| Queens Library | |
|---|---|
| Type | Public |
| Established | 1896 |
| Location | Queens (New York City) |
| Branches | 62 |
| Collection | |
| Size | 7.1 million items |
| Access and use | |
| Circulation | 21,000,000 |
| Population served | 2,270,338 (Queens) |
| Members | 793,000 active borrowers |
| Other information | |
| Budget | $114,211,000 |
| Director | Thomas W. Galante |
| Website | http://www.queenslibrary.org/ |
The Queens Library, also known as the Queens Borough Public Library, is the public library for the Borough of Queens and one of three library systems serving New York City. It was the No. 1 library system in the United States by circulation, having loaned 21 million items in the 2007 fiscal year.[1] It was named “2009 Library of the Year” by Library Journal. According to its website, the library holds about 6.6 million items, of which 1.2 million are at its central library in Jamaica, Queens.[2]
Dating back to the foundation of the first Queens library in Flushing in 1858, QL has become one of the largest public library systems in the United States, comprising some 62 branches throughout the borough. Since 1994, it has had high annual circulation, and it is the second largest library in the country in terms of the size of its collection. QL serves Queens' population of more than 2.2 million, including one of the largest immigrant populations in the country. Consequently, a large percentage of QL's collections are in non-English languages, particularly Spanish.[3] QL is separate both from the New York Public Library, which covers Manhattan, the Bronx, and Staten Island, and the Brooklyn Public Library, which covers that borough alone.
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The first library in Queens was founded in 1858 in Flushing as a subscription service. It became a free circulation library in 1869.
In the late 19th century, several local libraries were founded in western Queens. The libraries in Astoria, Long Island City and Steinway formed the Long Island City Public Library in 1896, becoming Queens' first multi-branch library.
In 1901, shortly after the consolidation of Queens into New York City, the city government proposed a new charter joining all libraries in Queens into the Queens Borough Public Library. All of the public libraries signed on, except for Flushing, which remained independent until 1903.
Due to the wide variation in population density in Queens, in 1906, the QL established small branches in store-fronts and shopping areas under the Traveling Library program. With these branches QL grew swiftly, eventually opening major branches in almost every Queens neighborhood.
The original Central Library on Parsons Boulevard in Jamaica was opened in 1930 and expanded with WPA funds in 1941. It was a splendid four-story Renaissance Revival building. In spite of its elegance, it was too small for the demand and was replaced by a new, more spacious facility in 1966, through the persistent efforts of the Library Director, Harold W. Tucker.
$240,000 donated by Andrew Carnegie was used for the construction of seven new Carnegie libraries between 1904 and 1924 in the most heavily—populated areas of the borough. Five of these buildings (Astoria, Elmhurst, Poppenhusen, Richmond Hill, and Woodhaven) are still in use. They are characterized by their stately solidity and expensive decorative details. The Carnegie-era Flushing Branch was demolished for a more modern building in the 1950s, and the Far Rockaway Branch was destroyed by fire in 1962.
Library branches were added slowly as the borough’s population expanded. By 1946, Queens Library had 44 branches plus the Central Library and a very active bookmobile.
Many additional branches had been approved to be built between 1954–1965, but were not completed due to a New York City fiscal crisis. Additional funds were given to the library system by the federal Library Services and Construction Act to finish the Central Library, Flushing and Far Rockaway branches. In the 1990s interest in completing the proposed branches was revived. In 1998, the revamped Flushing library was opened, and 4 other branches were opened between 1999-2007. The Queens Library has been allocated more than $100 million in funds between 2003-2006.
Queens Library is governed by an 18-member Board of Trustees, which are appointed by the Mayor of New York City and the Borough President of Queens. The mayor, borough president, the New York City Comptroller and the New York Public Advocate sit on the board as ex officio members.[4] The library is funded by the City, state and federal grants, and through private philanthropy. The current director of the Queens Library is Thomas Galante.
Queens Library has 62 locations, seven Adult Learning Centers, two Family Literacy Centers, and a Bookmobile.
Central Library was the first major branch of an urban library to place all public services on one floor. The library cost $5,700,000 and contained 195,000 square feet (18,100 m2) of floor space. The library was renovated and expanded in 1989. Additional renovation and expansion has begun and is expected to be completed in the next few years, and will include the new Children’s Library and Discovery Center.
The Queens Library’s online catalog, InfoLinQ (Information online at Queens Library) was unveiled at the Central Library in October 1993. In January 1999 the Cyber Center opened at the Central Library. The Cyber Center has 48 computers for customer use, allowing access to the Internet and word processing.
Central Library includes the following divisions:
61 community libraries are located in Queens.
The Flushing Library is home to the International resource Center (IRC). It contains books, magazines, Cds and DVDs that represent cultures from all over the world. Flushing library has collections in many languages, including Bengali, Chinese, French, Gujarati, Hindi, Italian, Korean, Portuguese, Punjabi, Russian, Spanish, and Urdu.
The Langston Hughes Library is home to the Black Heritage Reference Center, which contains materials "written by, about, for, with and related to Black Culture." It is the largest collection of materials dedicated solely to Black culture in New York State.
The Bookmobile was a bus filled with books that traveled to and from schools and community library locations that had closed down for renovations. Bookmobile service began in 1930 and ran until 1976. It was recently revived in 2006 until it was halted in mid-2008 due to budget cuts. It was again used in late 2010 to early 2011 at the Windsor Park Library to supply people with books while the library was under renovations.
The Archives at Queens Library, formerly known as the Long Island Division, is a special collection in the Central Library building that focuses on the history of Brooklyn, Queens, Nassau, and Suffolk counties. It consists of books, publications, current and historical newspapers, family manuscripts and genealogical material, historical maps and atlases including Belcher Hyde and Sanborn Company maps, late 19th- and early 20th-century photographs, as well as other archival material.
Queens Library has created a variety of services to aid children and teens. In the 1960s, the QL instituted 2 programs: "Operation Head Start," which helped to introduce children to books, and "Library-go-Round," a bus which would travel to children in underprivileged areas. In 1994, the Connecting Libraries and Schools Program (CLASP) aimed to create a partnership between schools and libraries.
All Queens Library branches participate in the BOOST program, Best Out Of School Time. Originally "Branch Out of School Time", "Branch" was changed to "Best" when all "branch" libraries were renamed to "community" libraries. The program aims to provide homework materials, homework tutors, and monitors. Each branch also provides an assortment of enriching activities and clubs for children and teens daily.
Queens Library is one of three separate and independent public library systems in New York City. The other two are the New York Public Library (serving The Bronx, Manhattan and Staten Island), and the Brooklyn Public Library (serving Brooklyn).
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