A brief presentation on the Tulare County Library's 100 year history, branch by branch. It also includes pictures of our 100 year celebration county-wide, branch by branch.

1. TULARE COUNTY LIBRARY
THEN AND NOW
1910-2010

2. ALPAUGH-THEN
Alpaugh was established as the sixth
County Library Branch in 1913.
In 1910, a deposit station had been
set up on two shelves, hung on the
wall of the “merchandise store” of
W.N. Billing on North Broadway.
The Alpaugh Library Association
wanted a library building and raised
money for it with a membership
subscription of $10 per member.

3. ALPAUGH-NOW
The present Alpaugh Branch was
built next to the old building and
dedicated in the fall of 1960.
Public Hours:
Tuesday : 10 am - 1 pm, 2 pm - 6
pm Wednesday : 10 am - 1 pm,
2 pm - 6 pm
Internet:
2 public internet stations.

4. ALPAUGH
CELEBRATING 100 YEARS
Alpaugh had open house on Wednesday June 9, 2010 from 3-6. The public
came in for the open house. They had treats and beverages and talked about
the picture on the new magnet card.

5. DINUBA-THEN
The Tulare County Library System was formed in July
of 1910. In September, 1910, the Dinuba Women's
Club filed a petition to have a County Library deposit
station (a spot where patrons could pick up and
deposit books) set up in Dinuba. The petition was
granted and the first deposit station was set up in a
corner of the Dopkins Furniture Store with a deposit
of 50 books sent from Visalia. A year later more room
was required, and the branch was moved to the Snell
Building on Tulare Street. The first librarian, Miss Etta
Pillsbury, was appointed and was paid the princely
sum of $5.00 a month.
Sometime in 1912 the branch complete with a reading
room moved to the (then) new Chamber of
Commerce building. In 1913 there were about 1,000
books.

6. DINUBA-NOW
In 1975 the present day library
branch was built. Dinuba was
designated branch #1 in 1910,
and still holds that distinction
today.

7. DINUBA
CELEBRATING 100 YEARS
Dinuba had a good turn out for the
Open House held on June 10, 2010
from 6-8 p.m. The Friends advertised
in the Dinuba. The Dinuba Sentinel
was there to take a pictures of the two
children that won the Wimpy the Kid
raffle that the Friends sponsored. We
had several people come in to enjoy the
festivities.

8. EARLIMART-THEN
The Earlimart Library was established in October,
1914 in the Alila School with Mrs. Rebekah Bristow
as custodian. It offered the usual 50 books of a
County deposit station.
In October 1915, the library was moved to Mr.
Ough’s Store with Miss Violet Ough as custodian.
The Branch was discontinued in December, 1915,
and then re-established in February 1916, in the
school house.
The library was then moved from store to store
with store owners as custodians. Then, in 1926, it
was moved to the Adams family store where it
stayed until 1940.
During WWII, the library was in the home of
Reverend and Mrs. Swift.
The present Branch was built in 1959, and in 1963,
Earlimart was the second most active County
Branch, lending 67,176 books.

9. EARLIMART-NOW
Public Hours:
10 am -1 pm, 2
Tuesday :
pm - 6 pm
10 am - 1 pm, 2
Wednesday :
pm - 6 pm
10 am - 1 pm, 2
Thursday :
pm - 6 pm
10 am - 1, 2 pm -
Friday :
6 pm
Internet:
3 public internet stations.

10. EARLIMART
CELEBRATING 100 YEARS
Earlimart had open house
on Thursday June 10, 2010
from 3-6. The public came
in for the open
house. They had treats and
beverages.

11. EXETER-THEN
In March 1909, even before the County
Library System was established, the Exeter
Women's Club was the first local group to
take advantage of a new State network to
distribute books to rural areas. They set up a
deposit station (a place where people could
borrow and return State books) in the H.
Miles & Co. Store. Then, when the Tulare
County Library System was formed in
1910, the Women's Club petitioned to
become one of the first County stations.
Exeter became County Deposit Station #2
in Nov., 1910.

12. EXETER-NOW
Public Hours:
11 am -5 pm; 6
Tuesday :
pm - 8 pm
11 pm - 5 pm, 6
Wednesday :
pm - 8 pm
9 am - 1 pm; 2
Thursday :
pm - 6 pm
9 am - 1 pm; 2
Friday :
pm - 6pm
Internet:
6 public internet stations

13. EXETER
CELEBRATING 100 YEARS

14. IVANHOE-THEN
The Ivanhoe Branch was established March
19, 1914, as the Venice Hill Branch in
Waddle’s store. The branch was open daily,
with Mr. Waddle as the custodian. The salary
was $2.50 a month.

15. IVANHOE-NOW
Public Hours:
10 am - 1 pm, 2
Wednesday :
pm - 6 pm
10 am - 1 pm, 2
Thursday :
pm - 6 pm
Internet:
5 public internet stations

16. IVANHOE
CELEBRATING 100 YEARS

17. LINDSAY-THEN
A free reading room was established in Lindsay in Dec. 1909. The
reading room was open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Edward Treutlein
was the first custodian.The room rented for 10 dollars and was
financed by “entertainments, dues and subscriptions”. A Tulare
County Library deposit station (a place where patrons could pick up
and deposit County library books) was placed in the reading room in
July, 1910. On Sept. 16, 1910 the Lindsay Branch Library was
established as the third Branch Library in Tulare County.
In 1911, the Lindsay Branch moved to the Owl Stationary Store on
Honolulu Street. It moved again in 1912 to the Toothaker
Then, in 1934, Lindsay applied for a new library building to become
a CWA (Civil Works Administration) project, sponsored by the
Lindsay School District. The school district provided funds, the city
donated the site, and the CWA contributed labor and material.

18. LINDSAY-NOW
The new building opened in 2008
Public Hours:
11 pm - 5 pm;
Tuesday :
6 pm - 8 pm
9 am - 1 pm; 2
Wednesday :
pm - 6 pm
11 am - 5 pm;
Thursday :
6 pm - 8 pm
9 am - 1 pm; 2
Friday : pm -6 pm
Internet:
7 public internet stations.

19. LINDSAY
CELEBRATING 100 YEARS

20. OROSI-THEN
In 1917, the County obtained a $3000
Carnegie grant to build a $5,000 Carnegie
library in Orosi. The Woman's
Improvement Club of Orosi raised $2000,
purchased lots and arranged for lumber and
labor to be donated for sidewalks.
Construction was delayed until after the
war (World War I).
The library was the last Carnegie library to
be completed in California and is only one
of three of the Craftsman style remaining. It
has 2 fireplaces and was placed on the
National Register of Historic Places in
1983. It is the only Carnegie library still in
use as a library in Tulare County.

21. OROSI-NOW
The city of Cutler had a small branch
which moved from place to place,
including stores. In 1978, it joined with
the Orosi Branch and it then became the
Orosi/Cutler Branch of the Tulare
County Library System.
Come in and visit this charming old
library, keeping in mind that someday, a
modern, larger library would be nice in
this area.

22. OROSI
CELEBRATING 100 YEARS
Open House for Orosi was a great
success for a lot of kids and some
adults. Our Open House hours were 2 to
4. At 2:30 customers started to come in.
All were surprise that we had food in
the library but I explained that it was a
special occasion. I had lots of the
regular kids that come in the afternoon
and they enjoyed the cookies, water and
juice. They asked if I was having
another party any time soon. I said yes,
when we have our summer reading
program and they were all invited to
come. Total was 34 kids and adults. It
was a good day and I really enjoyed
doing this.

23. PIXLEY-THEN AND NOW
The Pixley Branch was located at
the Pixley Sheriff Sub-station and
moved to the Pixley School
location.

24. SPRINGVILLE-THEN
On December 15, 1910, an official request for a library deposit station was signed by seven
prominent residents of Springville who agreed to comply with the County requirements.
The Springville Library Deposit Station was established in March of 1911, in the Springville
Hotel, with Mr. L.A. Sickles as library custodian.
In 1912, the deposit station was moved to Rochdale Store and was open daily except
Sunday. In 1914 it was housed in the Post Office, and in 1917 it was in the store of Peabody
and Hubbs. From 1918 to 1929 it was back in the hotel with Mrs. Minnie Elster as
custodian.
In 1929 Mrs. Juanita Radeleff was appointed custodian, and the library was moved to her
home where she also operated the telephone switchboard.
In 1940, the library, which consisted of several shelves of fiction, a few children's books and
a dictionary, was moved to Shaw's Variety Store on Main Street.
More space was available in the real estate building across the street, and the library moved
there from 1947 until 1972.
When the former Springville tuberculosis sanitarium on Highway 190 was converted into
the Sequoia Dawn senior citizen complex, the community was offered the present building
to house the library. It was remodeled in 1992 through the generosity of the Springville
Lyons Club.

25. SPRINGVILLE-NOW
Public Hours:
11 am - 5 pm , 6
Thursday :
pm - 8 pm
9 am - 1 pm , 2
Friday :
pm - 6 pm
9 am - 1 pm, 2 pm
Saturday :
- 5 pm
Internet:
2 public internet stations.

26. SPRINGVILLE
CELEBRATING 100 YEARS
SPRINGVILLE BRANCH LIBRARY
CELEBRATES TULARE COUNTY LIBRARY’S
100TH BIRTHDAY
Over 65 Springville patrons participated in the
Tulare County Open-House Centennial
Celebration, A CENTURY OF SERVICE –
1910-2010, at the Springville Branch Library
on June 10, 2010! Patty Torrey Hovey
entertained children and adults alike with her
songs and instrumental renditions. Local
authors, Marilyn Meredith, Jeff Edwards, and
Brent Gill brought samples of their specialized
literature. The Library Gingerbread Man
by Dotti Enderle was read and children
designed their own “dewey ducks” fashioned
after their favorite library subjects. The
Springville Historical Society provided a
display of the Springville Library and Town
History! Library handouts and refreshments
were enjoyed by all! Happy 100th Birthday,
Tulare County Library!

27. STRATHMORE-THEN
In 1936, it was moved to a new Town and Country Club
House on BalfoIn December, 1910, Strathmore citizens
petitioned to establish a County library deposit station, and
in June 1911, a station was set up in Harry North's Barber
Shop. Mrs. North was custodian of the collection of 50
books, and the hours were 3:00 to 6:00 pm on Wednesdays
and Saturdays.
Later moves took it to Anway's Butcher shop in 1912, and the
Economy Store in 1913. On July 1st, 1913, under revised
State law, it officially became the Strathmore Branch of the
Tulare County Library.
In December, 1913, it was moved to a room in the new
Strathmore Town and Country Club on the corner of Guthrie
and Lawson Streets. Having a whole room to itself, it became
a library with a public reading room. The Women's Club
bought the building in 1930 and gave the Library the larger
room. Altogether, it was in this building for 23 years. In
1936, it was moved to a new Town and Country Club House
on Balfour St.. Here, during WWII, it was opened in the
mornings for the first time.

28. STRATHMORE-NOW
Then, in February, 1976, the Strathmore
Branch Library was built at 19646 Road
230. It was financed from Revenue Sharing
Funds allocated by the Tulare County
Board of Supervisors and is still the
Strathmore Branch building today.

29. STRATHMORE
CELEBRATING 100 YEARS
Strathmore Branch Library’s Open House was
held on Wednesday, June 9th from 2-6
P.M.. There were over 50 guests during that
time, mostly kids. Jeff Edwards, local
historian, was there and featured some of his
historical books. I have purchased some and
am sending in the next shipment for approval
to add to Strathmore’s collection. The story,
THE LIBRARY GINGERBREAD MAN by
Dotti Enderle was read and the kids
participated in a dewey decimal title
search. They also designed their own “squirty”
duck patterened after their own favorite dewey
–decimal subject. They also made a Father’s
Day gift ornament. They all enjoyed
refreshments provided by the Tulare County
Library

30. THREE RIVERS-THEN
On December 10, 1910, at the written request of ten Three Rivers residents, a County Library
deposit station was set up in the River Inn Hotel with Mr. Ernest McAdams in charge. The
entire library collection was lost when the Inn was destroyed by fire in September, 1911.
In 1912, the Three Rivers Branch reopened in the home of Mrs. J. S. Silverton. The same year,
the Kaweah Branch opened in the home of Mrs. Laura Hopping who was paid $2.50 per
month, the going rate for library custodians at that time. And in December 1918, the
Hammond Branch was established with Mr. Lawrence Hough as custodian.
All three branches moved into the homes of succeeding custodians. In 1928 the Hammond
Powerhouse was shut down and the Hammond Branch was closed. The Kaweah and Three
Rivers Branches continued in the homes of successive custodians.
In June, 1959 the Three Rivers Branch was moved to the Wylie Building on Highway 198 and in
August, Frankie Welch retired, having been branch librarian for 46 years. The Kaweah and
Three Rivers Branches were consolidated at this location in 1960.

31. THREE RIVERS-NOW
The present library building was built
by the County and opened to the
public on August 1, 1977.

32. THREE RIVERS
CELEBRATING 100 YEARS
I was pleased with the attendance at our Open House - 35+. I was
able to arrange to have the Artistic Director of the Center Stage
Strings Faculty, Danielle Belen, to give a short program about their
upcoming music camp in Three Rivers. Danielle also played several
classical pieces for us. You can check out their web site
(www.centerstagestrings.com) to see the five public performances
they will be giving in Three Rivers the week of June 12th – four of
which are free to the public. A friend of mine and customer Pat
Valentine who was with the Tulare County Symphony when she
lived here full time gave a short cello program. We then had a short
discussion about our local writer, Santosha Tantra.

33. TIPTON-THEN
In response to a petition for a deposit station, dated December, 1911 and signed by 47
citizens of Tipton, County Librarian, Miss Jennie Herman, established a Library Station
in Tipton in April, 1912. It was the 21st County Branch Station and it was set up in the
Rochdale Store with Laura Gwillim as custodian. She was paid $2.50 a month. It
offered the usual 50 books of a County deposit station.
A Visalia Times article from April, 1912 reported that “every wide-awake little town in
the County is demanding a station, and in time, every town will be supplied .…
County library work is no longer an experiment.”
The Tipton station was discontinued in October, 1913, and re-established in
September, 1914 in the Atkinson store. It remained in the Atkinson store until 1926.
The library then moved from home to home nine times with home owners as
custodians. Finally, in 1941, it was moved into the Woman’s Club House, where it
stayed until 1953.

34. TIPTON-NOW
From 1944 until 1953 at that time the
Tipton Branch was closed and a
bookmobile was used.
The present Branch was built and opened
in September, 1955.

35. TIPTON
CELEBRATING 100 YEARS
Tipton had open house yesterday
Thursday June 10, 2010. The public
came in for open house; they all had
cookie and beverages. We all had a
nice talk and several wanted to know
if Tipton’s Library had been around
for 100 years.

36. WOODLAKE-THEN
Six Woodlake residents petitioned the County for a
library deposit station in 1911, and a station with 50
books, was placed in John Day’s Post Office and store
in December, 1911. John Day was the custodian.
Between 1913 and 1920 it was moved to the Schelling
Drug Store, the Woodlake school, Mrs. Gordon Day’s
house, back to Day’s Store and to Blair’s Store. In
1952, the Woodlake Branch had 4,000 books and the
circulation was almost 20,000 books for the year.
Plans to build a new library for the high school were
discussed in the early 1960’s, but a lack of funds made
it impossible to construct a new building.

37. WOODLAKE-NOW
Mr. Courtney McCracken offered to donate the
money needed for construction of a library
building.
In 1966, the Courtney McCracken Library was
dedicated. The building housed the County
Library Branch, the High School Library and a
study hall. The complete cost of the structure
and all furniture was paid for by Mr. McCracken.

38. WOODLAKE
CELEBRATING 100 YEARS

39. VISALIA-THEN
The fourth County Library in California was
established by the Board of Supervisors on June 10,
1910. The Trustees of the Visalia City Library offered
Jennie Herrman, the County Librarian,
administrative workspace in their facility. She
established twelve branches her first year and
outgrew her borrowed space. The administrative
offices moved frequently between 1911 and 1919,
when the old Masonic Building on North Church
was rented. The offices stayed there until 1931, when
they moved to the old Courthouse, and from there to
the AAUW Building on Locust, where they stayed
until 1957 when the new Tulare County Courthouse
was completed.

40. VISALIA-NOW
In 1970 the Board of Supervisors authorized a
Planning Department study of library needs in the
County which resulted in the 1972 TULARE
COUNTY LIBRARY MASTER PLAN. This offered
various alternatives for better library service,
including consolidation with one of the independent
city libraries. In 1973 Visalia suggested that both
public service libraries could be consolidated in a
new building from revenue sharing funds allocated to
the County and to the City. A joint Library
Commission was appointed to plan the building. The
City Library staff became County Library staff in
July, 1976 and the new building opened to the public
on November 22, 1976.

41. VISALIA
CELEBRATING 100 YEARS