Park Ridge Public Library

The Park Ridge Public Library serves residents and businesses of the city of Park Ridge, Illinois. Park Ridge is a northwest suburb of Chicago. The library serves a population of 37,775 residents[1] and is located at 20 S. Prospect Avenue, Park Ridge, IL 60068 in the Uptown neighborhood. The purpose of the Park Ridge Public Library is to advance human knowledge and understanding by providing access to information, literature, technology, and the arts relevant to the community it serves.[2]

History

The library, which was established with a $7,500 grant from the Carnegie Foundation, opened to the public on December 6, 1913. Originally the library was open 10 hours a week which was increased to 15 hours in 1923 and 61 hours in 1932. A thousand books were donated to the new library by the George Carpenter Estate. The total book collection consisted of 2,072 volumes. Upon opening, the library had only two paid staff members.[3] The library was originally located at 1 N. Northwest Highway. That building served as the City's library for 44 years until a new one was built across the street. The current library was built in 1958. An addition was added in 1977 that doubled the size of the building.

Resources

The Park Ridge Public Library has a collection of over 200,000 items with an annual circulation of over 700,00 items. They offer a variety of resources including:

  • Books
  • Movies
  • CDs
  • Books on CD
  • Graphic Novels
  • Magazines
  • Newspapers
  • Video Games
  • Computer Games
  • Puzzles
  • Music Literacy Kits
  • Sparki Robot
  • Ozobot
  • Dash
  • GoPro Hero 5 or Hero+
  • Green Screen Lighting Kit
  • Merge Virtual Reality Glasses
  • Orion Starblast Telescope
  • Projector
  • Tripod
  • Playstation VR
  • Umbrellas
  • Bike Locks

Services

The library is not only rich in resources, but also in the services offered to its residents. Each department offers a variety of service to the residents of Park Ridge.

  • Reference Department
  • Readers Services Department
  • Young Adult Department
  • Children's Department

The library is also an excellent source for free programs for adults such as:

  • Art lectures
  • Music performances
  • Cooking demonstrations
  • Theatrical presentations
  • Health programs
  • Feature films
  • Foreign films
  • Travel films

References
  1. Park Ridge city, Illinois - Fact Sheet - American FactFinder
  2. Park Ridge Public Library Library Mission And Technology Statement Archived 2008-03-13 at the Wayback Machine
  3. "First Public Library Opened Late in 1913." Park Ridge Herald Advocate. January 9, 1958

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