Lake Blackshear Regional Library System
| Lake Blackshear Regional Library System | |
|---|---|
 | |
 The Cordele Carnegie Library | |
| Location | Sumter, Crisp, Dooly, Schley Counties, Georgia |
| Established | 1964 |
| Branches | 6 |
| Collection | |
| Size | 262,896 (2016)[1] |
| Access and use | |
| Circulation | 103,433 (2016)[1] |
| Population served | 73,898 (2016)[1] |
| Members | 22,146 (2016)[1] |
| Other information | |
| Director | Anne M. Isbell |
| Website | https://www.lbrls.org/ |
The Lake Blackshear Regional Library System (LBRLS) is a public library system convering the four counties of Sumter, Crisp, Dooly, Schley, Georgia. The Lake Blackshear Headquarters Library is located in Americus, and the system is home to the second oldest Carnegie library in Georgia.[2]
LBRLS is a member of PINES, a program of the Georgia Public Library Service that covers 53 library systems in 143 counties of Georgia.[3] Any resident in a PINES supported library system has access to the system's collection of 10.6 million books[4] The library is also serviced by GALILEO, a program of the University System of Georgia which stands for "GeorgiA LIbrary LEarning Online". This program offers residents in supported libraries access to over 100 databases indexing thousands of periodicals and scholarly journals. It also boasts over 10,000 journal titles in full text.[5]
History
The Lake Blackshear Regional Library System is home to the second oldest Carnegie library in the state of Georgia.[2] The building was constructed via a $17,550 grant from Andrew Carnegie in 1903 and was dedicated the following year. As with all Carnegie libraries in the United States, the Carnegie Foundation dissociated itself from the building after funding was provided. Thus further requests for more money were often denied outright.[2] The Cordele Carnegie library is one of the few buildings in the country which reversed this trend and received a second fund, albeit at a lower amount than originally requested and only after the head of the Georgia Library Commission herself petitioned the Carnegia Foundation. Explaining that the library was not large enough to hold the collection size an addition grant of $7,556 was allowed to the county to renovate and expand the building.[2]
In 2008 the system joined up with PINES, a state-wide border free library that shares its circulation among most of the library systems in Georgia.[6]
Branches
| Name | Address |
|---|---|
| Lake Blackshear Regional Library | 307 East Lamar Street, Americus, GA 31709 |
| Cordele-Crisp Carnegie Library | 115 East 11th Avenue, Cordele, GA 31010-0310 |
| Dooly County Library | 1200 East Union Street, Vienna, GA 31092 |
| Elizabeth Harris Library | 312 Harman Street, Unadilla, GA 31091 |
| Byromville Public Library | 452 Main Street, Byromville, GA 31007 |
| Schley County Library | 54 South Broad Street, Ellaville, GA 31806 |
Library systems in neighboring counties
- Middle Georgia Regional Library System to the north.
- Houston County Public Library System to the north east.
- Ocmulgee Regional Library System to the east.
- Coastal Plain Regional Library System to the south east.
- Worth County Library System to the south.
- Lee County Library to the south.
- Kinchafoonee Regional Library System to the south west.
- Chattahoochee Valley Libraries to the west.
- Pine Mountain Regional Library System to the north west.
References
- ^ a b c d "Current Look at Georgia Libraries 2016" (PDF). Retrieved 15 April 2017.
- ^ a b c d Walker, Jr, Robert Burke (1994). Georgia's Carnegie Libraries: A study of their History, Their Existing Conditions, and Conservation (PDF). Athens, Georgia. pp. 43–45. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ "PINES - About". Retrieved 15 April 2017.
- ^ "PINES Facts" (PDF). Retrieved 15 April 2017.
- ^ "GALILEO - About". Retrieved 15 April 2017.
- ^ Hamby, Rogan (January 31, 2008). "PINES Consortium welcomes Lake Blackshear Regional Library". Evergreen. Retrieved 15 April 2017.