Howard County Public Library
Howard County Library System, established in 1940, is a public library system located in central Maryland. HCLS delivers equal opportunity in education to students of all ages in Howard County, Maryland.
Branches
- HCLS Administrative Branch, 9411 Frederick Road Ellicott City, Maryland 21042
- HCLS Central Branch, 10375 Little Patuxent Pkwy Columbia, MD 21044 [1]
- HCLS East Columbia Branch, 6600 Cradlerock Way Columbia, MD 21045 [2]
- HCLS Elkridge Branch, 6540 Washington Blvd Elkridge, MD 21075 [3]
- HCLS Glenwood Branch, 2350 State Route 97 Cooksville, MD 21723 [4]
- HCLS Miller Branch & Historical Center, 9421 Frederick Rd Ellicott City, MD 21042 [5]
- HCLS Savage Branch & STEM Education Center, 9525 Durness Lane Laurel, MD 20723 [6]
History
Fundraising for the first county library was started in 1938 by the Women's Civic Club "Friends of the Library". On October 11, 1940 the first library opened in a portable building in Ellicott City in a ceremony with a speech by Baltimore Judge Joseph N. Ulman.[7] It moved shortly after to a rented building above a meat store on Main street. At this time James A. Clark, Sr. petitioned the county commissioners to add two cents to the tax rate to fund the library.[8] In 1952 a flood washed out the library. In 1960 the library moved to Frederick Road and St. Johns Lane. George Morrision funded a new library in 1962 in the corner of the historic family owned Gray Rock slave plantation was donated by Charles E. Miller who was attempting to create a housing subdivision. In 1965, a bookmobile serviced stops at Savage, Glenwood, and Glenelg. In [9] The Savage Branch opens in the historic Carroll Baldwin Hall in 1966.[10] In 1968, the Rouse Company signed an agreement to have the Howard County Library System lease one of its buildings for five years at an expense of $5,511 a year with the Columbia Association property assessments paying for furnishings.[11] On January 4, 1981 the $4 million Central Branch opened in Columbia, becoming a facility with the 2nd highest number of items loaned in the county at the time with a computer system named "Gandalf".[12] In 1984, the Miller Branch gets a $3million dollar expansion from 7000sqft to 22,000sqft. and the Central Branch deploys two microcomputers available to residents who take a two-hour training lesson.[13] In 1989, $1million is budgeted to buy land for the $6.3 million 33,600sqft East Columbia Branch to be opened in 1991.[14] In 2011, a new 63,000sqft HCLS Miller Branch & Historical Center replaces the adjacent 22,000sqft facility next to it. In 2013, Howard County Library System was named 2013 Library of the Year by Gale and Library Journal.[15] In July 2014, the HCLS Savage Branch & STEM Education Center completes a $6.1 million renovation.[16]
Borrowing and Statistics
- 1965 - 13,688, 1 Bookmobile
- 1983 - 1,508,000, 88 Employees, 3 Bookmobiles
- 1995 - 2,600,000, 13.1 book per resident ratio, 6 branches[17]
- 2012 - 7,100,000, 300 Employees, $18,978,950 operating budget.
See also
References
- ↑ Coordinates: 39°12′42″N 76°51′30″W / 39.21167°N 76.85833°W
- ↑ Coordinates: 39°11′26″N 76°50′49″W / 39.19056°N 76.84694°W
- ↑ Coordinates: 39°12′04″N 76°44′11″W / 39.20111°N 76.73639°W
- ↑ Coordinates: 39°18′23″N 77°01′21″W / 39.30639°N 77.02250°W
- ↑ Coordinates: 39°16′22″N 76°50′23″W / 39.27278°N 76.83972°W
- ↑ Coordinates: 39°07′56″N 76°50′09″W / 39.13222°N 76.83583°W
- ↑ "Flashbacks". The Baltimore Sun. 17 October 1990.
- ↑ James A Clark Jr. Jim Clark Soldier Farmer Legislator. p. 2.
- ↑ "County Library - Project of the Community". The Times. 31 March 1965.
- ↑ Howard County Historical Society. Images of America Howard County. p. 102.
- ↑ "Columbia Greets Its New Library". The Baltimore Sun. 2 May 1968.
- ↑ R.H.Melton (13 July 1983). "Book-Lovers Flock To Howard County's Up-to-Date Library". The Washington Post.
- ↑ "Free Use of Computers At Howard County Library System". The Washington Post. 23 February 1984.
- ↑ Lisa Leff (4 February 1988). "Howard County Capital Wish List Includes $596 Million in Projects". The Washington Post.
- ↑ John N. Berry III (5 June 2013). "Library of the Year: Howard County Library System, MD". Gale Library Journal.
- ↑ "HCLS Savage Branch & STEM Education Center Reopens with $6.1 Million Facelift The renovation project took a year and a half". Retrieved 24 June 2014.
- ↑ Gracia Sevilla (19 December 1994). "Library's Popularity Speaks Volumes About Howard County". The Washington Post.