Monroe County Public Library facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Monroe County Public Library |
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| Established | 1820 |
| Location | 303 E Kirkwood Ave Bloomington, Indiana 47408 |
| Access and use | |
| Circulation | 2.7 million |
| Population served | 138,000 |
| Other information | |
| Budget | $7,345,690 |
| Director | Marilyn Wood |
| Staff | 153 |
| Website | http://www.mcpl.info |
| Phone number | 812.349.3050 |
The Monroe County Public Library (MCPL) is a busy and helpful place for everyone in Monroe County, Indiana. It serves about 138,000 people! You can visit the main library in downtown Bloomington. There's also a branch in Ellettsville and even a Bookmobile that travels around.
MCPL offers many cool services. The Learn and Play Space is a fun discovery center for young kids. VITAL helps adults learn to read or improve their English. CATS is a special TV network for the community. The Indiana Room holds local history and family records. The library even brings books to people at the Monroe County Correctional Center.
Contents
Library History: From 1820 to Today
The very first library in Monroe County started way back in 1820. It was located inside the courthouse! Later, the Monroe Carnegie Library building opened in 1918.
In 1965, the Bloomington Public Library joined with the Monroe County Public Library system. Library services continued in the old Carnegie building for a few more years. Then, in 1970, the current main library building was finished.
The main library is a big limestone building in downtown Bloomington. It's close to Indiana University. The building grew in 1997 and was updated in 2010. It is now 135,000 square feet!
The Bloomington library was one of the first in the U.S. to try a special robot system. This system, called a Randtriever, helped find and move books. It was removed in the 1980s because it was expensive to keep running.
Library services began in Ellettsville in 1968. A small branch opened in a storefront. The current Ellettsville library building opened in 1990. It was also expanded and updated in 2009.
In 2011, more than 2.7 million books and other items were checked out from MCPL. That was the fifteenth year in a row that checkouts increased! The library uses modern technology to manage its books. This includes a system called RFID, which helps track materials.
A great change happened on March 1, 2020. The library stopped charging fines for overdue books!
Bringing Books to the Community
Bookmobile: Library on Wheels
Bookmobile service started in 1929 with a special "booktruck." Today, a modern bookmobile continues this service six days a week. It visits elementary schools, apartment complexes, and towns in Monroe County. This helps people who don't live near a library branch get books.
Library Van: Visiting Senior Centers
The Library Van visits assisted living and senior living centers. It goes every two weeks. The library works with each place to set up a small, temporary library. They also provide materials for the residents. As of 2018, this service helps 8 different places in Bloomington.
Homebound Services: Books Delivered to Your Door
Homebound services are free for Monroe County residents. This service delivers library materials once a month right to a person's home. It's made for people with disabilities or long-term illnesses.
Jail Library Services: Books for Inmates
Since 1986, MCPL has worked with the Monroe County Correctional Center. They offer library services to inmates there. Each month, about 200 inmates visit the Jail Library. They check out over 1,000 books! Each inmate can use the library about every three weeks.
Book Bike: Programs and WiFi on the Go
In 2017, the library added a Book Bike! This bike was bought with a grant from the Friends of the Library. The Book Bike helps bring library programs and WiFi to places the Bookmobile can't reach.
VITAL: Helping Adults Learn
Volunteers in Tutoring Adult Learners (VITAL) is a special program. Volunteers are trained to help adults one-on-one. VITAL focuses on two main areas. It helps adults learn to read better. It also helps people learn English as a new language. This program is free for both volunteers and learners. The main library has a special collection of books just for the VITAL program.
Awards and Recognitions
MCPL has won many awards for its great work!
- In 2010, MCPL was ranked 3rd in its group by HAPLR Rankings. It has been in the top ten libraries serving 100,000 people every year since 2005.
- CATS, the community TV network, won several awards in 2011. These were from The National Hometown Video Awards.
- The Indiana Library Federation gave MCPL the Danny Gunnells Intellectual Freedom Award in 2004.
- The Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce has honored MCPL twice. They received the Workforce Development Award in 2007. They also got the Trailblazer through Technology Award in 2011.
- MCPL won a "Best of Show" award for its 2009 Children’s Summer Reading video. This award was from the American Library Association.
- The VITAL adult literacy program has also won several awards. These include an award from Ivy Tech in 2006. It also received the Tom Zupancic Award in 2008. In 2011, it won a Be More Knowledgeable Award from the City of Bloomington.
- In 2017, MCPL won the ALA Excellence in Library Programming Award. This was for their series "Discuss, Meet, and Act: The Power of Words." The series focused on how people can make positive changes in the world.
