Annie Elizabeth “Bessie” Delany (3 September 1891 – 25 September 1995) was an American civil rights pioneer who was the subject, along with her elder sister Sarah “Sadie” Delany, of The New York Times bestselling oral history, Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters’ First 100 Years, written by journalist Amy Hill Hearth.

Delany had earned a Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) degree from Columbia University in 1923, and was the second black woman licensed to practice dentistry in New York State. With the publication of the book, she became famous at the age of 101.

Delany was the third of ten children born to the Rt. Rev. Henry Beard Delany (1858–1928), the first black person elected Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States, and Nanny (Logan) Delany (1861–1956), an educator. H.B. Delany was born into slavery in St. Mary’s, Georgia. Nanny Logan was born in a community then known as Yak, Virginia, seven miles from Danville.

Bessie Delany was born and raised on the campus of St. Augustine’s School (now University) in Raleigh, North Carolina, where her father was the Vice-Principal and her mother, a teacher and administrator. Delany was a 1911 graduate of the school. In 1918, she followed her sister to New York City. She enrolled at Columbia University, from which she earned her dental degree in 1923. Of 170 students in her graduating class, she was the only black female. She shared a dental office with her brother, Dr. H. B. Delany Jr., at 2305 Seventh Avenue, and later, 2303 Seventh Avenue, in Harlem. Throughout her life, Bessie Delany participated in many protests and marches, and encouraged civil rights organizers to meet at her and her brother’s office.

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Annie Elizabeth Delany

Annie Elizabeth "Bessie" Delany (3 September 1891 – 25 September 1995) was an American civil rights pioneer who was the subject, along with her elder sister Sarah "Sadie" Delany, of The New York Times bestselling oral history, Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years, written by journalist Amy Hill Hearth. Delany had earned a Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) degree from Columbia University in 1923, and was the second black woman licensed to practice dentistry in New York State. With the publication of the book, she became famous at the age of 101. Delany was the third of ten children born to the Rt. Rev. Henry Beard Delany (1858–1928), the first black person elected Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States, and Nanny (Logan) Delany (1861–1956), an educator. H.B. Delany was born into slavery in St. Mary's, Georgia. Nanny Logan was born in a community then known as Yak, Virginia, seven miles from Danville. Bessie Delany was born and raised on the campus of St. Augustine's School (now University) in Raleigh, North Carolina, where her father was the Vice-Principal and her mother, a teacher and administrator. Delany was a 1911 graduate of the school. In 1918, she followed her sister to New York City. She enrolled at Columbia University, from which she earned her dental degree in 1923. Of 170 students in her graduating class, she was the only black female. She shared a dental office with her brother, Dr. H. B. Delany Jr., at 2305 Seventh Avenue, and later, 2303 Seventh Avenue, in Harlem. Throughout her life, Bessie Delany participated in many protests and marches, and encouraged civil rights organizers to meet at her and her brother's office.