GCCL Provides Many Services to Public

Did you know that the month of July marks 110 years that the Glasgow City-County Library has been established? The historical background is that the people of Glasgow wanted a public library and reading room, so a meeting was called on Oct. 17, 1904. At this meeting, a Public Reading Room and Library Association was formed. A couple of years later in 1906, the city government passed Ordinance 42, which established and provided the maintenance for a permanent library, to be known as the Glasgow Public Library. A petition was sent in 1907 to the Carnegie Foundation for money to build a library, and the new Carnegie Library building was dedicated and opened to the public on July 29, 1908. It wasn’t until August of 1964 that the present library was voted on to be built.

The Glasgow City-County Library has grown in many ways since 1908, from its beginning with 216 books to over 45,593 titles now in the collection.

The Glasgow City-County Library offers a vast variety of items that patrons can check out. Patons can check-out and browse books including adult fiction and nonfiction books, books for young adults, juveniles and children. There are also a wide array of books on CD, which are becoming more popular for all ages. The library has 3,000 movies, documentaries and TV series to fit your needs, as well as a small but diverse collection of music CDs available to check out.

The library subscribes to a variety of newspapers from cities across Montana, in the region and even to major U.S. papers. Newspapers are saved for three months, where patrons and public alike can keep up-to-date on current events or even view a recent article that was printed. In addition to newspapers, the library also has a variety of magazines available for check-out including Sports Illustrated, Time, Better Homes and Garden, Sailing, The Atlantic, Scientific America, among others. Most magazines are kept for two years, while National Geographic is kept for three years and Montana magazines are kept forever. Back issues are filed downstairs in the overflow area and are available to patrons.

The library also offers a variety of services including having a Microfiche machine that patrons can use or request information researched by library staff for a small fee. The Microfiche film in the library dates back to 1895. Computers and wi-fi are free and a meeting room can also be reserved for public use.

There are about 2,690 registered users at the Glasgow City-County Library. There are many programs and special events held throughout the year for all ages. All programs are designed to fit the needs of our community. Last year, approximately 1,533 kids (ages 0-18) participated in various library programs, including the Summer Reading Program, Storytime and Lego Club. Our other programs currently consist of monthly visits to Valley View Home and Prairie Ridge Village, monthly book club at Nemont Manor, monthly library book club, and Tech Hour. New activities and event information can be found at our website: http://www.glasgowlibrary.org

There is also a variety of resources available at your fingertips through our website including renewing materials, viewing the online card catalog, accessing HeritageQuest, searching items to order on interlibrary and more.

Come into the Glasgow City-County Library, 408 3rd Ave S., or give us a call, 406-228-2731, to find out more about the services we offer. We are more than just books!