She was the founder in 1947 and, for its first 43 years, the curator and tireless champion of the dance collection of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center until her retirement in 1987. She married Dean Leslie Johnson in 1941, while she was working in the public library's music division. He was a graduate student conducting music research and went on to become a music teacher in the city's public schools. She was the elder of two daughters of Charles Oswald, a shipping company clerk, and Jeannette Glenn Oswald. She was preceded in death by her husband, Dean (1981); and sister, Jeanne. She leaves her her daughter, Anne Johnston; son, Charles John Johnson; and four grandchildren.