Adamstown Area Library

Mission :

We, the Adamstown Area Library, are in the information business. Our mission is to promote and supply opportunities for educating, informing and meeting the recreational needs of the community. The Adamstown Area Library provides access to the flow of ideas and diverse opinions necessary to nourish a free society.

History of the Library :

The history of Adamstonw Area Library starts with one group,the Adamstown Woman's Club. This organization has been an integral part of our library for over 60 years. At a special meeting held in 1945, this industrious group of women addressed the need for a  community library.  An agreement was reached for the Club to pay the fee for the use of a small building located on the property of a local resident, thus establishing the first home for the library.  Woman’s Club members enlisted the help of other volunteers in cleaning, painting, making drapes, and installing bookshelves. Upon completion of these projects, the library was ready to house approximately 100 books which had been donated by residents from the community.  In these early days of its existence, a dedicated group of 80 volunteers took turns staffing the library for a couple of hours per week.  Increased interest in the library prompted a move to more spacious quarters in the YMCA building, and eventually to its current location in the borough hall building on Reading Road (Route 272).

Throughout the many transformations that the library has undergone over the years, the Woman’s Club has remained steadfast in its support with 25 years of house tours, the entire proceeds of which go directly to the library.  Another fundraising activity is the sale of holiday entertainment books during November and December.  The Club has also financed the graduate school education of its first director, who completed her Masters in Library Science degree through Clarion University.  Other evidence of the organization’s support includes funding of some library programs, monetary donations for the purchase of library books, and members who continue to volunteer at our library.  The Adamstown Area Library truly owes its existence (and are grateful) to the Woman’s Club of Adamstown.