The Washington County Public Library (WCPL) is a

public library A public library is a library that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil service, civil servants. There are ...

system located in Washington County, Florida, United States. The library system has four locations: a main library in Chipley and three branches in Vernon, Sunny Hills, and Wausau. The Washington County Public Library is a member of the Panhandle Public Library Cooperative System (PPLCS) and Panhandle Access Library Network (PLAN), giving library patrons access to over a million items, with shared circulation among Holmes,

Calhoun John C. Calhoun (1782–1850) was the 7th vice president of the United States. Calhoun can also refer to: Surname * Calhoun (surname) Inhabited places in the United States *Calhoun, Georgia *Calhoun, Illinois *Calhoun, Kansas *Calhoun, Kentucky ...

, and Jackson counties.

History

In 1934 the Chipley Woman’s Club, with the help of donated books and volunteer staff, opened a public library in a small building at the corner of East Church Street and North 6th Street in Chipley. The Club held a sponsored dinner in 1939 to raise matching funds to aid in purchasing more books. In 1959 the Library was moved to the upstairs of Old City Hall, where its hours of operation were 2:30 pm - 4:00 pm, twice a week. In August of 1963, the City of Chipley offered the Club another building to house the Library, located at the corner of Highway 90 and Highway 77. This new library opened in 1964, and was staffed using funds from the County's contribution to a regional library system. The regional library system also provided a

bookmobile A bookmobile or mobile library is a vehicle designed for use as a library. They have been known by many names throughout history, including traveling library, library wagon, book wagon, book truck, library-on-wheels, and book auto service. Bookm ...

, which made stops in Greenhead, Wausau, Vernon, Hinson Crossroads, New Hope,

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, and Caryville. The Library again outgrew their facility, and was relocated to the recently vacated City Hall, located at the corner of 5th and Church Street, in 1980. The Library remained at this location until 2003, when it was once again moved, this time to a new building that was built on Highway 90.

Branches

Washington County Public Library

The Washington County Public Library, also known as the Chipley Library, is located at 1444 Jackson Avenue in

Chipley, Florida Chipley is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Florida, Washington County, Florida, United States, located between Tallahassee, Florida, Tallahassee and Pensacola, Florida, Pensacola. Its population was 3,605 in the 2010 U.S. Census ...

. The Chipley Library suffered severe flooding during

Hurricane Sally Hurricane Sally was a destructive and slow-moving Atlantic hurricane, which was the first hurricane to make landfall in the U.S. state of Alabama since Ivan in 2004, coincidentally on the same date in the same place. The eighteenth named storm, ...

, taking on nearly eight inches of water and causing the branch to lose nearly all of the books and materials that were located on the bottom shelves. The branch is undergoing renovations, and remains closed until further notice (as of April 2021).

Sam Mitchell Public Library

The Sam Mitchell Public Library is located at 3731 Roche Avenue in

Vernon, Florida Vernon is a city in Washington County, Florida. The population was 687 at the 2010 census; according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2018 estimates, the city had a population of 690. Vernon is named for George Washington's Virginia home, Mount Verno ...

. This branch was built in 1993, with the assistance of Representative Sam Mitchell.

Wausau Public Library

The Wausau Public Library is located at 1607 Second Avenue in

Wausau, Florida Wausau is a town in Washington County, Florida, United States. The population was 383 at the 2010 census. Geography Wausau is located at . The town is located in the Florida panhandle along Florida State Road 77, which is the main route thro ...

Sunny Hills Public Library

The Sunny Hills Public Library is located at 4083 Challenger Boulevard in

References

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