The Pequannock Township Public Library
Established 1913
An Excerpt from: Pequannock Township 1740-1956
A Town’s Growth In Words and Pictures to Commemorate the Dedication of the Municipal Building
September Twenty-Ninth Nineteen Hundred and Fifty Six
By Carl Irving Edwards
The Neighborhood Club in 1913 began the Pompton Plains Library at John N. Lanthier’s unused real estate office just north of Poplar Avenue with Mrs. Lanthier as president, Mrs. Eva F. Worden, Librarian. The Ladies Conducted “cake sales” as a means of raising money. Books were also obtained from Newark and the State Libraries until about 1922 when a travelling County Library was established.
The Township in 1925, began contributions of .50c per open day and the library was moved to a section of the Grace Chapel. The ladies’ substantial contribution to the building of the Church House established it there for a number of years. Outgrowing these quarters, the library, still under the ladies sponsorship, but with a little more financial assistance from the township, moved back to its present location in Grace Chapel.
At Pequannock, with similar sponsorship, a library began at the Pequannock School in 1931. Under the leadership of Mrs. Joseph Schmidt, Sr. and Mrs. Daniel Rapalje, Sr. expansion continued since 1935 its home has been near the school in a building acquired by the Township up the death, interstate, of Mr. Charles N. Berg.
When the Morris County Free Library was established in 1922, the residents of Pequannock Township voted to become a part of the County system. However, costs of operating a local library were still more than the sponsors could handle despite the services provided by the County system. In 1926, the township began an allocation of tax monies to defray the cost of local libraries.
In recognition of the need for modern library service in a municipality of over 10,000 in population, the Town Council, in 1960, authorized construction of a wing addition to the municipal building which would house a 25,000 volume library as recommended by a Library Committee appointed by the Mayor in 1958. Other recommendations of the Committee, and its successor Committee appointed in 1961, include holding a referendum to establish a municipal library, continuance of the Pequannock Library as a branch of the municipal library, and employment of a professional librarian.
With the approval of the voters in the November 7, 1961 referendum, a municipal library was established and the first Board of Trustees was appointed in January of this year.
The New Library
The Township of Pequannock has appropriated 1.2 million dollars for the construction of a new state of the art 12,000 square foot library on the Slingerland Tract on Newark Pompton Turnpike.
The present library, located in the Municipal Building, was designed in 1960, over 35 years ago. It was built to accommodate 10,500 people and house approximately 20,000 books. Today, this 6,300 square foot facility is woefully inadequate, cramped and fails to meet the need of the library users in the twenty-first century. More than 66,000 volumes are jammed into 3 stories and are virtually inaccessible to the disabled.
We outgrew this space many years ago. Now, with the advent of new information technologies, its limitations are even more glaring. Lighting is poor and we have run our of space for books and patrons, let alone find space for computers!
The new library will comfortably house approximately 100,000 volumes. Contrast this to the 66,000 now cramped into space for less than half that amount. There will be room for multimedia CD Rom stations and a state of the art computer networks.
The design of the new library is open, airy and well lit. This colonial structure will be an architecturally compatible landmark in the township for generations to come.
Seating and workspace will be expanded. The new library will comfortably provide tables and chairs for 75, as opposed to the 26 in our current cramped quarters. Individual study carrels and a comfortable lounge area will be available to those who wish to study, do research, or leisure reading.
The new meeting room, with seating for 100, will be a place for Storytime’s for preschoolers and library activities, as well as a community center and rendezvous point for local groups and civic organizations. The new historical room will house and preserve our local heritage, as well as provide a quiet study area for small groups.
When completed in 1996, the new library will stand as a commitment to learning and community life in our township.
To realize this vision our goal is to raise $300,000 over three years. The township has appropriated the funds for the construction. The $300,000 is needed to provide new and larger books stacks, tables, chairs and furniture, as well as computer technology and telecommunication equipment, to complete the library’s interior. To contain costs, much of the existing furnishings will also be used.
Into the Future…
One of the final wishes of Virginia J. Forde in 2013, was to donate to the library a significant amount of money for the new addition of “Ginny’s Corner” to be built. Ginny came from a long line of Library lovers! Mrs. Joseph Schmidt, her grandmother, Alice S. Forde, her mother and Senior Reference Librarian, and both Virginia and Joyce Forde, library pages, were all instrumental in the library’s development and service to the public.
Submitted by Joyce forde-muller