Your Library Connection

April ’05 Library Connection Article
Libraries:  Revisiting the Past and Preparing for the Future

More than 170 public libraries in Iowa are new or have additions and renovations as of the last 15 years.  You don’t have to drive very far to see evidence of all the improvements to public libraries.  Some of the communities close to us with updated libraries are Anamosa, Cedar Falls, Denver, Dike, Dyersville, Dysart, Elgin, Eldora, Fayette, Grundy Center, Hiawatha, Hudson, Jesup, Manchester, Marion, Strawberry Point, Sumner, Vinton, Waterloo, Waverly, and West Union

Additions to the list are those currently working on a library building project…Aurora, Dunkerton, and Oelwein are a few.  The Independence Public Library Board and Staff are pleased to join the list of those currently working on a library building project.  With the city council having voted in support of a new public library building and promising a great start to the building fund, we are off and running.  Our library was progressive in the 1800s and will be progressive again!

Independence was the first library in Iowa not to charge patrons when they borrowed books!  After the Independence Free Library burned in 1874, the library leased rooms on the second floor of the Morse Building (Buchanan County Title & Loan Company) until the Munson Memorial Library was built.  Perry Munson was very interested in education, especially of underprivileged boys and girls.  He donated money for a library and an industrial school for boys and girls.  When the present Munson building was completed in 1895 the industrial schools, the library, and a YMCA were accommodated by the building.  The cost of the building was $25,000.  Munson followed in the footsteps of the famous millionaire and philanthropist, Andrew Carnegie, who gave $56 million to libraries between 1881 to 1917 for 2,509 libraries in the English-speaking world.  He was a Scottish immigrant to America who earned his way from rags to riches in the steel business.  He wanted to extend the opportunity to succeed to others, and knew that libraries were (and are) a primary means of self-education.   

Why the sudden surge in new and renovated library buildings?  When many libraries were built in the late 1800s or early 1900s through Carnegie or wonderful people like our own Perry Munson, their main purpose was to house books that could be borrowed by area residents.  This is still one of the purposes of libraries today; however, libraries today have taken on many other roles as well.  For example, the advent of computers has added a whole new facet to libraries.  Public libraries are a link in the educational infrastructure in a community.  Part of this role is to provide access to information and ideas through the Internet as well as other resources and programming.  Some of the programming our library has recently provided has been Author Visits, Summer Reading Programs, Computer Classes, Open Mic Night, Get Caught Reading contests, Storytimes, the Bovee and Heil Concert, Puppet Shows, a Storytelling Festival, and others.  We have used the library to hold a few of these events, but we have also used four other locations to accommodate these programs because of space issues.  Another role of many public libraries is to provide a community living room.  It is a place to meet others, read newspapers or magazines in a comfortable area, do research online, study and do homework, chat with friends, plan a project, gather information, or learn from a program like the ones previously mentioned.  Many libraries now offer materials in formats that were not available in the 1800s and early 1900s.  Formats offered are videos, DVDs, music CDs, books on tape and CD, and computer software.  It has also become common to offer puzzles, toys, and character-shaped cake pans for checkout in recent years.  Books, though still extremely important to the library, are not the only thing available at your library.  Last, but not least, libraries should be accessible to everyone.  Handicap accessibility is typically a primary goal when updating or building new public libraries.  With all the advancements and changes it is evident why our city and so many across our state and country have had the need for an expansion in public library facilities. 

The Independence Library Building Committee is proud to take on the responsibility of working on a building project with the goal of providing a library which will meet the current and future needs of the Independence community!  If you would like to give input or help in any way, please contact one of the co-chairs of the building committee, Dave Iverson 334-4479 or Mary Stevenson 334-2866, or feel free to contact me (Laura Blaker) at the library 334-2470 or lblaker@indytel.com. 

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