FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, September 7, 2022

CONTACT

Farrell Howe

Marketing & Communications Manager

Kalamazoo Public Library Celebrates 150 Years of Service to Kalamazoo

Kalamazoo, MI–Wednesday, September 7, 2022. This October, Kalamazoo Public Library (KPL) will celebrate 150 years of innovation, access and service to the Kalamazoo community. The community is invited to take a trip back in time and learn about the impact the library has had on the neighborhoods it serves.

Beginning this September, KPL will host a series of fun events, feature stories from patrons and KPL staff over the years and will offer the Kalamazoo community opportunities to participate in discussions of future services at the library. More information can be found at kpl.gov/150.

From the Director, Ryan Wieber

Since 1872, generations of Kalamazooans–longtime residents and newer arrivals alike–have recognized the importance and value that libraries and literacy bring, by providing a great library for a great community. It’s not often that an organization hits the big 1-5-0, so we are taking the time to celebrate this year with activities, programs, and opportunities to reflect on the library’s history and to also shine a light on the current ways the library provides meaning for so many today through its collections, services, and engagement.

In early 2023, KPL will turn its focus on planning for the future and will need the community’s help through surveys and focus groups to identify how the library can continue a big impact with its spaces, services, and resources. Thank YOU, Kalamazoo, for being the reason KPL is celebrating 150 this year! We appreciate how our community continues to show love for its library in so many ways.

About Kalamazoo Public Library

The origins of Kalamazoo Public Library were humble. In 1860 the local school district inherited 123 volumes from a failed township library. With that tiny collection, a library was opened for a single hour each week, with its use limited to students within the school district and their parents. The 2,800-volume school library became a public library in October 1872 when its collection was made available for the first time to the general public. Following another move in January 1885 into second-floor rooms on West Main Street, Kalamazoo’s by-then 12,000 volume public library was in desperate need of better quarters.

In July 1890, Dr. Edwin and Mrs. Cynthia Westover VanDeusen offered a gift to the community of $50,000 toward a new public library building, to be located on the southeast corner of Rose and South streets. The new library building took nearly two years to complete and was opened to the public for the first time on Saturday, May 13, 1893. The building stood as a community landmark for six decades.

By the late 1920s the library had grown so much that it spilled over into the adjacent Peck and Kauffer houses on Rose Street. The depression and World War II delayed a much-needed new building, but after a spirited campaign and a favorable millage vote in 1955, the library’s second new building replaced the old in 1959. The library continued to grow, filling even this new facility to bursting.

The departure of the Kalamazoo Public Museum in 1996 provided the opportunity for a major renovation of the existing building to take advantage of the vacated space, and to add the third floor that was planned when it was built. Over the years, the library also added four branches: Washington Square, Eastwood, Alma Powell, and Oshtemo, each of which began in a school and eventually acquired its own building.

Kalamazoo Public Library now serves a district population of 127,800 through five locations and a mobile library. Kalamazoo citizens and voters historically have strongly valued and supported the civic and cultural life in our community – that support includes the Kalamazoo Public Library. Voters have approved every library operating millage since KPL’s first separate millage in 1974.

Now celebrating 150 years of service to our community, Kalamazoo Public Library has steadily grown from a few shelves of books to the vibrant institution that it is today. The library now has five expertly maintained buildings, a continually growing collection, improved technology to meet increasing needs, and a dedicated and experienced staff that is constantly planning for the future.

150 Years of Innovation and Access

Kalamazoo Public Library is celebrating 150 years of innovation and access. Here are some of the highlights:

First of ten public libraries in the United State to establish a children’s services department, second in the state of Michigan after Detroit, in 1849
Serves as a depository of public documents since 1907
Allowed full access to the library so patrons could browse on their own instead of asking a librarian to retrieve materials in 1909
The Local History department was established in 1928 to preserve information about Kalamazoo’s origins
KPL became a repository for state conservation films in 1929
KPL began providing extension library service to Bronson and Borgess hospitals in 1930.
KPL implemented the Gaylord Electric-Automatic-Book-Charger to expedite the check-out process in 1938
KPL served as a war information center to provide maps and other information resources and provide books to those serving in the armed forces in 1942
The first KPL bookmobile was acquired in 1956 with a capacity for 4,000 books and served outlying areas of the city and school districts that did not have school libraries in 1956
KPL implemented the Regiscope-Rapidex microfilm circulation control system to aid the check-out process in 1964
Alma J. Powell Memorial Branch opens in 1971 to honor Alma J. Powell, an African American librarian who served at KPL for 21 years prior to her death in 1967
The first Annual Children’s Literature Seminar (now Mary Calletto Rife Youth Literature Seminar began in 1978 and is still held annually to this day
KPL’s online catalog (CAROLIN) launched in 1991, replacing the old manual card catalog
KPL’s website went live in 1996 to provide necessary contact information and other library services information
KPL launched Ready to Read early literacy program in 1997
The first Party in the Park, with a special story hour to focus community attention on the importance of sharing books with young children was in 1998
The Kalamazoo County Law Library moves to KPL in 1983 to provide access to law books and information to law students and the public after court hours
KPL’s catalog became available to browse online in 2000
KPL was the first public library in the nation to loan digital audio players in 2001
KPL won Library of the Year by Library Journal in 2002
The popular Reading Together program which invites the whole community to come together to read the same book began in 2003
In 2008, Kalamazoo Public Library was selected to join more than 300 libraries in 23 states, which are committed to developing a family-centered approach to library services
In March 2009, Kalamazoo Public Library opened “ONEplace@kpl,” a resource center for nonprofit organizations that provides opportunities for nonprofit leadership to improve performance and achieve excellence throughout their organizations
Self-serve kiosks were added in 2009
KPL partners with Kalamazoo Public Schools to launch OneCard to ensure every KPL student had access to library services in 2018
KPL was recognized as a “Star Library” by Library Journal Index in 2019 out of 6,333 U.S. public libraries qualified to be rated in the Index
KPL became a fine-free library in 2020 to remove a major barrier to library services
KPL launched Library of Things in 2020 to provide useful items such as cooking appliances, electronics and more for checkout
In 2020, Kalamazoo Public Library, Kalamazoo Public Schools, The Kalamazoo Promise, the Kalamazoo Community Foundation, and the City of Kalamazoo partnered to provide Wi-Fi hotspots with unlimited internet service for one year to hundreds of households in Kalamazoo. The partnership, known as Digital Access for All (DAFA) was formed to address internet access inequities in Kalamazoo, an issue that became more exacerbated during the executive order that closed schools, libraries, and many local businesses that used to serve as Wi-Fi providers for many families
In 2021, KPL launched a scholarship to promote the library profession to people of color. Named after former Teen librarian Amanda Green, the scholarship aims to increase the number of librarians of color in Kalamazoo and other communities

150^th Fall Events

Full descriptions and registration for the following events are available at kpl.gov/150.

Walking Tour of Mountain Home Cemetery

Sunday, October 2 | 2–3:30 pm | Mountain Home Cemetery, 1402 W. Main St.

Mountain Home Cemetery is home to many familiar names from Kalamazoo’s history, some of whom played important roles in the early years of Kalamazoo Public Library. Join Lynn Houghton, Regional History Curator of the WMU Archives and Regional History Collections on a 90-minute tour around the area focusing on the cemetery’s history, architecture, design and symbolism.

Step Back in History: KPL at 150

Friday, October 7 | 5–7 pm | Central Library, 315 South Rose St.

Join us at the Central Library during the October Art Hop for a celebration of the library’s 150^th anniversary. View historical photo displays, interact with our digital timeline, and greet KPL staff members in period costumes. Enjoy musical performances by the Mall City Harmonizers barbershop chorus and the Sweetbriar Sisters ukulele trio thanks to the sponsorship of Connecting Chords Music Festival/Michigan Festival of Sacred Music. Commemorative giveaways and refreshments will be available. Library Director Ryan Wieber and special guests will raise a toast at 6 pm.

150^th Anniversary Coloring and Donuts Celebration

Saturday, October 8 | 10 am–2 pm | All KPL Locations

Stop by any KPL location and celebrate the 150^th anniversary of KPL with coloring and donuts. Enjoy coloring local artists’ and illustrators’ designs in a commemorative coloring book to keep. Donuts and juice provided.

Building a Public Library in Kalamazoo 1893
Thursday, October 20 | 6–7:30 pm | Central Library, 315 South Rose St.

Join us for a closer look at the first library building, including those who designed it, those who built it, what it looked like, and what it meant to the community.

A History of the Oshtemo Branch Library

Tuesday, November 15 | 6–7:30 pm | Oshtemo Branch Library, 7265 W. Main St.

The Oshtemo Branch Library began in 1964 as an experimental cooperative effort between Oshtemo Township and the Kalamazoo Public Library system. Join us we look closely at the origins of the Oshtemo Branch and its near 60-year history.

ARTbreak: Kalamazoo Public Library at 150

Tuesday, October 25 | 12–1 pm | Kalamazoo Institute of Arts, 314 South Park St.

KPL’s Local History Librarian Ryan Gage will reveal the deep history between the library and the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts, during a two-decade span from the late 1920s to 1947, when the library, the Kalamazoo Valley Museum, and the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts all operated under the Kalamazoo Public School system.

Kalamazoo in the 1870s

Tuesday, December 1 | 6:30–7:30 pm | Central Library, 315 South Rose St.

Join KPL Director Ryan Wieber as he takes us back to what it was like to live in Kalamazoo in the 1870s and the role the library played in the lives of residents during that time.

Additional events, open houses, celebrations and are being planned to honor the anniversaries of each KPL branch. Information about these and other pending 150^th events will be posted on kpl.gov/150.

Farrell Howe | Marketing & Communications Manager
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Kalamazoo Public Library | CEN
315 S. Rose St. | Kalamazoo, MI 49007
(269) 553-7879