CLEVELAND — In a place where stern-faced librarians might place a finger to their lips and utter a "Shhhhhh!" sound, there are now squeals of delight coming from youngsters who are romping through the room. Over the years, the Cleveland Public Library has changed a great deal. In the main branch of the library is an entire room dedicated to puppetry and puppet shows to the delight of children.
The library is celebrating 150 years and reminded the public CPL is the country's third largest public research library. "What that means is not only do we have popular materials, but we also have great resource collections, some of which are the best in the world," said Felton Thomas, executive director and CEO of the Cleveland library system.
The Cleveland library began in 1869. Nationally-known industrialist Andrew Carnegie, who helped libraries begin, donated $250,000 to the Cleveland system. By 1925, the main library building in downtown Cleveland on Superior Avenue opened its doors.
Early-on, the system was innovative. "We had one of the first libraries for kids and we started the open-shelf method here," said John Skrtic, director of public services. By 1928, one of the members of the board of directors for the system had major donations of items. "John G. White donated over 70,000 volumes to the Cleveland Public Library," said Pam Eyerdam who heads the special collections department.
In addition to the main branch of the system, there are 27 branches throughout Cleveland neighborhoods. The main library boasts 11,000,000 volumes on its shelves. But in addition, there are microfilms, e-books, movies, and other items.
Among the items in special collections are chess pieces and publications about the game of chess from around the world.
The CPL has served the city well, providing the public with information which can educate, enlighten, and entertain. "We're the people's university," said Thomas. "Unlike the other universities where you have to pay tuition or you have to have this wonderful [grade point average], the CPL is the people's university for everyone."
The CPL plans programs throughout the year as it celebrates a century-and-a-half of serving Cleveland.
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