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Local History

Kalamazoo Public Library

Baldauf, Hans B.

In 1966, five months after his death at the age of 73, the Kalamazoo Public Library honored the local scientist Hans B. Baldauf, by naming the museum’s planetarium after the…

"Books for Soldiers" Campaign

“Books Wanted for Soldiers” was the Kalamazoo Public Library’s (KPL) request to the public in August 1917. Through its membership in the American Library Association (ALA), which was named an…

Alma Powell Branch History

In May of 1968 an anonymous gift of $10,000 was received by the Kalamazoo Board of Education for the purpose of establishing a library in the poorest section of town. At that meeting, the board acknowledged the gift but decided not to accept it...

Bookmobile Service

Kalamazoo’s branch libraries served many of the neighborhoods and communities that were beyond the Central Business District. Yet, by the 1950s, the growing decentralization of residents to suburban regions led library administrators to consider...

DeVries, David

Public libraries offer many services that people often think of as synonymous with libraries: books, online content like databases and streaming services, programs, technology. What’s talked about less are the…

Eastwood Branch History

The first Kalamazoo Public Library branch dedicated to serving the east side of the city opened in 1912 in the original East Avenue School building. Due to increasing usage over the years, the branch moved in 1940 to a storefront location further...

Flora B. Roberts

When Flora B. Roberts began her twenty-four year career as chief librarian of the Kalamazoo Public Library in February 1918, she found the library in complete disarray. Her initial lofty goals were to recatalog the entire 50,000 volume collection...

Jennie Wolcott Kent

During the summer of 1872, Jennie Wolcott suggested that the school library would be more useful if it were made available to the general public. The library committee agreed, and Miss Wolcott became Kalamazoo’s first public librarian.

Kalamazoo Public Library Children’s Room

The Kalamazoo Public Library was one of the first public libraries in the nation to recognize the need for a children’s department. In December 1894, a children’s reading room was opened in the basement of the library...

Kalamazoo Public Library History

The origins of the Kalamazoo Public Library were humble. In 1860 the local school district inherited 123 volumes from a failed township library. With that tiny collection, a library was opened for a single hour per week, its use limited to...

Kalamazoo Public Library: The 1939 Film

The original Kalamazoo Public Library building, built in 1893, was already running out of space by the 1920s. The library had purchased the adjacent Peck and Kauffer houses on Rose Street, and the carriage house behind them, which were also...

Kalamazoo Public Library's Stained Glass

When the original Kalamazoo Public Library building opened in 1893, it contained 81 mosaic windows designed by Edward J. N. Stent, who also designed the stenciling and other decorative items for the building. Stent was a New York designer...

Kalamazoo Public Museum

The library’s museum came into being in 1881 when Horace M. Peck donated a collection of corals, shells, and fossils to the library. The collection remained largely undeveloped until 1927 when the Kalamazoo Public Museum was established.

KPL in the News

Since the library came into being in October 1872, its services and programs have generated a fair amount of headlines and daily news coverage–most of which have been of the…

Marilyn “Mamie” Austin (1887-1949)

There are many times when people never get a chance to see the impact of their work. Kalamazoo photographer Mamie Austin is one of those individuals. Her images taken for the Kalamazoo Public Library’s Art Department in the late 1930s and early...

Mary Mace Spradling

Mary Mace Spradling’s revolutionary act of diversifying the library collection is only one part of her legacy as a librarian.

Oshtemo Branch Library

A group of interested Oshtemo Township citizens began meeting in 1964 to discuss forming a library. Their work continued for two years before the township board agreed to allocate funds for the project. In 1966 Oshtemo Station opened its doors in...

Powell, Alma H.

The library has always been a special place for both children and adults looking to plunge into the folds of a gripping story. One such storyteller who could spin an enthralling yarn was Alma H. Powell.

Praus, Alexis A.

Alexis A. Praus, 1958. Kalamazoo Valley Museum Collection The first curator of the Kalamazoo Valley History Museum was Mary E. Palmer. From 1928 until her retirement in 1945, Palmer worked…

Raymond W. Fox Law Library

Today, the Raymond W. Fox Law Library provides current and comprehensive legal materials that meet the legal research and information needs of library users. That such a unique service exists…

Van Deusen, Edwin H. and Cynthia Wendover

Unless the thousands of patrons that stream through the doors of the Central Library in downtown Kalamazoo make their way to the third floor, they are unlikely to know of Dr. Edwin…