History of the
Rushville Public Library
By Kathleen Elizabeth Copeland
The history of the Rushville Public Library is long, rich and full of interesting events. Many important milestones have occurred in the eighty-three years since the Rushville Public Library was created. There is a strong library in Rushville today, thanks to the long ago generosity of Andrew Carnegie and the hard work of the Rushville Federation of Women. Over the years the Rushville Public Library has progressed quite nicely. Today it is expanding with new technology and public support. This library is one of the many treasures in Rushville. Hopefully, it will be everlasting and provide service for the community of Rushville for another hundred years.
On April 5,1878 the Rushville Public Library Association was founded. The beginning membership fee was three dollars and there were dues of two dollars annually. A booklet detailing the constitution and regulations of the association was printed in the Rushville Times in 1884 and indicated that the collection had already grown to a 1,000 titles. At this time the Library Association reading room was located in a room above Vedder's Drugstore. Because the association was staffed by volunteers, the responsibility for keeping the reading room open constantly fell to the same few individuals.1 So on December 5, 1904 the city council voted and approved the motion to look into building and maintaining a public library. They appointed the committee of E.S. McIllheney, John Webster, and T.J. Noble.2 Some time later the library committee wrote an undated letter to Andrew Carnegie asking for a library building that would cost about $ 8,000. Andrew Carnegie was a man who, from 1889 to 1923, donated money to cities and small towns across the United States to build 1,679 libraries. One hundred and six Carnegie libraries were built in Illinois. To receive money from Carnegie to build a library the city had to have a suitable building site provided and be willing to pay taxes to support the library. On February 2, 1906 the mayor of Rushville wrote to Carnegie asking to become one of the funded libraries. On February 13, 1906 James Bertram, Andrew Carnegie's secretary, responded with an offer of $5,000.4 The city council accepted the gift and on February 19,1906 passed an ordiance and resolution establishing a library in Rushville. On March 30, 1906 an election to establish a public library took place and the referendum failed. However, for some unknown reason no futher action was taken at this time conserning a building.
The Rushville Women's Federation is also one of the main reasons the library exists.The federation was founded on February 22, 1909, when members from five reading clubs united together to form a group. This organization was composed of many prominent Rushville women. The women conducted a story time for younger children to come hear various works of literature. They also provided a study club for adults. On September 28, 1909 the Women's Federation, unaware of the previous correspondence wrote to Carnegie asking for grant monies, Bertram wrote back and informed them that a prior offer of $ 5,000 6 had been made three years earlier. J.C.K. Pierson, of Jacksonville, was appointed to design the library. During this time, to get the grant moneys, a city had to submit the architectural building plans. Bertram approved the plans in 1911. Although he did not care for the skyline of the front elevation he increased the grant moneys to $ 7,500.7 The Women's Federation was also interested in obtaining a building site. In 1910 the city was given land on which to build the library. The warranty deed shows a piece of land adjacent to the square, 104 North Monroe Street was donated by Frances A. Scripps and John L. Scripps on May 17, 1910 . While the library was being built the construction costs turned out to be higher than the grant monies. So, to finish the library, the Women's Federation agreed to pay $ 400 to complete the basement. For their generous donation the Women's Federation was given a 32' x 23' room in the basement in which they would hold their meetings. The Rushville Free Public Library was opened on Febuary 12, 1913. Several hundred people visited the library that day. The Women's Federation suprised the library board by serving frappe to the visitors in their meeting room. They also arranged to have a harpist play in the afternoon and evening. 8 The library occupies a space of 58' x 25' sq. ft. It faces east on Monroe Street in Rushville. The top floor is one large room. When it first opened in 1913 the south wing was the adult section and the north wing was the children's department.9 Most of the original children's books were donated by the Women's Federation. On the day of opening the librarian ,Miss Beluh Hogsdon, was busy accessioning the first 1,500 volumes10 From 1920 to 1960 not much history was recorded. There weren't many changes except for librarians. After one and a half years Nora Trimble became the assistant librarian. She later became the head librarian and served until April of 1917. Elizabeth Bell became the assistant and served until November,1917 when Rosa Jackson was hired and served faithfully for thirty years. While Rosa Jackson was the librarian the library gained thousands of books. One very special donor was a man named Albert Morris Bagby. Mr. Bagby was born in Rushville. From 1922 to 1941 Albert Bagby donated more than 2,500 books. He also donated statues and paintings from foreign countries. Mr. Bagby died in 1941 at the age of eighty-one.11 He was a great man whose gifts are still honored today in the library. Rosa Jackson retired a few years later. In August 1947 Nellie Schultz was hired as the librarian, but in December she took a leave of absence. Kathryn Chandler was appointed and served until 1950 when another lady named Elizabeth Bell was was hired. She worked until 1969, when Mary Elizabeth Cole was engaged as the librarian. At this time Beatrice Logan was the assistant librarian. She held this position until 1972 when Marjorie Bigham was employed as the librarian. The library expanded in a variety of ways in the 1960's. In 1964 Chapter 81 of the revised Statutes was rewritten and the Great Rivers Library System was established. In 1967 the Rushville Public Library joined Great Rivers Library System. The library also expanded physically.
In 1964 the Women's Federation moved their meeting room to the Virgina at Scripps Park. In 1972 the meeting room was refurbished. Ten years later, when the upper level became overcrowded, the juvenile department was moved downstairs to the meeting room. Marjorie Bigham became the children's librarian and Linda Orstred was appointed as the assistant librarian. Mary Elizabeth Cole retired in 1983 after serving the community for fourteen years. Ms. Bigham took over for Mary Cole and Lisa Thompson became the children's librarian. Marjorie Bigham retired in 1985 with Brenda Eyler taking her place. Ms. Eyler resigned in 1987. The current head librarian is Charlene Copeland and the two assistant librarians are Sandy Bullard and Darla Kirkham.12
Today the library is entering the age of technology. It has eight computers. One of which is on the Resource Sharing Alliance. This is a program that allows one to access books from surrounding libraries by an online catalog. Not only does the library have a program that allows you to access books from other libraries, but it's entire circulation system is computerized. Every book in the library and every person who has a library card is catalogued on a computer database. The library is constantly expanding. Today it owns over 23,000 hard copy books access to thousands of e-books. The library also currently receives over thirty-eight different magazines and newspapers. Today the Rushville Public Library has many programs for the Public. In the summer it has a summer reading program once a week for about two months. It also has a pre-school story time, which lasts for eight weeks in the spring, summer, and fall. The library also deliveries books to the Homebound. The Rushville Public Library offers many programs that enable you to read. Hopefully people will support it and it will stay open for everyone to use in the future years.
There are many Carnegie libraries in Illinois. The Rushville Public Library happens to be one of them. The library opened on February 12, 1913. There has been a long chain of librarians that gave the library exceptional help. The Women's Federation is one of the main reasons the library is around today. Over the years the library has become very essential in the community. In 1982 the library board was given the meeting room. Today the library is catching up with the world in technology. The current system makes it easier and quicker to checkout books and accession them. The Rushville Public Library also offers a variety of programs to encourage adults and their children to read. In the past eighty years this library has made great progress. With continued support the Rushville Public Library will continue to meet the needs of the people of Rushville and the surrounding community .
In 2011 Mardelle Hinners gave the library a memorial in her parents names; Arthur and Carrie Hinners . The bequest made it possible for the library to apply for a Public Construction Grant from the Illinois State Library .The library was awarded a matching grant for 1.2 million dollars to complete the project. Ground was broken for a new building in September 2013. The building was designed by Allied Design Consultants and the Construction Management firn was Harold O'Shea Builders of Springfield Illinois.
Notes 1.Bial, Raymond and Bial, Linda LaPuma. The Carnegie Library in Illinois. Urbana, Illinois: University Press, 1991, 65p. 2.Rushville City Council minutes, February 19, 1906, 107p. 3. Schnell, Karen. Illinois Carnegie Libraries, from 1900-1918. Springfield, Illinois, 1993, 10p. 4.Bial, 65p. 5.History of the Rushville Women's Federation, Rushville, Illinois: 1983, 1p.
Rushville Public Library
By Kathleen Elizabeth Copeland
The history of the Rushville Public Library is long, rich and full of interesting events. Many important milestones have occurred in the eighty-three years since the Rushville Public Library was created. There is a strong library in Rushville today, thanks to the long ago generosity of Andrew Carnegie and the hard work of the Rushville Federation of Women. Over the years the Rushville Public Library has progressed quite nicely. Today it is expanding with new technology and public support. This library is one of the many treasures in Rushville. Hopefully, it will be everlasting and provide service for the community of Rushville for another hundred years.
On April 5,1878 the Rushville Public Library Association was founded. The beginning membership fee was three dollars and there were dues of two dollars annually. A booklet detailing the constitution and regulations of the association was printed in the Rushville Times in 1884 and indicated that the collection had already grown to a 1,000 titles. At this time the Library Association reading room was located in a room above Vedder's Drugstore. Because the association was staffed by volunteers, the responsibility for keeping the reading room open constantly fell to the same few individuals.1 So on December 5, 1904 the city council voted and approved the motion to look into building and maintaining a public library. They appointed the committee of E.S. McIllheney, John Webster, and T.J. Noble.2 Some time later the library committee wrote an undated letter to Andrew Carnegie asking for a library building that would cost about $ 8,000. Andrew Carnegie was a man who, from 1889 to 1923, donated money to cities and small towns across the United States to build 1,679 libraries. One hundred and six Carnegie libraries were built in Illinois. To receive money from Carnegie to build a library the city had to have a suitable building site provided and be willing to pay taxes to support the library. On February 2, 1906 the mayor of Rushville wrote to Carnegie asking to become one of the funded libraries. On February 13, 1906 James Bertram, Andrew Carnegie's secretary, responded with an offer of $5,000.4 The city council accepted the gift and on February 19,1906 passed an ordiance and resolution establishing a library in Rushville. On March 30, 1906 an election to establish a public library took place and the referendum failed. However, for some unknown reason no futher action was taken at this time conserning a building.
The Rushville Women's Federation is also one of the main reasons the library exists.The federation was founded on February 22, 1909, when members from five reading clubs united together to form a group. This organization was composed of many prominent Rushville women. The women conducted a story time for younger children to come hear various works of literature. They also provided a study club for adults. On September 28, 1909 the Women's Federation, unaware of the previous correspondence wrote to Carnegie asking for grant monies, Bertram wrote back and informed them that a prior offer of $ 5,000 6 had been made three years earlier. J.C.K. Pierson, of Jacksonville, was appointed to design the library. During this time, to get the grant moneys, a city had to submit the architectural building plans. Bertram approved the plans in 1911. Although he did not care for the skyline of the front elevation he increased the grant moneys to $ 7,500.7 The Women's Federation was also interested in obtaining a building site. In 1910 the city was given land on which to build the library. The warranty deed shows a piece of land adjacent to the square, 104 North Monroe Street was donated by Frances A. Scripps and John L. Scripps on May 17, 1910 . While the library was being built the construction costs turned out to be higher than the grant monies. So, to finish the library, the Women's Federation agreed to pay $ 400 to complete the basement. For their generous donation the Women's Federation was given a 32' x 23' room in the basement in which they would hold their meetings. The Rushville Free Public Library was opened on Febuary 12, 1913. Several hundred people visited the library that day. The Women's Federation suprised the library board by serving frappe to the visitors in their meeting room. They also arranged to have a harpist play in the afternoon and evening. 8 The library occupies a space of 58' x 25' sq. ft. It faces east on Monroe Street in Rushville. The top floor is one large room. When it first opened in 1913 the south wing was the adult section and the north wing was the children's department.9 Most of the original children's books were donated by the Women's Federation. On the day of opening the librarian ,Miss Beluh Hogsdon, was busy accessioning the first 1,500 volumes10 From 1920 to 1960 not much history was recorded. There weren't many changes except for librarians. After one and a half years Nora Trimble became the assistant librarian. She later became the head librarian and served until April of 1917. Elizabeth Bell became the assistant and served until November,1917 when Rosa Jackson was hired and served faithfully for thirty years. While Rosa Jackson was the librarian the library gained thousands of books. One very special donor was a man named Albert Morris Bagby. Mr. Bagby was born in Rushville. From 1922 to 1941 Albert Bagby donated more than 2,500 books. He also donated statues and paintings from foreign countries. Mr. Bagby died in 1941 at the age of eighty-one.11 He was a great man whose gifts are still honored today in the library. Rosa Jackson retired a few years later. In August 1947 Nellie Schultz was hired as the librarian, but in December she took a leave of absence. Kathryn Chandler was appointed and served until 1950 when another lady named Elizabeth Bell was was hired. She worked until 1969, when Mary Elizabeth Cole was engaged as the librarian. At this time Beatrice Logan was the assistant librarian. She held this position until 1972 when Marjorie Bigham was employed as the librarian. The library expanded in a variety of ways in the 1960's. In 1964 Chapter 81 of the revised Statutes was rewritten and the Great Rivers Library System was established. In 1967 the Rushville Public Library joined Great Rivers Library System. The library also expanded physically.
In 1964 the Women's Federation moved their meeting room to the Virgina at Scripps Park. In 1972 the meeting room was refurbished. Ten years later, when the upper level became overcrowded, the juvenile department was moved downstairs to the meeting room. Marjorie Bigham became the children's librarian and Linda Orstred was appointed as the assistant librarian. Mary Elizabeth Cole retired in 1983 after serving the community for fourteen years. Ms. Bigham took over for Mary Cole and Lisa Thompson became the children's librarian. Marjorie Bigham retired in 1985 with Brenda Eyler taking her place. Ms. Eyler resigned in 1987. The current head librarian is Charlene Copeland and the two assistant librarians are Sandy Bullard and Darla Kirkham.12
Today the library is entering the age of technology. It has eight computers. One of which is on the Resource Sharing Alliance. This is a program that allows one to access books from surrounding libraries by an online catalog. Not only does the library have a program that allows you to access books from other libraries, but it's entire circulation system is computerized. Every book in the library and every person who has a library card is catalogued on a computer database. The library is constantly expanding. Today it owns over 23,000 hard copy books access to thousands of e-books. The library also currently receives over thirty-eight different magazines and newspapers. Today the Rushville Public Library has many programs for the Public. In the summer it has a summer reading program once a week for about two months. It also has a pre-school story time, which lasts for eight weeks in the spring, summer, and fall. The library also deliveries books to the Homebound. The Rushville Public Library offers many programs that enable you to read. Hopefully people will support it and it will stay open for everyone to use in the future years.
There are many Carnegie libraries in Illinois. The Rushville Public Library happens to be one of them. The library opened on February 12, 1913. There has been a long chain of librarians that gave the library exceptional help. The Women's Federation is one of the main reasons the library is around today. Over the years the library has become very essential in the community. In 1982 the library board was given the meeting room. Today the library is catching up with the world in technology. The current system makes it easier and quicker to checkout books and accession them. The Rushville Public Library also offers a variety of programs to encourage adults and their children to read. In the past eighty years this library has made great progress. With continued support the Rushville Public Library will continue to meet the needs of the people of Rushville and the surrounding community .
In 2011 Mardelle Hinners gave the library a memorial in her parents names; Arthur and Carrie Hinners . The bequest made it possible for the library to apply for a Public Construction Grant from the Illinois State Library .The library was awarded a matching grant for 1.2 million dollars to complete the project. Ground was broken for a new building in September 2013. The building was designed by Allied Design Consultants and the Construction Management firn was Harold O'Shea Builders of Springfield Illinois.
Notes 1.Bial, Raymond and Bial, Linda LaPuma. The Carnegie Library in Illinois. Urbana, Illinois: University Press, 1991, 65p. 2.Rushville City Council minutes, February 19, 1906, 107p. 3. Schnell, Karen. Illinois Carnegie Libraries, from 1900-1918. Springfield, Illinois, 1993, 10p. 4.Bial, 65p. 5.History of the Rushville Women's Federation, Rushville, Illinois: 1983, 1p.