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The Wichita Public Library is the local
Local business owners funded the establishment of the library in 1876. In 1915, it expanded into a Carnegie library, the Wichita City Carnegie Library Building, that would remain open until the establishment of the new Brutalist-style Wichita Central Library. It opened in 1967 to the general public.
On October 16, 2007, the Wichita City Council decided on the preferred site for a new central library at Second Street and McLean. The initial building program resulted in a projected budget exceeding the amount allotted, forcing the library to consider alternatives. In 2011, a study found that expanding the current Central Library facility would be possible, but would be more expensive than building a new facility and would not resolve building access issues. In 2012-13, the library's board of directors considered a phased construction approach. The city council authorized a request for qualifications, with a presentation by a preferred design team in the summer of 2014.
In January 2015, Wichita City Council voted in favor of a funding agreement with the library foundation to perform the design phase. The new facility, named the Advanced Learning Library, cost an estimated $33 million. It is two stories and has of interior space; it is designed to withstand storms and act as a storm shelter. Following the closure of the Central Public Library on May 6, 2018 after 50 years of service to the Wichita area, the Advanced Learning Library opened on June 16, 2018.
In December 2014, the Orchard Park branch inside Orchard Park Recreation Center at 4808 West 9th was closed.
The Comotara Branch Library, located inside a Dillon's supermarket since 1986, was the first library branch in the United States to open in a grocery store. The branch closed in July 2018 so Dillon's could reclaim the space.
website of the Wichita Public Library, City of Wichita, Wichita, Kansas, 03/03/2014, downloaded 09/22/201426th Annual Academy Awards Shorts
" press release, Wichita Public Library, as posted on ldtownWichita.com Wichita, Kansas, Jan.24, 2012, downloaded Sept.22, 2014Pocowatchit, Rod
Wichita Public Library to present Oscar-nominated short films
" Wichita ''Eagle,'' Wichita, Kansas 02/17/2012, Updated: 02/17/2012, downloaded 09/22/2014Pocowatchit, Rod
Wichita Public Library Presents: Oscar Nominated Shorts 2014
press release, The Orpheum Theatre, Wichita, Kansas 03/01/2014, downloaded 09/22/2014Horn, John, Associated Press,
Obscure Oscar Nominated Films Face Battle
" as published in the Sunday ''Gazette'', Mar 12, 1998, Schenectady, New York, photocopied by Google News Archive Search, downloaded 09/22/2014Jackson, Susan M.,
Academy Award director to speak in Wichita
" The Kansan, Salina, Kansas, March 26, 2010, downloaded Sept. 22, 2014
Wichita Photo Archives
/ref> * The Wichita Law Library, affiliated with the Wichita Bar Association * The Archives of the
Directory of Wichita area libraries
{{Authority control Public libraries in Kansas Education in Wichita, Kansas Buildings and structures in Wichita, Kansas Libraries established in 1876 1876 establishments in Kansas
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 in Wichita, Kansas
Wichita ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County, Kansas, Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 397,532. The Wichita metro area had ...
, United States. It consists of a central library located downtown and six branch locations distributed throughout the city.
Locations
Four district/regional branches (Alford, Evergreen, Rockwell and Westlink) offer a mix of basic research tools and popular materials for education and entertainment, while the neighborhood branches (Angelou Northeast and Linwood Park) offer mostly popular fiction and media titles in their limited spaces. The Linwood Park Branch is located in a recreation center. *Advanced Learning Library - 711 W. 2nd, Wichita, KS 67203, (316) 261-8500 (geographical coordinates: ) *Alford - 3447 S. Meridian, Wichita, KS 67217, (316) 337-9119 (geographical coordinates: ) *Angelou Northeast - 3051 E. 21st Street, Wichita, KS 67214, (316) 688-9580 (geographical coordinates: ) *Evergreen - 2601 N. Arkansas, Wichita, KS 67204, (316) 303-8181 (geographical coordinates: ) *Linwood Park - Inside Linwood Recreation Center, 1901 S. Kansas, Wichita, KS 67211, (316) 337-9125 *Rockwell - 5939 E. 9th, Wichita, KS 67208, (316) 688-9361 (geographical coordinates: ) *Westlink - 8515 Bekemeyer, Wichita, KS 67212, (316) 337-9456 (geographical coordinates: )History
Local business owners funded the establishment of the library in 1876. In 1915, it expanded into a Carnegie library, the Wichita City Carnegie Library Building, that would remain open until the establishment of the new Brutalist-style Wichita Central Library. It opened in 1967 to the general public.
On October 16, 2007, the Wichita City Council decided on the preferred site for a new central library at Second Street and McLean. The initial building program resulted in a projected budget exceeding the amount allotted, forcing the library to consider alternatives. In 2011, a study found that expanding the current Central Library facility would be possible, but would be more expensive than building a new facility and would not resolve building access issues. In 2012-13, the library's board of directors considered a phased construction approach. The city council authorized a request for qualifications, with a presentation by a preferred design team in the summer of 2014.
In January 2015, Wichita City Council voted in favor of a funding agreement with the library foundation to perform the design phase. The new facility, named the Advanced Learning Library, cost an estimated $33 million. It is two stories and has of interior space; it is designed to withstand storms and act as a storm shelter. Following the closure of the Central Public Library on May 6, 2018 after 50 years of service to the Wichita area, the Advanced Learning Library opened on June 16, 2018.
In December 2014, the Orchard Park branch inside Orchard Park Recreation Center at 4808 West 9th was closed.
The Comotara Branch Library, located inside a Dillon's supermarket since 1986, was the first library branch in the United States to open in a grocery store. The branch closed in July 2018 so Dillon's could reclaim the space.
Reference services and resources
The Wichita Public Library offers resources including reference in person, by telephone, by mail and by e-mail. As of 2011, its holdings included more than 1 million volumes. The library offers the most research capabilities from its Advanced Learning Library, located downtown. Many electronic resources are offered from the library's website and can be used by patrons from home with a library card. Additional resources are available in partnership with the State Library of Kansas and the Kansas Library Card, such as the Digital eLending (e-books and e-audiobooks) service.Programs
The library offers a wide range of programs free of charge and open to the public. Annual events include events in celebration of African-American History Month, Hispanic Heritage Month and the Academy Award Shorts (see below). The library's summer reading programs for youth reach more than 10,000 children annually. Annually, the library offers a reading program for adults. Each fall since 2008, the library has hosted "The Big Read Wichita", a series of programs built around one book title. The WPL's "Academy Awards Shorts" program is, reportedly, the oldest annual, complete, free public screening, outside of Hollywood, of the full array of short documentary, live action and animated "short" films (under 40 minutes) nominated for anAcademy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
("Oscar"). The films are normally presented, free, at the library and in local theaters and other venues around Wichita, shortly before the Academy Awards ceremonies.Wichita Public Library - Programs - 28th Annual Academy Awards Shortswebsite of the Wichita Public Library, City of Wichita, Wichita, Kansas, 03/03/2014, downloaded 09/22/201426th Annual Academy Awards Shorts
" press release, Wichita Public Library, as posted on ldtownWichita.com Wichita, Kansas, Jan.24, 2012, downloaded Sept.22, 2014Pocowatchit, Rod
Wichita Public Library to present Oscar-nominated short films
" Wichita ''Eagle,'' Wichita, Kansas 02/17/2012, Updated: 02/17/2012, downloaded 09/22/2014Pocowatchit, Rod
Wichita Public Library Presents: Oscar Nominated Shorts 2014
press release, The Orpheum Theatre, Wichita, Kansas 03/01/2014, downloaded 09/22/2014Horn, John, Associated Press,
Obscure Oscar Nominated Films Face Battle
" as published in the Sunday ''Gazette'', Mar 12, 1998, Schenectady, New York, photocopied by Google News Archive Search, downloaded 09/22/2014Jackson, Susan M.,
Academy Award director to speak in Wichita
" The Kansan, Salina, Kansas, March 26, 2010, downloaded Sept. 22, 2014
Other Wichita area libraries
Notable Wichita-area libraries include: *Wichita State University Libraries
Wichita State University Libraries are a research library system with holdings of more than 2 million volumes, 236 databases and more than 70,000 journal subscriptions. Located on the University's main campus in Wichita, Kansas University Libraries ...
is a research library system with holdings of more than 2 million volumes, over 200 databases, and more than 70,000 journal subscriptions. The WSU Libraries include the main Ablah Library, the McKinley Chemistry Library, the Thurlow Lieurance Music Library, and the University Libraries Special Collections. WSU Libraries are open to community users and serve as a regional United States Federal Government Documents Depository, a State of Kansas Government Documents Depository, and is the State of Kansas' only Patents and Trademarks Library. WSU Special Collections and University Archives contains numerous rare books and incunabula
In the history of printing, an incunable or incunabulum (plural incunables or incunabula, respectively), is a book, pamphlet, or broadside that was printed in the earliest stages of printing in Europe, up to the year 1500. Incunabula were pro ...
, historical manuscripts collections and maps, photographic archives documenting Kansas history, and hosts the Wichita Photo Archives./ref> * The Wichita Law Library, affiliated with the Wichita Bar Association * The Archives of the
Kansas Aviation Museum
The Kansas Aviation Museum is a museum located in Wichita, Kansas, United States, near 31st South and George Washington Blvd. The building was the former Wichita Municipal Airport terminal from 1935 to 1954.
The Museum features many display a ...
, which contain extensive documents on aviation, particularly the Wichita aviation industry
See also
* Wichita City Carnegie Library Building * Exploration PlaceReferences
External links
*Directory of Wichita area libraries
{{Authority control Public libraries in Kansas Education in Wichita, Kansas Buildings and structures in Wichita, Kansas Libraries established in 1876 1876 establishments in Kansas