4. Books were so valuable that they were
chained to the shelves.
5.
6. ….”Women’s clubs were crucial to library
development in this country.”
• Watson, Paula D. “Founding Mothers: The Contribution of Women’s
Organizations to Public Library Development in the United States”, Library
Quarterly, Vol. 64, Issue 3, 1994.)
7. Lodi Woman’s Club Public Library
Lodi Wisconsin
Established 1900 - Proudly serving Lodi for 112 years
8. Women’s Clubs recognized for role
• American Library Association credited the
Women’s Clubs of America with having founded
over 75 percent of America's public libraries.
• New Jersey Library Association granted its
“Library Champions Award” to the NJSFWC in
2004 for their role in the establishment of
public libraries in the state, as well as continued
support of libraries.
9.
10. Libraries for the 21st Century
• Public Libraries are translators of
new technologies.
• Public Libraries are community
centers.
• Public Libraries are sustainable.
• Public Libraries are good for
communities.
11. Robert Darnton, Director, Harvard
University Library
• “And the library? It can look like the most
archaic institution of all. Yet its past bodes
well for its future, because libraries were
never warehouses of books. They have always
been and always will be centers of learning.
Their central position in the world of learning
makes them ideally suited to mediate
between the printed and digital modes of
communication.”
12. Doug Baldwin Systems Administrator receives an
award for his excellent service to library
patrons.
13. • “Public libraries are resource rich community
centers freely available to
children, teens, adults and seniors.”
• Nolan Lushington, architect and author,
Libraries Designed for Users: A 21st Century
Guide
14. Plainsboro Public
Library families Princeton Public
enjoying childen’s Library teens sorting
floor books and Adults
attending Program
Plainsboro Public Library Cranbury Public Library
Meeting Room Literacy Stations
15. Quiet space to read is still important
Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
16. Sustainability is the capacity to
endure.
three pillars of sustainability:
• 1. Environmental
• 2. Economic
• 3. Social
17.
18.
19. Public Libraries are about helping
people get information, full access to
this information, no matter what
format, expanding minds, life long
learning and supporting the interests
of the community.
Notas del editor
I would like to start the presentation today with a short over view of the history of libraries.
The scrolls would have been housed like this.
A subscription library (also membership library or independent library) is a library that is financed by private funds either from membership fees or endowments. Unlike a public library, access is often restricted to members.The Library Company of Philadelphia was the first of these libraries, started in 1731 by Benjamin Franklin.
photo courtesy Emily Burrell Nietering1959-1960 photo when the new library desk was donated by the Krainik family. Current and former Lodi Women's Club Free Library staff posed at the desk: (from left) Elda Kohlman, Alice Palmer, Bette Krainik Burrell, Mary Hibbard
Anne H. Redlus (second from left), president of the New Jersey State Federation of Women's Clubs of GFWC, presented a check for $763 to the Cliffside Park Public Library to purchase books. On November 30, 2009, a two-alarm fire damaged books and two offices inside the library.
Where are we today? As a professional librarian, I work in the field and attend annual conferences which helps us plan for the future. I will point out four emerging trends.
Public Libraries will help make this transition possible. Libraries can be the translators, mediators between the different types of new digital technology. Helping with the new literacy – digital literacy in computers classes, and one on one instruction. Professor Darnton from The Case for Books, says “Whatever the future may be, it will be digital.” But goes on to say…. At this point, I want to also say how digital information will expand what the libraries can offer. We are seeing this through what the website can deliver …with a library card on can renew books online, ask reference questions, access databases such as Morning Star or Consumer Reports or the New York Times, full access.
Second trend that is emerging in this century – library as community center
Plainsboro Public Library
Libraries are sustainable. Environmentally; libraries, the green building movement is being incorporated in old and new buildings. Libraries are very green and economical in that they at the very core – a shared resource. Thirdly, Libraries are sustainable because they serve their communities in social ways as well…places to gather, to attend a lecture, join a book group
Libraries are good for communities and local economies – Princeton Public Library- picked the downtown location despite pressure to do otherwise
Libraries can reflect town’s interests and create a sense of community. Examples right here in town:One book Cranbury – year long combined effort with the historical society, encouraging people to read and talk about this book, discussion, activities centered around this book. Marilynn Mullen applied for and received a grant to promote this book. Also: Cranbury Public Library, Doug Baldwin, and Mike Casper are working on a database that we can access through the library website: Historic Images of Cranbury Now Available Online!I am, and I think we all are, very thankful for the past support of the Women’s Clubs of America for helping us develop and maintain this rich, and evolving, community resource. Our goal is to promote literacy and historical preservation, and to foster a sense of community by bringing people together through literature and appreciation of local history.