Worcester Public Library

Worcester Public Library (formerly known as the "Worcester Free Public Library"[1]) is a public library in downtown Worcester, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1859 when local resident John Green donated his personal library to the city for public use. In 2004, the Worcester Library Foundation was established to raise funds and promote the library.[2] In fiscal year 2009, the city of Worcester spent 1.14% ($4,817,006) of its budget on the library—some $26 per person.[3]

Worcester Public Library
Worcester Public Library, 2014
42.2604°N 71.8004°W / 42.2604; -71.8004
LocationWorcester, Massachusetts, United States
TypePublic library
Established1859 (1859)
Other information
WebsiteWorcester Public Library

Subscription databases

As of 2021, the Worcester Public Library provides access to the following databases for its patrons:[4]

  • American Ancestors
  • Ancestry.com
  • A to Z Databases
  • BookFlix
  • Boston Globe
  • Britannica
  • Chilton Auto Repair
  • Consumer Reports
  • Freegal Music
  • Foundation Directory Online
  • Gale Databases
  • Gale Academic Onefile
  • Gale Academic Onefile Select
  • Gale Business: Entrepreneurship
  • Gale E-Reference Titles
  • Gale in Context: Biography
  • Gale in Context: Elementary
  • Gale in Context: Global Issues
  • Gale in Context: Opposing Viewpoints
  • Gale in Context: Science
  • Gale in Context: U.S. History
  • Gale in Context: World History
  • Gale Directory Library
  • Gale General OneFile
  • Gale Health and Wellness
  • Gale Literature
  • Gale Literature Resource Center
  • Gale OneFile: Criminal Justice
  • Gale OneFile: Culinary Arts
  • Gale OneFile: Educator's Reference Complete
  • Gale OneFile: Environmental Studies & Policy Collection
  • Gale OneFile: Health & Medicine
  • Gale OneFile: High School Edition
  • Gale OneFile: Hospitality and Tourism
  • Gale OneFile: News
  • Gale OneFile: Nursing and Allied Health
  • Gale OneFile: Physical Therapy & Sports Medicine
  • Gale OneFile: Vocations & Careers
  • Gale Virtual Reference Library
  • Greenfile (EBSCO)
  • Heritage Quest
  • Hoopla
  • HelpNow Online Tutoring
  • Infobase eBooks
  • JSTOR (access limited to citations only)
  • Kanopy
  • LearningExpress Library (EBSCO)
  • Library, Information Science, and Technology Abstracts (EBSCO)
  • Mango Languages
  • Massachusetts Permit Practice Test
  • Morningstar Investment Research center
  • New York Times
  • NewsBank - America's News
  • Newsletter on Intellectual Freedom
  • NOAA Climatological Data for Worcester
  • Novelist Plus (EBSCO)
  • Overdrive C/W Mars Digital Catalog
  • Oxford Dictionaries
  • Peterson's Career Prep
  • PhotoFacts Online (SAMS)
  • Reference Solutions (formerly RefUSA)
  • Teacher's Reference Center
  • Telegram & Gazette (Worcester, 1989 - Current)
  • Teenbook Cloud
  • Tumblebook Library
  • WorldCat

History
Worcester Public Library, 19th century

The Worcester Public Library originated in 1859 with a donation of 7,000 volumes from Dr. John Green III.[5] Dr. Green was a Worcester-born "physician, dentist, surgeon, apothecary and man-midwife."[6] In 1855, Green had donated 5,000 volumes from his personal collection to the Worcester Lyceum on a 5-year loan; as the loan was about to expire, Dr. Green decided to establish a free public library for the city.[6] The original location of the library was the third floor of the Bank Block at Foster and Main Streets, but by 1861 an official library building had been constructed on Elm Street.[5] The cornerstone of this library was laid on July 4, 1860.[7] The construction of this library building satisfied Dr. Green's condition on his donation that "a suitable building should be provided for [the books], and that they should not be taken from the library room but freely read there at all times when the rooms are open."[8] On December 8, 1872, the Free Public Library opened on Sundays, which was a momentous enough occasion to be recorded in The Worcester Book.[9] By 1886, the total number of volumes in the library's collection was nearly 60,000.[10]

In 1914, three new branches were introduced to the Worcester Public Library system. The branches, Greendale (later renamed Frances Perkins), Quinsigamond, and South Worcester, were all established with the help of grants from Andrew Carnegie.[5] Throughout the 20th century, three other branches, including Billings Square, Tatnuck, and Main South were constructed, but all six of these libraries closed in 1990 (Frances Perkins reopened in 1992).[5] The main branch of the library moved from Elm Street to its current location at Salem Square in 1964, and the current building was constructed in 2001.[5]

Panoramic view of the Main Branch of the Worcester Public Library in 2010.

Bookmobile

The WPL has always been devoted to serving the Worcester community, and in 1940 the WPL's first Bookmobile was launched.[11] The Bookmobile was intended to provide library services for areas of Worcester that could not reach one of the regular library branches, and the program was a huge success. In its first week, 2,500 of the 2,700 volumes carried by the Bookmobile were checked out.[11] The Bookmobile eventually began circulating more volumes than any one branch of the WPL. In 1991, Bookmobile services were discontinued, but in 2012 the WPL launched the Mobile Library Branch, Library Express (Libby).[12] Based on Libby's success, a second bookmobile named Lilly was launched in 2014, and in 2018 the Libby bookmobile was upgraded.[12]

Services

In addition to the regular circulation services, the WPL provides a number of other services. For New Americans and English Learners, the library provides print and audio resources for learning English, as well as information about applying for citizenship and even weekly classes to assist patrons in passing citizenship exams.[13] The library also offers classes and one-on-one resume-writing workshops.[14] The WPL also offers a Talking Book Library to its patrons with visual or other physical disabilities, who cannot read traditional print materials; the Talking Book Library provides resources in large type, braille, and described videos.[15]

Notable Staff

Branches
Current and Historical Branches of the Worcester Public Library
Branch Name Date Opened[5] Operational? (As of 2018) Date Closed [5] Address[16] Additional Information
Frances Perkins (Originally Greendale) 1914 Yes 1990 (reopened 1992) 470 West Boylston Street Worcester, MA 01606 Carnegie Library
Quinsigamond 1914 No 1990 14 Blackstone River Road Worcester, MA 01607 Carnegie Library
South Worcester 1914 No 1990 705 Southbridge Street Worcester, MA 01610 Carnegie Library
Billings Square 1928 No 1990
Tatnuck 1940 No 1990
Main South 1945 No 1990
Main Branch 2001 Yes NA 3 Salem Square

Worcester, MA 01608
Great Brook Valley Yes NA 89 Tacoma Street

Worcester, MA 01605
Roosevelt 2013 Yes NA 1006 Grafton Street

Worcester, MA 01604
Tatnuck Magnet Yes NA 1083 Pleasant Street

Worcester, MA 01602
Goddard Yes NA 14 Richards Street

Worcester, MA 01603
Burncoat Yes NA 526 Burncoat Street

Worcester, MA 01606

References
  1. Library of Congress. "Worcester Public Library Name Authority".
  2. Worcester Library Foundation aims to preserve rare books August 14, 2006, Worcester Telegram and Gazette
  3. July 1, 2008 through June 30, 2009; cf. Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (2011). "FY 2009 Municipal Pie Report". Retrieved April 4, 2011.
  4. Worcester Public Library (April 5, 2021). "Online Databases". Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  5. "History | Worcester Public Library". www.mywpl.org. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
  6. "Doctor John Green | Worcester Public Library". mywpl.org. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
  7. Rice, Franklin P. (1884). The Worcester Book: A Diary of Noteworthy Events in Worcester, Massachusetts, from 1657 to 1883. Worcester: Putnam, Davis and Co. p. 82. OL 7202093M.
  8. Howland, Henry J. (1865). Worcester Directory. Worcester: H. J. Howland. p. 34. OL 25285405M.
  9. Rice, Franklin P. (1884). The Worcester Book: A Diary of Noteworthy Events in Worcester, Massachusetts, from 1657 to 1883. Worcester: Putnam, Davis and Co. p. 135. OL 7202093M.
  10. City of Worcester, Massachusetts: Its Public Buildings and its Business 1886. Worcester: Sanford & Davis. 1886. p. 35. OL 14050449M.
  11. "Bookmobile History | Worcester Public Library". mywpl.org. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
  12. "About the Mobile Libraries | Worcester Public Library". mywpl.org. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
  13. "English & Citizenship | Worcester Public Library". www.mywpl.org. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
  14. "Resume & Cover Letter Critique | Worcester Public Library". www.mywpl.org. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
  15. "About Us | About | Worcester Talking Book Library". talkingbook.mywpl.org. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
  16. MA, City of Worcester. "Public Library | City of Worcester, MA". www.worcesterma.gov. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
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