Drake Public Library

Seeking Excellence

JeNel Barth

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Drake Library Dedication

Appanoose County History

Image of two dedication medallions from the 1903 ceremony.

Two original medallions from the 1903 dedication ceremony. One was in the library and one was found in Georgia in 2012. A man bought a box of “junk” from an auction and found the medallion in the bottom of the box. He researched the library online and called wanting to donate it to the library.

January 15, 1903: Hundreds of people arrived in town for the dedication of Drake Public Library. From Des Moines, two special trains traveled the Wabash and Central train tracks. One carried Iowa’s governor, Albert Baird Cummins and 300 state officials. The other brought 500 Drake University students, including their band and glee clubs. Guests were served food at the Armory Opera House, at the Presbyterian Church and at another building given by Drake to the town, the Central Church of Christ on Drake Avenue. One thousand bronze medals were sold at 25 cents each. On the steps of the library, Governor Cummins gave a speech. Ex-governor Drake lifted a key. He unlocked the door and handed the key to Mayor Callen. People cheered. Unknown then, the opening of the Drake Public Library would be Drake’s last public event.   Enfys McMurry Appanoose County History published in Daily Iowegian.

Governor Francis M. Drake, donor of Drake Public Library

Portrait of Governor Francis Marion Drake hanging behind the Circulation desk on the main floor.

….”And yet another revelation greeted Drake. The Daily Citizen reported it thusly: “When Governor Drake entered the library with Governor Cummins and his party, he was greeted with another surprise, for there in a conspicuous place was a life sized portrait of himself handsomely mounted and framed in gold leaf….” Incidentally, this portrait still hangs in the library.

Drake visited the library in early March of 1903 and decided more furnishings were needed and told the Library Board “he would pay for it.” He gave them $700 with the understanding if still added funds were required, he would cover the cost.

Image of historical pamphlet available at Drake Public Library.

Pamphlet on file at Drake Public Library. Compiled by local author and business man, Robert K. Beck.

“Let us remember this library is not alone for our generation, but for generations yet to come. Men die but institutions live on. Let us then, fellow citizens, appreciate our gift by considering what it means for the present and future.” Remarks delivered January 15, 1903 by Reverend George W. Adams at the dedication dinner honoring the Library donor General F.M. Drake—excerpted from The Drake Free Public Library: The Story about its gift and dedication in January 1903 by Robert K. Beck

Drake University was established in Des Moines, Iowa in 1877. The Drake gift proposal was formalized by an April 9, 1901 letter to “The Honorable Mayor and the City Council of Centerville, Iowa.” Therefore Centerville did not choose a library over a university. This is a myth that has circulated for years!

 

 

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A time for reflection

Child with experiment being watched by female in white lab coat.

Summer Reading Program event. Science Center program instructor helping child perform experiment.

2014 is almost a memory, and we are facing a new year. Television shows are running year end summaries, and people are pledging to make permanent lifestyle changes on January 1, 2015.  This is a time for reflection. How does a library define the past year? As Library Director, I look at statistics, program numbers, and building challenges of 2014.

In 2014, the library circulated 93,038 items. This doesn’t include ebook circulations. That number is pretty impressive! In 2013 items circulated totaled 81,811. The library strives to increase that number every year. In this age of electronic information, the fact that the Drake Library can circulate 93,038 books, magazines, and DVDs is impressive. I could go on a long winded rant about how libraries are still relevant to the world and needed by everyone, but I will save that for another blog post!

This year the Summer Reading Program was a raging hit. Participants read over 2,330 hours, a record number of children finished the program. The theme was “Fizz, Boom, Read!” and was fully supported financially by the Friends of the Drake Public Library.

The library also started monthly movies at the library. Positive feedback has ensured that more movies will be shown in 2015. Watch for posters and publicity. Family oriented movies for everyone to enjoy is the main focus of the movie nights.

The American Girl Doll program is successful. Five dolls are available for check out and several parties were held at the library with the American Girl Dolls being the main focus. In December, Mariah Clawson, 2014 Miss Pancake Day, came to the Christmas Tea Party and posed for pictures with attendees.

Pancake Day Queen with two young children

Mariah Clawson Miss Pancake Day 2014 visits with Christmas Tea Attendees.

The library has a brand new website! The site is fabulous and friendly to use! We are using Social Media (Facebook and Twitter) to get our message out into the world. The library is very grateful to a local donor for funding this website! Our website features news, pictures, and links to various online resources.

The Drake Library was opened in 1903 and is still open 111 years later! The same building now provides internet connectivity via wireless and wired computer labs. The smoking rooms and vinyl record collection are gone and in their place, patrons use computers to search for jobs, read the news, and stay in contact with friends across the world. The steam heat radiators are gone, replaced by seven furnaces and central air units. Keeping a building like the Drake Library open and operational is no easy task. This year was an easy year for maintenance. The new waterproofing system in the basement kept the floors dry and the lower walls mold free. New carpet and paint was a spring upgrade in the Children’s section of the library.

The windows are still/always an ongoing project for the library board. This year a window study was conducted by an architectural firm. The findings from that study are now being investigated and plans made to either preserve or replace the massive library windows on all three floors.

2014 was a positive year for the library! Lots of people are using the library and the programs we provide! The library building received a mini facelift in the basement and the board is still considering window solutions. The library staff looks forward to 2015 and wishes you a Happy New Year!

Kids on steps outside of Appanoose County Historical Museum

Annual trip to Appanoose County Historical Museum.

 

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In Defense of DVDs

DVD's on the shelf in the Children's Section of the library

Children’s DVDs

The Drake Public Library has a DVD collection that is heavily used by the patrons. Some people question this and think it is unnecessary. We circulate DVDs for a number of reasons, entertainment, familiarity, and necessity.

I recently attended a community function and was in an audience of approximately 125 people. The emcee brought up the Drake Library, commented on how long it had been open and then jokingly mentioned that the library has an extensive collection of DVDs. Several people laughed. What is so funny about that?

Libraries serve the public, much of what we do is based on the public’s needs, perceived and real. We feature board books for tiny toddlers, we also have a large print collection for failing and elderly eyes. We want to provide useful materials for everyone!

Movies are fun, they are an escape from reality. Special effects, compelling story lines, and talented actors draw viewers in and keep them captivated, for 90 minutes or so. Movies are big business and are as popular as ever. Movies made from successful books are really successful. Teachers often assign students to watch a movie after the class has read the book. Book clubs like to watch movies based on books.

If a patron comes to the library just to get DVDs that is fine! We don’t care! A librarian hopes that someday a DVD patron will feel comfortable enough to branch out into books, magazines, or audiobooks, but if not, no big deal!

DVDs - Black Swan, Breaking Bad, The girl with the dragon tattoo (European Version)

Several of the DVDs available for checkout on the main floor. We have lots of current television series available.

We want the public to feel comfortable here, if children use the library with their parents, then they may use the library as adults. We really like to build a relationship with our patrons.  There is a group of regular patrons that visit often, daily or every other day. My former boss often joked that librarians are bartenders without liquor. We know our patrons, we get involved in their lives.

Why do people still check out DVDs from the library in the age of ROKU, Redbox, Netflix, and Hulu? I think it all boils down to cost. Being on the cutting edge of technology is expensive. Not everyone can afford cable television. Lots of patrons that use our DVD service don’t have cable. Cable is a luxury.

Going to the movie theatre with a family of four can easily cost $60.00 on a Friday night. Library DVDs are free, available for two weeks at a time and can be renewed. Why spend money on purchasing a DVD when you will more than likely watch it one time and then it will clutter up your front room?

Come to the library, check out a DVD, or check out a book, we don’t care! We are just happy to see you!

 

 

 

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Reading Recommendations in an Online World

The Rules of Reading —

Library-Reads-Logo-ColorHow do you decide what to read next? Do you have a “to be read” pile by your chair? Once you read a book, do you record the title in some type of journal?

I use the internet to find a lot of my reading material. Goodreads and Amazon are two websites that help or recommend titles of interest. I also use magazines as a great source to get ideas for what to read. People magazine and Entertainment Weekly publish reviews of upcoming books and also talk of movies based on books.  Twitter, Library Journal, Booklist are other sources to find lists of must read books.

Libraryreads.org is a website that picks ten new books each month. Librarians across the United States recommend the titles. Every book comes with a guarantee that it is a librarian picked good read! I try to order all ten books every month for the library.

Being the librarian that orders books for the Drake Library, I find myself constantly thinking about what books people want to read. When I go in a bookstore, new or used, I whip out my phone and take pictures of books I want to order for the library. My daughter who is 17 taught me this trick and it works well. Before I had a purse full of scribbled scraps of paper full of titles and ideas.  I don’t read James Patterson myself, but he is the most wanted author at the library, so his books are automatically ordered!

I use a “jobber” to order most of the library books. Baker and Taylor is a company that provides a substantial discount to libraries for books. State organizations negotiate with jobbers to get the best discounts for the libraries within that state. I order books online these days. Book orders in the past were faxed or called in to jobbers. But the online shopping cart experience is the way to go these days! I get up to date inventory information and the library discount is automatically applied to the cart before it is submitted online.

I also talk to patrons and take requests for books to order. I am lucky enough that a member of my staff reads Science Fiction and Young Adult. Two areas I don’t read. She keeps me up to date on the books I need to order for those genres. I do the best I can, but I do appreciate patron requests.

Do you have a list of books you have read? I use Goodreads to enter all my books after I finish them. I also rate them at the time, then I don’t have to keep track of a journal. Some people use computer spread sheets for their lists. I know several ladies that have pocket notebooks full of authors and titles. Other people don’t track their reading at all. But I find it is fun to go back and look at all the books I read in a year or a season.  I also sometimes cruise Amazon and read other people’s reviews of a book I just finished to see if I missed something or to commiserate with them about a sloppy plot twist.

Remember, whoever dies with the biggest pile of books to be read, wins! Or maybe it is the biggest pile of books already read.

 

 

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Welcome to our New Website!

Drake Public Library website

Drake Public Library’s new website!

Welcome to our new Drake Public Library website! We will be using our website to provide timely information, access online materials and answer any questions you may have about our library.

Spend some time getting to know your way around our new site. You will find lots of pictures of our beautiful building, our active ‘Friends of the Library’ group, and toddlers at Story Time in the various website photo galleries.

The site is easy to navigate and full of information, but please do not hesitate to call, email or visit the library in person. We are here to help you meet your life goals – whether you’re perfecting a resume, reading a classic novel or finding the perfect recipe for a roasted chicken.

Thanks to technology, libraries are different these days – but our core mission statement remains the same. We are here to help our patrons! So feel free to browse, search, click, “like,” and certainly bookmark this website for future use!

Our blog will be updated regularly with library information, news stories, book reviews, and fun tidbits of information. If you’re interested in receiving our blogs as they’re published, please subscribe in the right sidebar.

Our beloved Drake Public Library – serving the community for 111 years and looking forward to the future!

Staff at Drake Public Library