Groveport Messenger - March 26th, 2023
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PAGE 12 - GROVEPORT MESSENGER - <strong>March</strong> 26, <strong>2023</strong><br />
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Library celebrates 150th birthday<br />
By Linda Dillman<br />
Staff Writer<br />
Little did the organizers of the first Columbus<br />
Public Library–housed in a single room in city hall in<br />
1873–know their efforts would blossom into the multibranch,<br />
multi-programming Columbus Metropolitan<br />
Library (CML) system of today.<br />
On <strong>March</strong> 4, CML celebrated its 150th birthday<br />
from the Main Library to the Hilltop, Canal<br />
Winchester, and beyond.<br />
The architecturally rich Main Library, located at 96<br />
S. Grant Avenue in Columbus, was built in 1907<br />
through a $200,000 gift from Andrew Carnegie and<br />
expanded throughout the years, evolving into the modern<br />
complex of today with a newly renovated east plaza<br />
opened last year.<br />
In 1928, the Columbus City Council appropriated<br />
$30,000 for the library to build its first branches–<br />
Hilltop, Parsons, Linden, and Clintonville. The South<br />
High branch opened in 1992, followed by Southeast in<br />
2000 and Canal Winchester in 2016.<br />
“Our Hilltop branch just reopened in 2021 after a<br />
major transformation,” said CML Library Media<br />
Specialist Ben Zenitsky.<br />
Today there are 22 branches, with the newest one in<br />
Gahanna opening on <strong>March</strong> 4.<br />
In 1950, bookmobile services started throughout the<br />
central Ohio area and the Martin Luther King branch<br />
was the first in the nation in 1968 to be named after<br />
the civil rights leader.<br />
Computers were first put into service in 1977 and<br />
First Lady Barbara Bush helped dedicate a Main<br />
Library expansion in 1991.<br />
The library system stopped charging fines for overdue<br />
books and materials in 2017 to remove access barriers.<br />
“We’re planning to build a new standalone library<br />
branch at 123 <strong>Groveport</strong> Road,” said Zenitsky. “We<br />
held a virtual community meeting with Canal<br />
Winchester residents on Jan. 10 to get a better sense of<br />
what they’d like to see in their new branch. Now we’re<br />
working closely with the architects to design a 21st<br />
century library tailor-made for Canal Winchester — one<br />
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Photo courtesy of the Columbus Metropolitan Library<br />
The Columbus Metropolitan Library’s 150th birthday<br />
celebration featured a birthday “cake” made of<br />
books.<br />
we’re confident will serve its residents for decades to<br />
come. We hope to cut the ribbon in 2025.”<br />
The 150 year celebration did not begin and end on<br />
<strong>March</strong> 4.<br />
It continues throughout the year at the Main<br />
Library and all its branches, along with Partner Days<br />
with free or discounted admission to events, museums<br />
and musical events.<br />
The Sesquicentennial Passport program enables<br />
customers of all ages to pick up a booklet at any CML<br />
location and complete activities around the city to earn<br />
stamps and prizes.<br />
A new Columbus Book Festival takes place at the<br />
Main Library and Topiary Park July 15-16 and features<br />
national and local authors, vendors and programs.<br />
CML also offers a Culture Pass program where<br />
cardholders can check out passes for admission to<br />
Columbus Clippers Sunday games, Museum of Art,<br />
Ballet Met, Columbus Children’s Theatre,<br />
Symphony Masterworks performances,<br />
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Franklin Park Conservatory, Ohio History<br />
Center and Ohio Village, and the National<br />
Veterans Memorial and Museum.<br />
The library provides K-12 students with<br />
free homework help through a live chat feature<br />
on its website, columbuslibrary.org.<br />
CML staff members are available to directly<br />
respond to students’ questions and refer<br />
them to many free resources. The digital<br />
service is available Monday through Friday<br />
from 9 a.m. through 4 p.m.<br />
“From our humble beginnings in one<br />
room to the profound gift from Andrew<br />
Carnegie to build the main library, from<br />
civic support that formed our first branches<br />
to community support that builds 21st century<br />
libraries, we owe much of our present<br />
to the work of so many in our past,” said<br />
CML CEO Patrick Losinski. “Today we<br />
stand on the shoulders of dedicated staff<br />
and community members who have come<br />
before us–trailblazers who have forged<br />
pathways for us to become the library we<br />
are today, and the library we aspire to be in<br />
the future.”
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