Eugene Armbruster, Huntington took over 1500 photographs of Brooklyn. From 1938-1942, she drove around the borough taking photographs, many of which are of buildings before they were demolished. Unfortunately, she had to stop during the second world war when she sold her car due to her inability to get gas.

While the hard work and dedication of Miss Huntington are evident in her correspondence, there’s something else we learn about her through her letters. A recurring theme is Huntington’s desire to leave the city and get out into nature, which is how she often spent her summer vacations. Huntington enjoyed hiking, canoeing, swimming, bird watching, and documenting these activities with her friend Stella O. Kline. Kline was an educator and social worker who served as the executive director of the Union County (New Jersey) Tuberculosis and Health League for 20 years. Starting in 1926, Edna and Stella began traveling together and documenting their excursions in travel logs. These logs contain detailed accounts of what they did, who they met, and the flora/fauna they observed along the way. Over the next 20 years, they’d travel through New England, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick (Canada), the Smoky Mountain region, and Bermuda.

For 34 years, Huntington used her passion for history, genealogy, and photography to serve LIHS and its patrons. She retired in 1960 and passed away five years later at 70 years old. Over 60 years have passed since Miss Huntington was running the show at LIHS, but traces of her can still be found throughout the library. To end this post, I’d like to quote a statement written by former LIHS President Edgerton G. North in honor of Huntington’s retirement:

“During much of this period, she was, in fact, the Long Island Historical Society. She nurtured it, defended it, and preserved it through long periods of adversity and, what is even worse, indifference. Its life was her life. Its welfare her constant concern.”

Sources:

• [Library Correspondence], 1943; Brooklyn Historical Society Institutional Records, ARC.288
• Scrapbook, 1942-1963; Brooklyn Historical Society Institutional Records, ARC.288
• The Long Island Historical Society. “Edna Huntington, 1895-1965.” The Journal of Long Island History, Vol. 5, No. 2, Sept. 1965. 
• Edna Huntington photograph collection, V1974 016; Brooklyn Historical Society.
• Edna Huntington papers and photographs, ARC.044; Brooklyn Historical Society.
• Previous blog posts on Emma Toedteberg and Edna Huntington.

The Brooklyn Historical Society Institutional Archive Project is generously funded by the Leon Levy Foundation. 

Special thanks to Kevina Tidwell for her research assistance and enthusiasm.

Interested in seeing more photos from CBH’s collections? Visit our online image gallery, which includes a selection of our images, or the digital collections portal at Brooklyn Public Library. We look forward to inviting you to CBH in the future to research our entire collection of images, archives, maps, and special collections. In the meantime, please visit our resources page to search our collections. Questions? Our reference staff is available to help with your research! You can reach us at cbhreference@bklynlibrary.org.