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Calgary Public Library
LocationCalgary, Alberta, Canada
Established1912 (1912)
Branches21
Collection
Size2,332,581 (2012)
Access and use
Circulation17,121,718
Other information
DirectorMark Asberg
Websitecalgarylibrary.ca

The Calgary Public Library (CPL) is a distributed library system featuring 21 branch locations including the Central Library.[1] It is the second most used system in Canada (after the Toronto Public Library)[2] and the sixth most used library system in North America.[3] This is despite the fact that the Calgary Public Library has one of the lowest per capita funding in the country, receiving as little as half the money of other Canadian public libraries. [4] [5] [6]

History

The Calgary Public Library Board of Trustees was established on May 18, 1908. R. B. Bennett, who would later serve as Prime Minister of Canada, was among the five people appointed to the board.[7] The first public library opened on January 2, 1912, thanks in part to the generosity of Scottish / American industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie.[8][9]

Memorial Park branch, 2008. The First World War memorial was erected in 1924 by the Imperial Order of the Daughters of the Empire.

Carnegie funded $80,000 of the $100,000 cost of Calgary's Central Library, (now renamed the Memorial Park Branch), pressuring City Hall to fund the rest.[10]

The building was the first purpose-built public library in Alberta. It was designed by Boston architects McLean & Wright, and built out of local Paskapoo Sandstone (a soft stone that today presents a substantial preservation challenge). This library branch is a copy of a library in Attleboro, Massachusetts.

In 1929 the formal Victorian-style park surrounding the Central Library was dedicated to the honour of those who had died in the Great War. During construction of the original building, the Calgary Library Board sought out a librarian to oversee the opening of its new library. In January 1911, Alexander Calhoun, a thirty-one-year-old graduate of Queen's University, was appointed Calgary's Librarian. Calhoun served as the head of the Calgary Public Library until his retirement in 1945.[11][12]

When a new downtown central library was constructed in the early 1960s, the original branch was renamed the Memorial Park branch, and still operates today. An addition to the 1960s Central Library was built in 1974, doubling the size of the building.[13]

21st century

In 2013, CNOOC subsidiary Nexen donated 1.5M dollars to the Calgary Public Library. The company has secured the naming rights for high tech learning commons in the new Calgary Central Library. CNOOC CEO Li Fanrong reiterated the gesture was motivated by the company's corporate responsibilities to Calgary.[14] There have been concerns of censorship as CNOOC is a Chinese state run company, however McIntyre Royston library foundation head assures that the library's collection won't be censored.

Calgary Public Library, old logo
Logo used prior to rebranding in January 2015

The location of the new library is in the Downtown East Village (just across 3rd St. S.E. from the new City Hall).[15] On February 25, 2013, City Hall was approved the master plan to have the new library be built at the fore-mentioned location at Downtown East Village with the overall cost of C$245 million. The 286,000-square foot complex was completed on November 1, 2018.[16][17][18]

In 2019, the new library was recognized as one of "The Worlds 100 Greatest Places of 2019" by TIME magazine.[19]

In 2019, Calgary's fourth largest library opened at the Brookfield Residential YMCA at Seton.

Branches

  • Bowness Library - 6532 Bowness Road NW
  • Central Library - 800 3 Street SE
  • Country Hills Library - 11950 Country Village Link NE
  • Crowfoot Library - 8665 Nose Hill Drive NW
  • Fish Creek Library - 11161 Bonaventure Drive SE
  • Forest Lawn Library - 4807 8 Avenue SE
  • Giuffre Family Library - 3223 14 Street SW
  • Judith Umbach Library - 6617 Centre Street N
  • Louise Riley Library - 1904 14 Avenue NW
  • Memorial Park Library - 1221 2 Street SW
  • Nicholls Family Library - 1421 33 Street SW ( at Westbrook LRT station)
  • Nose Hill Library - 1530 Northmount Drive NW
  • Quarry Park Library - 108 Quarry Park Road SE (at Remington YMCA)
  • Rocky Ridge Library - 11300 Rocky Ridge Road NW (at Shane Homes YMCA)
  • Saddletowne Library - 150 7555 Falconridge Boulevard NE (at the Genesis Centre)
  • Sage Hill Library - 19 Sage Hill Passage NW - Temporary Library until final Sage Hill Library is completed
  • Seton Library - 4995 Market Street SE (at Brookfield Residential YMCA)
  • Shawnessy Library - 333 Shawville Boulevard SE
  • Signal Hill Library - 5994 Signal Hill Centre SW
  • Southwood Library - 924 Southland Drive SW
  • Village Square Library - 2623 56 Street NE

Former branches

  • Shaganappi Library - replaced by the Nicholls Family Library
  • Glenmore Square Library - replaced by the Quarry Park Library

Renamed branches

  • Judith Umbach Library (formerly Thorn-Hill Library) was renamed after a major renovation in 2015 and for donations made by Judith Umbach.
  • Nicholls Family Library (a replacement of the Shaganappi Library) was named to commemorate a donation made the Nicholls family.
  • Giuffre Family Library (formerly Alexander Calhoun Library) was renamed to commemorate a donation made by the Giuffre family. A section was commemorated to Alexander Calhoun at Memorial Park Library.

Services

  • Information and reference services
  • Access to full text databases
  • Community information
  • Internet access
  • Reader's advisory services
  • Programs for children, youth and adults
  • Delivery to home-bound individuals
  • Inter-library loan
  • Free downloadable audiobooks
  • Printing services
  • Wellness desk
  • Build a book bag

Statistics

Calgary Public Library Facts (2012):[2]

  • Annual circulation: 17,121,718 (including renewals)
  • Number of items in collection: 2,195,354
  • Total number of books to choose from: 1,689,315
  • Total number of e-books to choose from: 61,000 (2013 Report to the Community)[20]
  • Total number of music items to choose from: 155.563
  • Total number of magazines to choose from: 87,648
  • Total number of Blu-rays/DVDs to choose from: 188,005
  • Percentage of households that utilize the Calgary Public Library: 66%
  • Number of Calgarians who hold a library card: 670,000 + (2018)

See also

References

  1. ^ Zickefoose, Sherri (July 2, 2012). "Calgary library system defies Alberta trend of slowing patronage". Calgary Herald. Archived from the original on July 6, 2012. Retrieved 2012-09-01.
  2. ^ a b "Calgary Public Library Report to the Community 2012 (page 33)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-11-04. Retrieved 2013-11-02.
  3. ^ Potkins, Meghan (January 27, 2012). "Calgary Public Library sets new borrowing record (Becomes sixth busiest library system in North America)". Calgary Herald. Retrieved 2012-01-28. [dead link‍]
  4. ^ "2012 Calgary Public Library Audited Financial Statements" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-11-04. Retrieved 2013-11-02.
  5. ^ "Invest in the Next 100". Archived from the original on 2013-11-04. Retrieved 2013-11-02.
  6. ^ "Cash Cow: User Fees in Alberta Public Libraries". Retrieved 2013-11-02.
  7. ^ Gorosh,E. Calgary's "Temple of Knowledge": A History of the Public Library. 1975 Century Calgary Publications. p.5.
  8. ^ "Carnegie Library, Calgary, Alberta". Community Heritage and Family History Digital Library. Calgary: Calgary Public Library. 2002-06-04. Retrieved 2010-07-12.
  9. ^ Zickefoose, Sherri (June 1, 2012). "How a great city acquired a great library (Unlikely champions were ardent supporters of free books)". Calgary Herald. Archived from the original on June 4, 2012. Retrieved 2012-06-05.
  10. ^ Gorosh, E. Calgary's 'Temple of Knowledge'. Calgary, Alberta: Century Calgary Publications, 1975. p. 6 http://www.ourfutureourpast.ca/loc_hist/page.aspx?id=498191 Archived 2015-09-24 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ^ Nicholson, Barbara; Lohnes, Donna (1987). "Alexander Calhoun". In Foran, Max; Jameson, Sheilagh S. (eds.). Citymakers: Calgarians after the frontier. Historical Society of Alberta; Chinook Country Chapter. pp. 149–172. ISBN 0-88925-725-6.
  12. ^ Ward, Rachel (30 March 2018). "How Calgary's 'revolutionary' first librarian shaped the city". CBC. Retrieved 30 March 2018.
  13. ^ Gorosh, E. Calgary's 'Temple of Knowledge'. Calgary, Alberta: Century Calgary Publications, 1975. p.106 http://www.ourfutureourpast.ca/loc_hist/page.aspx?id=498191 Archived 2015-09-24 at the Wayback Machine
  14. ^ Markusoff, Jason.'Chinese state-owned CNOOC makes largest-ever donation to Calgary Public Library'.September 13, 2014, Calgary Herald. https://calgaryherald.com/news/Chinese+state+owned+CNOOC+makes+largest+ever+donation+Calgary+Public+Library/8909832/story.html. retrieved October 30, 2014.
  15. ^ "New central library - FAQ". Retrieved 2013-11-02.
  16. ^ "New Central Library Plan Takes Shape: The Master Plan". Calgary Herald. February 15, 2013. Retrieved 2013-02-26.
  17. ^ "Council Approves Plans For New Central Library". Calgary Herald. February 25, 2013. Retrieved 2013-02-26.[permanent dead link‍]
  18. ^ "New central library plan approved by council ($245-million project to be built in East Village next to city hall by 2018)". CBRT-DT (CBC News Calgary). February 26, 2013. Retrieved 2013-02-26.
  19. ^ "Calgary's Central Library earns some major recognition from TIME". Calgary. 2019-08-22. Retrieved 2019-11-06.
  20. ^ https://calgary.bibliocms.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/10/2013-Report-to-the-Community.pdf
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