The present-day Tennessee State University was established by a 1909 Act of the Tennessee State legislature. Tennessee Agricultural and Industrial State Normal School began operations on June 19. 1912. At that time, the Library was housed in a small room in the old Administration Building and consisted of a meager collection of resources. As the institution grew, so did the Library.

By 1922, the institution was offering bachelor’s degrees, and in 1925, Mrs. Martha M. Brown, a member of the first faculty, took charge of the two-room library. In 1926, she received her degree in library services and secured a grant from the Rosenwald Fund to assist in constructing a separate library building. The new building, erected at a cost of $66,000, boasted shelf space for 25,000 volumes and seating for 150 library users. By 1930, the Library holdings had expanded, and the staff had grown to include two full-time and six part-time employees.

Another milestone was reached in 1940 when the State Board of Education approved courses in Library Service training designed for librarians and part-time librarians in the high schools of Tennessee, as well as for junior and senior college students who desired a minor in Library Service. In 1945, Ms. Lois H. Daniel became the second head librarian, and in 1947 the State Legislature appropriated $667,239 for the expansion and renovation of the existing library building. The new facility accommodated 120,000 volumes and provided seating for 850 users, including 65 individual study carrels. Ten study rooms for graduate professors adjoined the graduate study room located on the third floor. The T-shaped Georgian-style building was dedicated on November 23 and named the Martha M. Brown Memorial Library. The staff at the time numbered four librarians and five professional assistants.

In 1976, the Library moved into its new $2.4 million building, which was named the Martha M. Brown and Lois H. Daniel Memorial Library. The building, with 82,000 square feet of space, included special study and research facilities for faculty and graduate students and a Special Collections Room to house University historical archives, theses, dissertations, and other special materials. The landmark merger between Tennessee State University and the University of Tennessee at Nashville became effective July 1, 1979, combining two libraries and staff. The library in the Avon Williams building supports the College of Business, the College of Public Service, and the Speech Pathology and Audiology Department.

Throughout its history, Tennessee State University has ambitiously evolved from a normal school to a major land-grant, urban, and comprehensive historically black university with a significant focus on research. The Martha M. Brown and Lois H. Daniel Memorial Library have kept pace with that growth. It has a Multimedia Learning Commons with iMacs, Huddle Rooms for collaborative learning, a Makerspace with 3D printers, and an institutional repository that provides open access to publishing and archival management of the university history. Collaboration with faculty in the classroom is facilitated via its embedded librarian and library liaison programs. The TSU Libraries and Media Center will always play a vital role in Tennessee State University’s mission, which is embodied in its motto: Think, Work, Serve.

For a full chronology, detailing the development of the current Libraries & Media Center, visit the History page.