Hennepin County Library

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The new Central Library in downtown Minneapolis, designed by César Pelli, completed in 2006

Hennepin County Library is a library system serving the entire population of Hennepin County, Minnesota. A separate system for Minneapolis existed until January 2008. The system currently has 41 libraries, the Children's Readmobile, deposit collections at nursing homes and correctional facilities, mail service to the homebound and extensive outreach services. The Library is a department of Hennepin County Government.

The HCL started in 1922 as a horse-drawn "bookmobile" to areas outside the core city of Minneapolis. The system saw a large increase in use in period between 1950 and 1980 as more people moved into suburban areas of the county. In the early 1970s plans were in place to merge the Minneapolis Public Library with the HCL. The city backed out of the plan at that time. The Hennepin County Library merged with the Minneapolis Public Library, taking the former name, on January 1, 2008.