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Dixie Johnson

Latest Blog Posts

whoever you are

Looking for new favorites that support early reading skills like rhyme, repetition, colors, and numbers? Here is a list of books with diverse representation and inclusive themes for a young audience. 

Periods of self-distancing and isolation can make us feel anxious and BORED. Here are some recommendations for ebooks that help you fill the time with activity or stillness.

In honor of Pride Month and the 50th Anniversary of the Stonewall Riots, I looked at the papers of Larry Romans and news coverage about the Nashville LGBTQ community

Nashville's history with theatre and the performing arts is long and storied. You can find treasure after treasure documenting this history in NPL Special Collections. On May 25, Special Collections is playing its own role in the story.

The Nashville Room has a small exhibit of photographs to celebrate the availability of a new collection documenting the activities of the YWCA Blue Triangle Branch. Come see our resources!

One of our most-utilized resources here in Special Collections is the Nashville Banner clippings: articles about every aspect of Nashville life from the 1950s through the 1990s. In this post, I use Banner clippings to tell you the story of two popular types of night spot entertainment: mechanical bull riding and karaoke!

Exploring the holdings of Main Library’s Special Collections, I stumbled upon a local figure I hadn’t heard of before—Robert Churchwell. Hired by the Nashville Banner in 1950, Churchwell was the first black journalist and full-time reporter for a Southern newspaper.

Every October, the Southern Festival of Books: A Celebration of the Written Word, turns our “it city” into “lit city.” With three days of thoughtful, exciting programming, this event has long been a fall-time favorite, appealing to more than just bookworms. I investigated the roots of this community-building festival using primary and secondary sources from NPL Special Collections.