Iowa City Public Library facts for kids

The Iowa City Public Library (ICPL) is a cool place in Iowa City, Iowa, USA. It first opened way back in 1896! Today, it's in a big, modern building downtown. The library helps people from Iowa City and nearby towns like University Heights and Hills. Lots of people have library cards – about 67,000!

A Long Story: The Library's Journey

The idea for a library started in 1896. Iowa City was already 57 years old then. People wanted a place for young folks to read and play games. When the library first opened on January 21, 1897, it had 1,300 books and 20 magazines and newspapers. It was in two rooms above a laundry at 211 Iowa Avenue.

Over the years, the library moved several times:

• In 1901, it moved to 212 East College Street.
• In 1904, it moved to a special building called a Carnegie library at 212 South Linn Street. These libraries were built with money from a famous businessman, Andrew Carnegie.
• In 1963, they added more space to the Carnegie library.
• In 1981, it moved to 123 South Linn Street.

On June 12, 2004, the library opened its newest building. It's at the same spot but is almost twice as big! The new library was designed by Engberg Anderson Design Partnership. It has about 8,127 square meters (81,276 square feet) of space on two floors.

What You Can Find and Do

The Iowa City Public Library has a huge collection of items. They use the Dewey Decimal System to organize everything. You can find about 175,000 print books. They also have 36,000 non-print items like movies and music. Plus, there are 520 newspapers and magazines!

You can find many things in different ways:

• Books: Regular print books, plus downloadable eBooks and eAudiobooks.
• Movies and Music: CDs and DVDs.
• Fun Stuff: Video games, new fiction, mysteries, and biographies.
• Special Collections: "Art-to-Go" prints, and books on gardening, cooking, and travel.

The library offers many other cool services:

• You can check out different types of audiovisual equipment.
• There are five meeting rooms you can book for public use.
• Special study spaces are available for young adults and general use.
• A large children's room has computers and a story time area.
• There are 42 computers with internet and databases.
• You can use free wireless internet throughout the building.
• Channel 20 is the library's own public access cable TV channel. It shows recorded programs.
• The library has many programs for both kids and adults.

The library also helps people outside its main building. It has 18 smaller collections in community centers, youth centers, and senior centers nearby.

Accessible Browsing

The Iowa City Public Library has special times for "Accessible Browsing." This hour is made for people with Autism or anyone who likes a quieter place. During this time, bright overhead lights are turned off. Sometimes, therapy animals even visit to help people feel calm!

In 2009, the library reached a big goal. People checked out items 1,500,000 times! This made it the busiest public library in all of Iowa.

Helping Hands at the Library

More than 100 people work at the Iowa City Public Library. They work full-time, part-time, or by the hour. Also, over 430 volunteers help out with many different tasks. A group of nine people called the Board of Trustees guides the library. The Iowa City City Council chooses these people. The library's director is Elsworth Carman. The library also has a digital library, where you can find things online.

• Eggers, Lolly. A Century of Stories: the History of the Iowa City Public Library, 1896–1997, Iowa City, IA: Iowa City Public Library Friends Foundation, 1997.