1969.04.10 _ April 20 Open House at Shrub Oak Library
Dublin Core
Title
1969.04.10 _ April 20 Open House at Shrub Oak Library
Subject
Public Library--Open Houses
Creator
Candreva, George
Source
"John C. Hart Memorial Library Historical News Clippings" Binder, Volume 1, 1919 - 1970
Publisher
The Yorktowner
Date
1969-04-10
Rights
This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the John C. Hart Memorial Library. Rights status is not evaluated.
Format
PDF
Language
English
Type
Text
Coverage
Yorktown (N.Y. : Town)
Text Item Type Metadata
Text
Shrub Oak's John C. Hart Library is getting ready for National Library Week, beginning April 20. Its interior rooms, once the graceful residence of John Coleridge Hart (1822-1872) are bulging with books, and the atmosphere is colorful and effective. By April 20, they will be ready for one of many County-wide open-house ceremonies in which member libraries will each feature something of interest. An historical tribute to Shrub Oak will be presented at John C. Hart Library through displays of pictures and other materials.
While historical tributes to the John C. Hart days of Shrub Oak may be in order, the fact that the John C. Hart Library looks as well as it does and serves so many-suggests a tribute to the staff and library board who work at their mission with such dedication.
Charlotte Lee - 50. year Leader
Marjory Bayley is library director, and she is assisted by Eleanor Weirman, Clair Guttman, Elsie Priestley, Irene Popper, Catherine Phelan, RubyHardman, Florence Stevens, Carolyn Potemski, and Joan Frost. Back-stoppirig this staff is the Library Board, with Mike Poster, chairman, and Mrs. Arthur_ Lee, Mrs. Peter Klemchuk, Ted Hill, and Munsen Frost. But of all the names symbolizing the patience, endurance and persistent far-sightedness needed to keep the library going, that of Charlotte Martens Lee has greatest significance. She was a member of the first John C. Hart Library Board. when the library was (unfinished)
One of these days, when the history of John C. Hart Library is interwoven with 'the history of Shrub Oak and Yorktown proper, there will be the space to delve into all the nooks and crannies of the subject. But even a few pokes here and there turn up irresistible bits of information. For instance, the town fathers back in 1919 higgled and haggled about whether they even wanted to accept the old John C. Hart residence from his daughter, Catherine, when she died and bequeathed the house and 40 acres for a memorial library dedicated to her father. The house needed fixing and upkeep and there would be bills, and - well, they put it to a town vote and the house was accepted by the town in November, 1919. This November, then, will make it an even 50 for John C. Hart Library, and for Charlotte Lee's services to it.
Library Opened in 1920
When the library opened for business in 1920, Mrs. Lee recalls, the State Education Department sent a woman to Shrub Oak for the purpose of teaching local volunteers how to catalogue and how to manage their new library. There were no books - and exactly the same amount of money; so donations were soHcited and Mr. and Mrs. David Carpenter lived in the building to keep it in shape. Mrs. Carpenter was Shrub Oak's first librarian, and her husband built the first shelves in one room that_ gave the library its start. Since the house had only fireplaces, they set about seeking a pipeless furnace for central heating - and got that, too.
...should someone be curious enough to check. There are some paragraphs about buttermilk and biscuits, and it's a nice curio to keep around as a memento of Genevieve Martens, who donated the book long ago. The very first gift to the library, however, was from George I. Kunz-a book by Teddy Roosevelt titled "The Strenuous Life." In that first year of John C. Hart Library service, ending 1921, adults signed out 956 fiction works while the young readers drew 165. Non-fiction rated poorly in those days when escape from hum-drum was by book rather than electronic media.
In 1923, Yorktown was taxed $500 for library support, raised to $1,000 nine years later. By 1932, adult fiction circulation figures were at 5621 and youth fiction readers at 1218 titles. Non-fiction was still way behind.
Circulation at 112,000
Now, John C. Hart Library is open six days a week and all the downstairs rooms in this sturdy Victorian house are shelved to support 13,850 titlesand non-fiction is the big demand. "Believe it or not, " Director Bayley i;;ays, "we have a busy, selfimproving number of readers who use non-fiction for all kinds of studies and courses." In 1968, John C, Hart's 50-year life-span had seen circulation rise from -1,000 books per year to 112,000 - and by 1969, Mrs. Bailey expects 150,000.
She also expects lots of local people will remember John C. Hart Library in Shrub Oak on April 20, and it would be nice if the place (build) with..(unfinished)
While historical tributes to the John C. Hart days of Shrub Oak may be in order, the fact that the John C. Hart Library looks as well as it does and serves so many-suggests a tribute to the staff and library board who work at their mission with such dedication.
Charlotte Lee - 50. year Leader
Marjory Bayley is library director, and she is assisted by Eleanor Weirman, Clair Guttman, Elsie Priestley, Irene Popper, Catherine Phelan, RubyHardman, Florence Stevens, Carolyn Potemski, and Joan Frost. Back-stoppirig this staff is the Library Board, with Mike Poster, chairman, and Mrs. Arthur_ Lee, Mrs. Peter Klemchuk, Ted Hill, and Munsen Frost. But of all the names symbolizing the patience, endurance and persistent far-sightedness needed to keep the library going, that of Charlotte Martens Lee has greatest significance. She was a member of the first John C. Hart Library Board. when the library was (unfinished)
One of these days, when the history of John C. Hart Library is interwoven with 'the history of Shrub Oak and Yorktown proper, there will be the space to delve into all the nooks and crannies of the subject. But even a few pokes here and there turn up irresistible bits of information. For instance, the town fathers back in 1919 higgled and haggled about whether they even wanted to accept the old John C. Hart residence from his daughter, Catherine, when she died and bequeathed the house and 40 acres for a memorial library dedicated to her father. The house needed fixing and upkeep and there would be bills, and - well, they put it to a town vote and the house was accepted by the town in November, 1919. This November, then, will make it an even 50 for John C. Hart Library, and for Charlotte Lee's services to it.
Library Opened in 1920
When the library opened for business in 1920, Mrs. Lee recalls, the State Education Department sent a woman to Shrub Oak for the purpose of teaching local volunteers how to catalogue and how to manage their new library. There were no books - and exactly the same amount of money; so donations were soHcited and Mr. and Mrs. David Carpenter lived in the building to keep it in shape. Mrs. Carpenter was Shrub Oak's first librarian, and her husband built the first shelves in one room that_ gave the library its start. Since the house had only fireplaces, they set about seeking a pipeless furnace for central heating - and got that, too.
...should someone be curious enough to check. There are some paragraphs about buttermilk and biscuits, and it's a nice curio to keep around as a memento of Genevieve Martens, who donated the book long ago. The very first gift to the library, however, was from George I. Kunz-a book by Teddy Roosevelt titled "The Strenuous Life." In that first year of John C. Hart Library service, ending 1921, adults signed out 956 fiction works while the young readers drew 165. Non-fiction rated poorly in those days when escape from hum-drum was by book rather than electronic media.
In 1923, Yorktown was taxed $500 for library support, raised to $1,000 nine years later. By 1932, adult fiction circulation figures were at 5621 and youth fiction readers at 1218 titles. Non-fiction was still way behind.
Circulation at 112,000
Now, John C. Hart Library is open six days a week and all the downstairs rooms in this sturdy Victorian house are shelved to support 13,850 titlesand non-fiction is the big demand. "Believe it or not, " Director Bayley i;;ays, "we have a busy, selfimproving number of readers who use non-fiction for all kinds of studies and courses." In 1968, John C, Hart's 50-year life-span had seen circulation rise from -1,000 books per year to 112,000 - and by 1969, Mrs. Bailey expects 150,000.
She also expects lots of local people will remember John C. Hart Library in Shrub Oak on April 20, and it would be nice if the place (build) with..(unfinished)
Original Format
News Clippings
Files
Citation
Candreva, George, “1969.04.10 _ April 20 Open House at Shrub Oak Library,” John C Hart Library Archive, accessed May 16, 2024, https://hartarchive.omeka.net/items/show/44.