Hope Rode

The Promise of the Packhorse Librarians

A TRUE TALE WITH

A CHERRY ON TOP

Union Square Kids

pub. 8.12.2025

48 pages

Ages 4 - 8

Author: Lauren H. Kerstein

   Illustrator: Becca Stadtlander

Characters: Kentucky Packhorse Librarians

Overview:

"Following the Great Depression, literacy rates in the country had dwindled, and education and opportunities were harder to come by, especially in areas like rural Appalachia. But still, there was a dream: a vision of a nation in which reading was accessible to all—even those in the most remote places. 

The Packhorse Library project of the 1930s and 1940s called upon Kentucky women to make that vision a reality and rise to the difficult and demanding job of delivering books on horseback. The Packhorse librarians were brave, steadfast, and resilient. For years, the women endured rough terrain, harsh conditions, and exhaustion. And with each book delivered and reading lesson taught, the librarians ushered in a new era for Kentuckians."

Tantalizing taste:

"Visit after visit,

librarians wove books and stories into

the fabric of their neighbors' lives.

And as literacy FLOURISHED,

new ideas did too.

Though they might travel for hours without seeing another ...

nature's hymns provided a constant companion.

WIND WHISTLED.

BIRDS SANG.

CREEKS BURBLED.

Hearts rose with each steadying beat.

The librarian packed up to go."

And something more: Who were the Packhorse librarians?

"By 1939, more than thirty women rode horses or mules (that they had to rent or borrow) over assigned trails to deliver books to schools and homes in the communities in which they lived. Roughly fourteen rural libraries had been established. Many women were married and raising children alone because their husbands had left to find work. It was up to the women to support themselves and their families."

What impact did the Packhorse Library Project have?

"The Packhorse Library Project helped thousand of families learn to read. This led to new skills, jobs, and hope during a dark time. In 1937, circulation had reached 60,000 books per month. Packhorse librarians visited 26,000 families and 155 public schools.

This powerful program even inspired Kentucky Representative Carl D. Perkins to request the first federal funding for public libraries. As a former one-room schoolhouse teacher, he’d received life-changing visits from Packhorse librarians.

With tenacity, courage, and compassion, Packhorse librarians changed lives one book at a time."