The Prince George's County Memorial Library System (PGCMLS) is the public library system of

Prince George's County, Maryland ) , demonym = Prince Georgian , ZIP codes = 20607–20774 , area codes = 240, 301 , founded date = April 23 , founded year = 1696 , named for = Prince George of Denmark , leader_title = Executive , leader_name = Angela D. Alsobroo ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, in the

Washington metropolitan area The Washington metropolitan area, also commonly referred to as the National Capital Region, is the metropolitan area centered on Washington, D.C. The metropolitan area includes all of Washington, D.C. and parts of the states of Maryland, Virgin ...

. Its headquarters are in the Largo-Kettering Branch in Largo.

Branches and offices

There are 19 branch libraries in the Prince George's County Memorial Library System: Accokeek,

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden is ...

, Beltsville, Bladensburg, Bowie,

Fairmount Heights Fairmount Heights is a town in Prince George's County, Maryland, Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. Per the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 1,528. The town was formally incorporated in 1935, making the t ...

, Glenarden,

Greenbelt A green belt is a policy and land-use zone designation used in land-use planning to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wild, or agricultural land surrounding or neighboring urban areas. Similar concepts are greenways or green wedges, which hav ...

, Hillcrest Heights,

Hyattsville Hyattsville is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, and also a close, urban suburb of Washington, D.C. The population was 21,187 at the 2020 United States Census. History Before Europeans reached the area, the upper A ...

, Largo-

Kettering Kettering is a market and industrial town in North Northamptonshire, England. It is located north of London and north-east of Northampton, west of the River Ise, a tributary of the River Nene. The name means "the place (or territory) of Ket ...

Laurel Laurel may refer to: Plants * Lauraceae, the laurel family * Laurel (plant), including a list of trees and plants known as laurel People * Laurel (given name), people with the given name * Laurel (surname), people with the surname * Laurel (mus ...

Mount Rainier Mount Rainier (), indigenously known as Tahoma, Tacoma, Tacobet, or təqʷubəʔ, is a large active stratovolcano in the Cascade Range of the Pacific Northwest, located in Mount Rainier National Park about south-southeast of Seattle. With a s ...

, New Carrollton,

Oxon Hill Oxon Hill is an unincorporated area and census-designated place (CDP) in southern Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. Oxon Hill is a suburb of Washington, located southeast of the downtown district and east of Alexandria, Virginia. It ...

, South Bowie, Spauldings, Surratts-Clinton and Upper Marlboro. The South Bowie branch, the newest library in the county, opened in October 2012. PGCMLS also provides library service at the County Correctional Center Previously the library headquarters were in Hyattsville, adjacent to the Hyattsville Library.

History and organization

The Library System was established in 1946 “...as a living memorial to those who have made the supreme sacrifice and a testimonial to all those who served in wars.” The Laurel Branch was the first library to become part of the System, and the first county-built library was the Hyattsville Branch which housed the Library's Administrative Offices until 2015. In June of that year, the Administrative Offices were moved the Largo-Kettering Branch. PGCMLS is governed by a Board of Library Trustees, appointed by the County Executive and approved by the County Council. In 2021, it was reported that librarians in the library system had formed a union.

Community programs and services

Some of the services offered by the Prince George's County Memorial Library System are: print, audio, video and electronic materials, storytimes and early literacy programs, programs for teens, book discussions, the Summer Reading Program, author readings and presentations, public PCs and wireless access, electronic databases, outreach services, special needs services, meeting rooms, and volunteer opportunities.

Non-resident library privileges

The library system is part of the Maryland Consolidated Library System, which provides that any person who is a resident of the State of Maryland may obtain a library card at no charge at any county library or Baltimore City. This privilege is also available to non-residents who work for an employer in Maryland or pay property taxes there. A person may apply for a card from any library system in the state, or choose to authorize a card from any other library system in the state on that system. Non-residents who do not qualify may obtain a library card for a fee of $50 a year. An exception is made for residents of nearby jurisdictions outside of Maryland who will grant free library privileges to county residents, in which case the library will reciprocate. Thus, residents of the District of Columbia as well as the residents of the cities of Alexandria, Falls Church, and Fairfax, as well as the counties of Arlington and Fairfax in Virginia may obtain library cards at no charge.

Nearby public library systems

* Alexandria Public Library *

Arlington Public Library The Arlington Public Library is a public library system located in Arlington County, Virginia. The library system includes nine locations that serve 214,373 people. It began as a library in the Glencarlyn community in the late 1800s. In ...

District of Columbia Public Library The District of Columbia Public Library (DCPL) is the public library system for the District of Columbia, in the United States. The system includes 26 individual libraries including Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library (the DCPL's central libra ...

Fairfax County Public Library The Fairfax County Public Library (FCPL) is a public library system headquartered in Suite 324 of The Fairfax County Government Center in unincorporated Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. Hennen's American Public Library Ratings ...

Howard County Public Library Howard County Library System (HCLS), established in 1940, is a public library system located in central Maryland. HCLS delivers equal opportunity in education to students of all ages in Howard County, Maryland. Special collections The Charles ...

* Montgomery County Public Libraries

References

Citations

Sources

* Denny, George D., Nathania Branch-Miles, and Donna L. Schneider. "Quality of Life." ''Historic Prince George's County: A Confluence of Cultures''. San Antonio, TX: Historical Network, 2011. * Maryland State Archives. �
Prince George’s County, Maryland – Executive Branch – Education
” ''Maryland Manual On-Line''. Maryland State Archives, 20 Feb. 2013. * Prince George's County Memorial Library System. “History of Prince George's County Memorial Library System.” ''Policy and Procedures Manual'', 2003.

External links

*
Prince George's County Library Federation records
at the

University of Maryland libraries The University of Maryland Libraries is the largest university library in the Washington, D.C. - Baltimore area. The university's library system includes eight libraries: six are located on the College Park campus, while the Severn Library, an of ...

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