{"id":578,"date":"2013-02-05T17:21:15","date_gmt":"2013-02-05T17:21:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/?page_id=578"},"modified":"2013-03-22T19:07:33","modified_gmt":"2013-03-22T19:07:33","slug":"wpl-milestones","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/?page_id=578","title":{"rendered":"WPL Milestones & Events"},"content":{"rendered":"
\u201cIt was William Kay who inaugurated the library\u2019s motto: \u2018Aude Sapere\u2019<\/em> (Dare to be Wise)\u00a0 (Library History in the City of Windsor<\/i> \u2013 Local History Pamphlet File #93)<\/span><\/pre>\n
The Windsor Public Library has witnessed significant milestones in its long history which has surpassed a century.\u00a0 WPL librarians and staff takes pride in important anniversaries and milestones.<\/p>\n
\"60th<\/a>In 1954, the WPL acknowledged its 60th<\/sup> \u201cJubilee\u201d with a nostalgic look back at the 19th<\/sup> century by recreating Lambie\u2019s Hall, the first Windsor library, in one corner of the Carnegie Library with librarians in historical costumes of the Victorian era.\u00a0 The \u201cLibrary of the \u2018Nineties\u201d featured two sections of shelves closed off with bars to \u201cgive the effect of the closed stacks of the early library with a wicket, behind which was the librarian\u2019s desk\u201d (Hume, 60 Years of Service of Windsor Public Library,<\/i> 1954).\u00a0 The WPL had recently acquired back issues of the Windsor Daily Star<\/i> on microfilm, so librarians showcased their new technology with a retrospective of the paper. Vintage signs were posted, warning customers, \u201c\u2019Closed stacks \u2013 choose books from posted lists,\u201d \u201cLibrary Catalogues for sale \u2013 15 cents including supplements as issued,\u201d and the motto, \u201cLet your thoughts be gentle and your voice be low\u201d (Hume, 1954).\u00a0 For added atmosphere, a shiny spittoon was placed far away from a table bearing a sign, \u201cReserved for Ladies.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Carnegie librarians researched and presented an exhibition on the Art of Bookmaking, which traced the history of shared knowledge from cave paintings on.\u00a0 The highlight of this exhibition was a 1585 bible, one of the earliest printed, donated by a neighbour of the Carnegie Library, a Mrs. Bennett.\u00a0 Named after the printer, the Charles Barker Bible was tucked away in the archives for safekeeping afterwards and generally forgotten until it was found again in 2011 by Local History librarian, Tom Vajdik.<\/p>\n
The Walkerville Branch at Willistead staged an exhibition about children\u2019s books, including one of the first dedicated children\u2019s picture books, a \u201c\u2019horn book\u2019, a child-sized wooden paddle which had a piece of printed paper attached to it\u201d (Windsor Star<\/i>, April 23, 1954).\u00a0 Similar displays were available at the South Branch at John Campbell School, and the library\u2019s modern new branch at Seminole featured a retrospective of films, books and photographs relating to 50 years of the automobile, Windsor\u2019s chief industry of the time. Commemorative cotton bags were sold with a jubilee motto, \u201cOur Hope for the Future.\u201d<\/p>\n
A Centennial Committee of WPL staff led by Laurence Grant, Curator of Windsor\u2019s Community Museum, planned a series of events and commemorations of the 100 years of service of the Windsor Public Library in 1994. A mobile exhibition giving an overview of the history of the Windsor Public Library system debuted at Windsor City Hall in June, 1994, and then \u201ctoured\u201d each branch so that the public could share it in their neighbourhood branches.\u00a0 A flower bed in Jackson Park replicated the WPL\u2019s Centennial logo and, in the tradition of the early library, a centennial tea was held in December of that year. As a fundraiser, the library sold book bags with the Centennial logo at all branches \u2013 pioneering the move to reusable bags replacing plastic.<\/p>\n
Broadcasts<\/b><\/p>\n
Librarians have taken part in many local broadcasts over the history of the Windsor Public Library in order to let listeners know about programing at the library, or as part of the WPL\u2019s education program.\u00a0 In 1954, Anne Hume offered thanks to local radio media, CKLW, CBE, the Radio Committee of the A.F.L. and C.C.L. which annually donated its scheduled weekly half-hour to Young Canada\u2019s Book Week.<\/p>\n
In 1957, WPL librarians had their first taste of television fame when Eileen Kelly and Joyce Taylor appeared in a children\u2019s puppet show presentation for Canada Book Week.\u00a0 The WPL commissioned its first television commercial in 2011 produced by Media Street Productions.<\/p>\n
Awards <\/b><\/p>\n
The Windsor Public Library has long been a leader of excellence in innovation and service in the community and boasts a long list of awards that can be viewed on its website.\u00a0 Some highlights include technology and service awards.<\/p>\n
In time for the WPL\u2019s Centennial celebration, former library Director Fred Israel was named Librarian of the Year by the Ontario Library Association in January 1993, for his work planning the move of the Main Library from the Carnegie building to the new Main Library on Ouellette Avenue. In recognition of this, the WPL Board decided to name the new auditorium after Mr. Israel.<\/p>\n
In April, 2003, CEO Steve Salmons was awarded the Queen\u2019s Jubilee Medal for his \u201cwork in raising the profile of public libraries as an essential information resource for children, seniors and all Windsor residents\u201d (WPL Board Minutes, <\/i>April 9, 2003).<\/p>\n
R. Alan Douglas, the first curator of Fran\u00e7ois Baby House Museum (now Windsor\u2019s Community Museum) received a Canadian Museum\u2019s Association Award of Distinguished Service in April, 2008 for his 34 years of service to the community and Ontario museums.\u00a0 He had also received the E.J. Lajeunesse Award for his service to local history by the Essex County Historical Society and the Carnochan Award for the Ontario Historical Society in 1990 and 1992.<\/p>\n
In a WPL Information Technology Update for the WPL Board in June, 2005, it was noted that the WPL \u201cembraced technology to expand services and programming\u201d (WPL Board Minutes,<\/i> June 8, 2005) and had as a consequence won 15 awards in a short span of five years for \u201ctechnological leadership and innovation.\u201d One of these awards included recognition by Alan Rock, then Minister of Industry, announcing the WPL\u2019s groundbreaking use of the internet by a Canadian public library for its project iCity \u2013 Historic Sites of Walkerville. <\/i>\u00a0In 2012, the WPL continued this tradition with the CLA\/OCLC Award for Innovation Technology for the Tomorrow Today project.\u00a0 This \u201cinnovative project has shown libraries that there are limitless ways to reach current and future customers.\u00a0 One of the most innovative aspects of the project was how WPL uses portable devices to create a mobile library branch\u201d (WPL Press Release<\/i>, November 2, 2012).<\/p>\n
Other outreach programs at the Windsor Public Library have received awards, such as the long-serving Literacy program.\u00a0 It won the 2009 Canadian Library Association\/Stan Heath Award for significant advancements in education and literacy in the community and was presented to Rachel Blok.<\/p>\n
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Publications<\/b><\/p>\n
As early as 1913, the Windsor Public Library began publishing with a four-paged circular called The Bulletin.\u00a0 The monthly publication, which was distributed free, contained lists of books added to the library, lists of books on special subjects and literary news.<\/p>\n
Librarians continued these advertisement throughout the years with the publication \u201cWhat Goes on Inside\u201d which reported on circulation and library services and was sent to thousands of homes in the Windsor area.<\/p>\n
As a result of a news item in the Ontario Library Review, requests were made to Windsor Public librarians for publications they published, including bibliography on \u201cProblems of Demobilization, Adjustment and Rehabilitation of Men and Women from the Armed Forces\u201d, \u201cLibrary Trends in Canada\u201d, \u201cCanada in the Post-War World\u201d and histories of library service in Walkerville, Sandwich and Windsor.<\/p>\n
\"Sixty<\/a>Head librarians took advantage of anniversary milestones in the Library\u2019s history to compile commemorative pamphlets and reports outlining the Windsor Public Library\u2019s achievements to date.\u00a0 A pamphlet for the 60th<\/sup> Anniversary was published in 1954, Sixty Years of Service \u2013 1894 \u2013 1954<\/i> written by librarians Anne Hume and Hilda Brooke, was printed by Sumner Printing Co. for the library.\u00a0 32,000 copies were hand-distributed by Boy Scouts to every household in the city.\u00a0\u00a0 Fifteen years later, an illustrated, mimeographed 75th<\/sup> Anniversary Annual Report<\/i> was published in 1969 \u2013 this time illustrated with photographs of the director and board members, with an in memoriam<\/i> page acknowledging the work of long-term board member Mrs. Kerr.<\/p>\n
The WPL celebrated the opening of the new Main Library in 1973 with a full-colour illustrated souvenir brochure.\u00a0 This offered a virtual tour of the new facilities and background about the artworks commissioned for the new building.<\/p>\n
Windsor Public librarians also produced professional reports and contributed to on-going research on the role of libraries in the community.\u00a0 For example, Anne Hume was instrumental in starting up the Cataloguing in Publication (CIP) list, which announces new books to be published early so that librarians can order them in a timely manner.\u00a0 Librarian David Eady produced a neighbourhood report on how the Seminole Branch might best approach drop-in users in the early 1970s, Seminole Branch Library<\/i>, 1974.<\/p>\n
Various newsletters and events listings have been published by the WPL and distributed to the public.\u00a0 In the 2000s, the WPL produced a newsletter called, Shelf Life: News from the Windsor Public Library.<\/i><\/p>\n
The WPL has produced a series of reports and catalogues of subject specialties. To augment literacy studies in 1981, David Eady produced a list of Adult New Readers: a Bibliography<\/i> of books that met the criteria of a grade 8 reading level, but of interest to adults.\u00a0 Included were Hemingway\u2019s The Old Man and the Sea<\/i> and a book on Jack Miner by the Council of Adult Education.\u00a0 Many such lists and reports are now published on the WPL website.<\/p>\n
In partnership with Employment Ontario, the WPL has published its first e-book, Cultural Engines: Celebrating Windsor\u2019s Cultural Community <\/i>in March, 2013.<\/i> It is this book and website.\u00a0 The aim of the publication is to shed a spotlight on three of Windsor\u2019s longest-serving cultural organizations: the Art Gallery of Windsor, the Windsor Symphony Orchestra and the Windsor Public Library (including Windsor\u2019s Community Museum and Windsor\u2019s Community Archives).\u00a0 Program coordinator Jean Foster and the community partners recognized that although the WPL\u2019s history was well-documented, the seven-decade histories of the Art Gallery of Windsor or the Windsor Symphony Orchestra were not easily available to the public.\u00a0 The Windsor Public Library and the Art Gallery of Windsor have a shared history, and had operated under the same administration in the same building for a time at Willistead Manor.\u00a0 The Windsor Symphony Orchestra has often worked in partnership with the other two organizations, also performing in their buildings.\u00a0 In a small, close-knit city such as Windsor, many of the Board Members, volunteers and fundraisers who have supported one organization have also supported the others.\u00a0 The aim of the publication of these histories is to celebrate the passion and dedication of those who have supported these organizations as professionals and as volunteers, and to encourage others to do in the future.<\/p>\n
Timeline
\n<\/b><\/p>\n
1894 – First public library opened in Lambie\u2019s Hall on Ferry Street.<\/p>\n
1903 – Carnegie Library opened at Victoria and Park with a grant from Andrew Carnegie.<\/p>\n
1914 – First branches opened at Lanspeary\u2019s Drug Stores, east and west locations.<\/p>\n
1922 – Walkerville Library moved to Willistead Manor<\/span><\/p>\n
1937 – Library system was 8 libraries: Carnegie, John Richardson, Prince Edward, Victoria, Willistead, South Branch, Sandwich\u00a0and\u00a0J.E. Benson<\/p>\n
1940 – St. Luke\u2019s Road Barracks Library opened.<\/p>\n
1943 – Deposit of Children\u2019s books placed in a Wartime Housing Clubhouse<\/p>\n
1945 – A Friends of the Windsor Library Group organized<\/p>\n
1953 – Golden Anniversary \u2013 Carnegie Library<\/p>\n
1955 – AutoPage Book Return Box installed at Carnegie<\/p>\n
1957 –\u00a0 Headquarters moved from Willistead to Bartlet House<\/p>\n
1958 – Opening of Hiram Walker Historical Museum<\/p>\n
1959 – Art Gallery Administration assumed by Art Association<\/p>\n
1963 – First meeting of Southwestern Regional Library Co-operative held in Windsor<\/p>\n
1964 – Telex installed<\/p>\n
1966 – Budimir and Riverside Libraries added; Sunday Service at Carnegie initiated<\/p>\n
1969 – 75th<\/sup> Anniversary of Windsor Public Library<\/p>\n
1973 – New Main Library opened<\/p>\n
1975 – Art Gallery moves out of Willistead<\/p>\n
1978 – Willistead Library closed<\/p>\n
1980 – Adult Literacy Program starts<\/p>\n
1994 – Windsor Public Library Centennial<\/p>\n
2000 – Website introduced<\/p>\n
2013 – Cultural Engines <\/i>e-book and website published<\/p>\n
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\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n
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\u201cIt was William Kay who inaugurated the library\u2019s motto: \u2018Aude Sapere\u2019 (Dare to be Wise)\u00a0 (Library History in the City of Windsor \u2013 Local History Pamphlet File #93) The Windsor Public Library has witnessed significant milestones in its long history which has surpassed a century.\u00a0 WPL librarians and staff takes pride in important anniversaries and milestones. In 1954, the WPL Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/578"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=578"}],"version-history":[{"count":30,"href":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/578\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2273,"href":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/578\/revisions\/2273"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=578"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}