Constance Hill Marteena, a pioneer for librarians of color, was born on August 24, 1897 in Richmond, Virginia to the late Reubin and Irene Hill.  She was the wife of the late Jerald Milton Marteena. Formerly, Mr. Marteena served as the Dean of Engineering at North Carolina A & T State University. Marteena Hall, located on the university's campus, was named after Mr. Marteena in recognition of his work. Constance Hill Marteena's work  in librarianship started in 1929 when  she served as the Director of Public Information at North Carolina A &T State University. In 1933, she graduated from Hampton Institute Library School, recognized today as Hampton University. Marteena later received her master's degree in library science from the University of Chicago in 1946. She continued to pursue her studies as she completed post graduate work at the Catholic University of America in Washington D.C. During the years of 1937-1967, she worked as a secretary to the President and Director of Public Information of Bennett College. 

She also taught library science courses and in-service summer training at Bennett College to those who worked as teacher-librarians in the state of North Carolina. She served on the editorial board of the Library Service Review, the bulletin of the North Carolina Negro Library Association. Marteena also published articles in the Library Review, an official journal of the North Carolina Library Association. She wrote articles for the New York Times as well as the Greensboro News and Record. She initiated the publication Who’s Who Among Black Librarians in the 1950s. Marteena was also actively engaged in scholarly work, where she published the following:

• Marteena, Constance Hill. The Lengthening Shadow of a Woman: A Biography of Charlotte Hawkins Brown. Hicksville: Exposition, 1977. Print.

• Marteena, Constance H. "Teaching the Student to Help Himself." Library Service Review 1.1 (1948): 8-10. Print.

• Marteena, Constance H. A Bibliographic Technique Illustrated in the Compilation of a Selective Guide to the Literature of Afro-American Women of Achievement. Chicago: University of Chicago, Graduate School, 1946. Print.

To help diversify the field, she recruited librarians of color. Constance Hill Marteena played a key role in the development of the North Carolina Negro Library Association. She became president of the North Carolina Negro Library Association from 1952 until 1954. Under Marteena’s administration the merger of the North Carolina Negro Library Association and the North Carolina Library Association, was completed, ending segregation of professional library organizations in North Carolina. She also served on the Accreditation Committee of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

Written by Marcellaus Joiner

High Point Public Library

Heritage Research Center Supervisor and High Point Museum Archivist

Photo of Constance Hill Marteena. (N.d.). Collection: Constance Hill Marteena. Thomas F. Holgate Digital Library, Bennett College. 21 January 2021