on December 31 due to disputes with the library board. Under her leadership, the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library built its central branch on Margaret Mitchell Square in downtown Atlanta. Yates saw the state-of-the-art facility through its planning and construction stages and presided at the May 1980 dedication ceremonies. She was the first African American librarian in the country to have a major metropolitan library built during her tenure. She was so concerned about the city receiving a fair deal that she found time to earn a doctoral degree from Atlanta Law School in 1979 so she could understand contracts. Yates expanded library services for the disabled, ethnic groups, and prisoners. She brought the library into the Fulton County Jail, making it the first penal institution in the country with a public library branch. Yates died on June 27, 2006 of pancreatic cancer at the age of 79. References 1927 births Spelman College alumni Clark Atlanta University alumni 2006 deaths American librarians American women librarians People from Atlanta African-American librarians