Gadsden County Public Library System

The Gadsden County Public Library System is a public library system in rural Northwest Florida that serves the residents of Quincy, Havana, Chattahoochee, Gretna, Midway, and Greensboro. The library system's mission is "to serve the diverse informational and recreational needs of the people of Gadsden County, to provide quality service and programs in a comfortable setting, and to keep the public aware of these resources". They support this mission through their three locations and a bookmobile that serves the entire county.[1]

Locations

The Gadsden County Public Library System consists of three locations and one county wide bookmobile. The main library is in Quincy, with branch locations in Chattahoochee and Havana.[1]

NameAddress
William A. "Bill" McGill Public Library732 South Pat Thomas Parkway Quincy, FL 32351
Cowen Public Library300 Maple Street Chattahoochee, FL 32324
Havana Public Library203 E. Fifth Avenue Havana, FL 32333

History

The library system described itself as a 25-year-old system in 2009. Gadsden County, however, has a long history of municipal and subscription public library service, dating back at least to the early 1900s.[2]: 16 

One predecessor of the current library system was the Quincy Library, listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, which was opened in 1931 in the former Quincy Academy by the Quincy Women's Library Club and which operated until at least 1973.[3] The Quincy Women's Library Club would be the main provider of library services in the county through its subscription library, along with a small library in Chattahoochee.[2] In 1979, the Board of County Commissioners would vote to create a public library system. The Women's Club would donate their library to the county, leasing the former Academy building to them to ease the transfer. The public library would officially open in 1980, after the Academy building underwent some renovations. The small library in Chattahoochee would be signed over to the county, it would go through some renovations before re-opening as a branch library. The county would also lease a small storefront in Havana and would open a new branch library in this location in April of 1980.[2]

The Quincy library would move locations in 1987, from the Academy building to a downtown location shared with a branch of the Tallahassee Community College (TCC), serving both as a public library and a branch library for the college.[2] After the TCC moved from the location, the library would go on to share the space with the Sheriff's Office and the County Justice Complex. In 2006, the main library location would move to the newly built McGill Library. The Havana branch would move to a larger rented location in 1990, remaining there until a new library location was built in 2003. The Chattahoochee branch would be renovated in 1998 remaining in its original location until 2007, when a new library building was created for it.[2]

Services

A library card is free to residents of Gadsden County, and to those employed there. Library privilege lasts four years, and it is free to renew it. Applicants must provide photo identification and proof of residency. A parent or guardian must sign a statement of responsibility for children 17 and under. If a library account is inactive for four years then it will be deleted from the system unless there are fines attached to the account. A lost library card can be replaced for a $1.00 fee.[4]

In addition to books, audiobooks, and DVDs, downloadable materials are available via services such as Axis 360, Tumblebooks, and Book Flix.[5] Free wifi is available in the libraries, as well as public access to computers, meeting rooms, and self-service copy machines. The library promotes programs and events for adults and for youth throughout the year, including computer classes. LVA-Gadsden, Inc., is housed by the library and offers basic tutoring, ESL, computer literacy,[6] and GED instruction.

References
  1. "Gadsden County Public Library: Library Information". www2.youseemore.com. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
  2. Linda R. Most (2009). "The Rural Public Library as Place in North Florida: A Case Study". Florida State University Libraries. Retrieved November 23, 2016.
  3. Rodney Little (October 1973). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Quincy Library / Quincy Academy". National Park Service. Retrieved November 23, 2016. with photo from 1973
  4. "Gadsden County Public Library: How do I get a library card?". www2.youseemore.com. Retrieved 2016-11-23.
  5. "Gadsden County Public Library: eBooks". www2.youseemore.com. Retrieved 2016-11-23.
  6. "Gadsden County, FL / Library Services". www.gadsdengov.net. Retrieved 2016-11-23.

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