Multnomah County Library

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Multnomah County Library
Image:Multnomah County Library logo.gif
Location Multnomah County, Oregon
Coordinates 45°31′8″N 122°40′59″W / 45.51889, -122.68306Coordinates: 45°31′8″N 122°40′59″W / 45.51889, -122.68306
Established 1864
Number of branches 17
Collection size 1,904,682
Annual circulation 19,900,816
Population served 701,545
Members 431,429
Budget $49 million
Director Molly Raphael
Employees 459
Website www.multcolib.org

Multnomah County Library is a public library system that serves the entire population of Multnomah County, Oregon, United States. With a history that dates back to 1864, the system currently has 17 library locations with books, magazines, DVDs, Internet computers and more. It is the largest library system in the state of Oregon serving a population 701,545, with 431,429 registered borrowers.[1]

Contents

[edit] History

The library began as the Library Association of Portland (LAP) in 1864.[2] Judge Matthew Deady was one of the early founders, with financial support coming from those such as Henry Corbett, William S. Ladd, and Erasmus D. Shattuck among others.[2] Harvey W. Scott served as the first librarian at its first location on Stark Street in Portland.[2] In 1869, the library moved to the Ladd & Tilton Bank Building where it received free rent.[2] In 1891, a new separate library, the Portland Public Library, was founded by a group that included some former LAP board members.[3] The two libraries would merge in 1902.[3]

The library moved to a new library building in 1893 at Broadway and Stark streets.[2] This building cost $156,477 to build, and was staffed by D. F. W. Bursch, the library's first trained librarian.[2] A large source of the funds came from the estate of Ella M. Smith in 1889.[3] Bursch would oversee the implementation of the Dewey decimal system at the library.[2] Prior to becoming a free public library, the board tried to lower subscription costs as often as possible to allow a larger percentage of the general public to have access to the resource.[3] The board debated whether to become a government supported library, with longtime board member Matthew Deady arguing against government support as it might lead to the library being a politically charged entity.[3] In 1897, president of the board George Henry Williams proposed some censorship on the collections of the library.[3]

The library declined an offer of a $100,000 donation from Andrew Carnegie in 1901, but did receive $105,000 in 1911 and $60,000 in 1912 to build branch locations.[3] The library received nearly 9,000 books in 1900 from the estate of John Wilson, many of these were rare books.[3] However, the bequest called for the books to be available free of charge to the public, thus the board voted to provide library services to the public under government contract.[3] In 1901, the state passed a law to allow governments to tax citizens to pay for libraries.[3] The city of Portland and the library entered into a contract where the privately owned library continued to own its collection, bur the city paid for services, thus creating a free publicly supported library.[3] In January 1901, the library allowed books to circulate for the first time.[3]

Opened on March 16, 1902, it was the first free library in the state paid for by taxes.[3] At that time it features more than 38,000 volumes and 215 periodicals.[3] In 1913, the Library Association of Portland (LAP) built the Central Library in downtown Portland at Tenth Street.[3] They did not use any Carnegie funds for the project, instead financing came from a special two-year tax.[2][3]

On July 1, 1990, the LAP officially transferred ownership of the library buildings and collections to Multnomah County.[4] Plans are in the works for two new library locations, scheduled to open in 2009.[5]

[edit] Branches

The Multnomah County Library operates 17 branch locations, including the main Central Library in downtown Portland. In addition to the main Central Library, other branches include the Gresham Regional, Albina, Woodstock, St. Johns, Rockwood, North Portland, Northwest, Sellwood-Moreland, Fairview-Columbia, Capitol Hill, Belmont, Midland Regional, Hollywood, Holgate, Gregory Heights, and Hillsdale locations.[1] Midland is the largest of these branch locations with a total of 25,000 square feet (2,300 m²) followed by the Gresham Regional location with 20,000 square feet (1,900 m²). [1] The St. Johns and North Portland branches are both Carnegie libraries.[6]

[edit] Central Library

The Central Library
The Central Library
Main article: Central Library

The Central Library in downtown Portland serves as the main branch of the system. The building was designed by architect A. E. Doyle, and opened on September 6, 1913.[7] It was one of the first libraries in the United States to feature an open-plan.[8] The three-story Central Library was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Central Building, Public Library in 1979.[9] It contains 17 miles (27 km) of bookshelf space and has 130 computer terminals. The branch contains 125,000 square feet (11,600 m²) of space.[1]

[edit] Details

As of 2007, the system has 92 librarians and a total of 459 employees.[1] Total annual revenue is just over $50 million, with expenditures of just over $49 million.[1] There are over 430,000 library card holders in the system that serves a population of over 700,000 people, the largest in the state. Multnomah County Library has a combined total of 1,375,624 books in its 17 locations, and a total of 1,904,682 items combining books, video items, audio items, periodicals, databases, and other library materials.[1] There was a total of 4,701,886 visits in 2007 with the total circulation of 19,900,816.[1] The system contain a total of 385 public computer terminals and a combined total of 265,762 square feet (24,690.1 m²) of space at all 17 branches.[1]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Oregon Public Library Statistics. Oregon State Library. Retrieved on March 16, 2008.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Corning, Howard M. (1989) Dictionary of Oregon History. Binfords & Mort Publishing. p. 147-8.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Gunselman, Cheryl. Pioneering Free Library Service for the City, 1864-1902: The Library Association of Portland and the Portland Public Library. Oregon Historical Quarterly, September 22, 2002. Pg. 320 Vol. 103 No. 3 ISSN 0030-4727
  4. ^ About the library: History. Multnomah County Library. Retrieved on March 13, 2008.
  5. ^ New Libraries. Multnomah County Library. Retrieved on March 16, 2008.
  6. ^ Carnegie Public Libraries in Oregon. OLA Quarterly, Volume 2, Number 1 — Spring 1996. Oregon Library Association. Retrieved on March 16, 2008.
  7. ^ Central Library. Multnomah County Library. Retrieved on March 16, 2008.
  8. ^ Gragg, Randy. Recycling the Armory. The Oregonian, September 24, 2006.
  9. ^ Oregon National Register List. Oregon State Parks and Recreation Department (July 16, 2007). Retrieved on 2008-03-10.

[edit] External links