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Show Orem library traces roots to the Great Depression By DONALD W. MEYERS The Daily Herald While it is immensely popular todav. the Orem Public Library was not always a major city priority. At one point, it was actually shut down for five years. The library traces its roots back to the Great Depression. In 1939, 20 ears after Orem was incorporated, the first library was started as part of Works federal the Progress Administration. The WPA created libraries, an works and other public projects as a way of providing employment for the thousands who were out of work. The first library was set up in the basement of Town Hall, also known as the James Stratton home. The first library books were outdated volumes handed down from bigger libraries and donations from private collect- ions. The library was in operation for two years when World War II broke out. the government needed to establ- rationing office for Orem, and the library was the ideal location. The bookshelves, with the library's modest collection, were covered over with paper, and the library was declared closed for the duration. But it wasn't until 1947 that steps were taken to open the library for business again. Mayor J.W. Gillman gave Clyde ish a E. Weeks Jr. the t:isk the library. But that than done, especially no money for the nf r,- -.. i;. ,i;.. was easier said since there was library in the municipal budget. l or the first time, the library appealed to its patrons for help, lii response, an anonymous benefactor provided funds to pay a librarian for several months, while clubs and civic organizations held fund raisers to purchase new books and other library materials. The next year, the town board imposed a .5 mill levy to finance the operation of the library, and appoint-eWeeks to serve as the chairman of the library board. Between the support of the city's tax revenue and increased patronage, the library needed better accommodations than the basement of City Hall. d In I960. SCERA purchased the Leo Poulson home at 703 S. State Street, where Scizzors Hair Salon is now located, and rented the building to the city for use as a library. The city paid $75 a month to use the building. three-stor- y The basement of the house served as the children's department, while the teen and adult sections were on the main floor. When the new library opened, the community again rallied around the institution. The Orem Business and Professional Women's Club donated a set of ency clopedia and the Olasca Club made the first of its annual donations for book purchases. was also at this time that the Orem Public l ibrary expanded its It collection beyond books. The library handled the'Jaycee Wives' Health Loan Chest, checking out wheelchairs, stretchers, crutches and other medical equipment to patrons who needed it. Orem Library Director Dick Meeson said the stretchers and crutches were still in the collection when lie became library director in 1975. The library staff were also asked to provide information and documents related to the history of Orem. The demand was gieat enough to force the library board to seek City Council permission to draft an official history of the city, putting all the information into one publication. The hoard hired Weeks to write the An Orem history. Sagebrush to Steel Centennial" History Weeks' hook is considered one of the more comprehensive histories of the city. 1861-196- In 1970. the library, seeking larger accommodations, moved back to City Hall, this time in a building on the noi ih side of the City Center complex. The new building, with of floor space, was designed to provide the library with enough room to grow for 30 years. 16.(KX)-square-fe- et In the new library,, circulation picked up, tripling in the first year. Beeson said the surge was due to the changing nature of Orem's population. He said a national study identified the average library user as white, lower-middlclass, e with an size family. That profile perfectly lit Orem's population then and now, Beeson said. But the patrons were coining for more than books. The Audio-Visua- l department, which opened when the library moved to City Center, began offering movies, film strips, records, tapes and framed pictures. Beeson said the basement of the library was used as a meeting place and recreation hall by the senior citizens. Idle librarians would go down there and play racquetball on the bare walls when the room was not in use. Eventually, the children's section moved to the basement, along with story hours and summer reading programs. Twenty-thre- e years after moving into the library, city children broke ground for the children's library addition, to provide room for the library's expanding collection of 180,000 items. 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