DOCUMENT RESUME
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TITLE
PUB DATE
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Getrost, Christina D.
A History of the Kent Free Library, Kent, Ohio
1958-1992.
Aug 93
88p.; M.L.S. Research Paper, Kent State
University.
Dissertations/Theses - Masters Theses (042) —
Historical Materials (060)
EDRS PRICE
DESCRIPTORS
IDENTIFIERS
MF01/PC04 Plus Postage.
Library Circulation; Library Collections; *Library
Development; ^Library Facilities; Library Personnel;
Library Services ; *Public Libraries
Historical Background; *Library History; *Ohio
(Kent)
ABSTRACT
The Kent Free Library (Ohio) evolved from the Great
Atlantic and Western Railroad Reading Room of 1875, into a municipal
Carnegie library, and then grew to be a medium-sized public school
district library, in the city of Kent, Ohio. Its original building
has been enlarged through three separate expansion campaigns, in
order to have space to house its ever-increasing collection, to
provide meeting rooms for community groups, and to best serve its
increasing numbers of users, both citizens and university students.
This study chronicles the many changes that have occurred in the
library's collection, budget, staff, services, and physical facility
from 1958 to 1992. (Contains 9 references.) (Author)
A * A A A * A A A A A * * A A A * A A A A AAAA A A AAA A A A A A A A A A A A A A A AAA A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A
* Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made *
* from the original document. *
A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A
™ U -?-'* , **"«NT OF EDUCATION Q
0«m:« q4 educational Research and Improvement i \
eoucational^resourc^^information
□ This document hss been reproduced tz
received from the person or orgsn.zstion
ongtnetrng it
□ Minor chenges htve been made to improve
reproduction quality
• Point* ot v*w or opinion* stated m tma docu-
ment do not necessarily represent oHrciel
OERI position or policy
to
Q A HISTORY OF THE KENT FREE LIBRARY,
a KENT, OHIO 1958-1992
A Master's Research Paper submitted to the
Kent State University School of Library and Information Science
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree Master of Library Science
by
o
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BEST 6iir
if kin**.
Christina D. Getrost
August, 1993
2
"PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS
MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY
Christina Getrost
TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES
INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)."
ABSTRACT
The Kent Free Library evolved from the Great Atlantic and
Western Railroad Reading Room of 1875, into a municipal Carnegie
library, and then grew to be a medium-sized public school
district library in the city of Kent, Ohio, Its original
building has been enlarged through three separate expansion
campaigns, in order to have space to house its ever-increasing
collection, to provide meeting rooms for community groups, and to
best serve its increasing numbers of users, both citizens and
university students • This study chronicles the many changes that
have occurred in the library's collection, budget, staff,
services and physical facility from 1958 to 1992.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER
I . Introduction 2
II. Review of the Literature 4
III . Methodology 6
IV. Founding and Early History to 1957 « 7
V. Crowded Conditions: 1958-1960 13
VI. First Expansion: 1961 19
VII. The Slow But Steady Sixties: 1961-1970 27
VIII. New Leadership and New Space: 1971-1980 34
IX. The Booming Eighties: 1981-1990 47
X. Automation and the Future: 1991-1992 63
Sources Consulted 69
Notes 70
iii
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LIST OF TABLES
Collection and Circulation Figures, 1958-1992 Table A-l
Graph: Kent Free Library Circulation, Selected Years . Table A-2
Budget Figures, 1958-1992 Table A- 3
Audiovisual Collection and Circulation, 1958-1992 . . . Table A-4
Portage County Per Capita Tax Income, 1970-1992 . . . . Table A-5
Kent Free Library Registered Borrowers, 1958-1992 . . . Table A-6
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CHAPTER I.
INTRODUCTION
The Kent Free Library has been serving the citizens of the
city of Kent, Ohio for 90 years, and it has undergone many
changes since 1902 in order to keep pace with an expanding
population and increased need for its many services. There has
only been a partial history written of the Kent Free Library,
however, up to the year 1957. The purpose of this study is to
continue the story of the Kent Free Library to the present day,
tracing the development, in ten-year periods, of the following
areas: physical facility, collection size, staff, cix-culation,
budget, and services offered (including cooperative networking
and use of new technologies), between the years 1958 and 1992,
and examining implications for future trends. This study's
objective is to organize and synthesize the existing records
covering this period in the library's history, so that one
comprehensive document exists for patrons and library staff to
utilize in learning about the growth of the Kent Free Library .
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LOCATION OF KENT FREE LIBRARY
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Ejf uc ' vu, t i'u i ts ;J* w JC
CHAPTER II.
REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE
Contemporary databases, the local newspaper Ravenna Record-
Courier P and local historical sources were searched for
references to the Kent Free Library* Karl Grismer' s 1932 book
History of Kent, Historical *and Biographical contains a brief
chapter on the beginnings of the library as the Atlantic and
Great Western Railroad employee Reading Room, housed in the Kent
train depot, and its establishment as a Free public library in a
building constructed with funds from Andrew Carnegie. Portage
Heritage: History of an Ohio County, 1807-1957 contains a one-
page section on the same, as well as library statistics
(collection size, etc.) for 1957. A 1950 Western Reserve
University master's thesis by Barbara Mac Campbell covers the
early history of the library in detail, based on Grismer, and
briefly describes trends up to 1950 to show the further direction
of the library and the need," expressed already in that year by
the head librarian, for expansion of the library's facility.
The most recent comprehensive Kent Free Library history is
the 1957 Kent State University master's thesis by Rosemary D.
Harrick. Harrick also summarizes Grismer 1 s information, but her
study deals primarily with the library 1 s services and collection
from 1945 through 1956. At this time the collection was
practically overflowing the library's walls, and there was
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inadequate space for meetings and children's programs. It was
her purpose to show to the community the severity of the need for
expansion of the library building; this was accomplished five
years later, in 1961.
Beyond the 1950 f s, the 1967 League of Women Voters 1
publication This Is Portage County gives concise 1967 Kent Free
Library statistics, and their 1976 booklet This Is Kent has a
paragraph for that year's figures, but neither contain historical
information past the founding of the library. Since 1961, the
library's facilities have been expanded twice, as the collection
size and circulation figures increased apace, and this history
will close the gap in Kent Free Library historical documents by
chronicling the additions and increases of the next three
decades, not only in physical facility but in other areas as
well.
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CHAPTER III.
METHODOLOGY
The historical methodology was used for this paper. The
majority of the sources used are primary in nature: eyewitness or
firsthand accounts. These include past issues of the local
newspaper, the Ravenna Record-Courier , Kent Free Library Board of
Trustees minutes of monthly meetings, annual reports,
correspondence, and library scrapbooks and notebooks of public
relations materials and clippings.
A great deal of primary and secondary information was
obtained through personal interviews with Carmen Z. Celigoj , the
current library director; Pamela Simones, current Assistant
Director; and Martha Vasbinder, former staff member (1956-1962) .
6
CHAPTER IV.
FOUNDING AND EARLY HISTORY TO 1957
The Kent Free Library began as a reading room for employees
of the Atlantic and Great Western Railroad in 1875. Located in
the railroad depot on Franklin Avenue (which now houses the Kent
Historical Society's Rowe Museum and the Pufferbelly Restaurant),
the Reading Room was the only library in the town, and was a
subscription library , for members only. Railroad employees paid
annual dues of one dollar in order to join the Atlantic and Great
Western Railroad Reading Room Association and be able to borrow
books, one book at a time for three weeks. The money collected
from members was only enough to maintain the collection, so
after nine years of steady use but declining membership, the
library closed in 1884. 1
In the next eight years citizens made it known that they
wanted a library for the public 1 s use; the three short-lived
library associations which came to Kent and quickly vanished were
proof of the demand and need for reading material. 2 Finally in
1892 the village of Kent saw the opening of a Kent Public Library
and Reading Room in a rented room above a business on Water
Street. This new library, also referred to as the Free Public
Library, became possible with the creation of a new Ohio state
law drafted by Scott T. Williams, attorney, and George E. Hinds,
secretary and treasurer of the Railroad Reading Room, that
enabled towns with populations under 5,000 to tax their citizens
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to provide for a public library. Kent, whose 1892 population was
about 3,30c), 3 was the first town in the state to take advantage
of the law to pass a levy for this purpose, and to appoint a
library board of trustees to administer the newly created
library. The railroad company donated its defunct reading room's
collection, totaling 620 books and several magazines and
newspapers, to form the core of the Free Library's collection.
This library, with one move to a different downtown
building, was popular with Kent citizens in the waning years of
the century. Its collection increased to 2,842 volumes in 1901,
which circulated 19,876 time's. 4 In 1903, after months of
negotiation with Pittsburgh industrialist and philanthropist
Andrew Carnegie and a year of construction, the library moved
into a brand-new building built by $11,500 donated by Carnegie.
George Hinds, the former secretary who was now president of the
library board, was instrumental in obtaining Carnegie's support.
With the backing of the town council he was able to meet
Carnegie's conditions for the gift: provide the site, and supply
annual maintenance income of 10% of the cost of the building.
The new permanent home of the library was a two-story brick and
stone building with 3,154 sq. ft. of interior space, built on a
130 x 100ft. plot of land at the corner of West Main Street and
River Street given to the library by leading citizen Marvin Kent
(who had brought the first railroad to Kent and for whom the town
was subsequently named), (see map, p. 9)
During the first 50 years of its existence, the primary
- Kent Free Library
10
change in the Kent Free Library was in regard to its system of
governance and means of funding. It began as a municipal library
under the governance of the city council and was allocated monies
from a five-tenths mill on property taxes, but in 1922 the
council deeded the library over to the Kent Board of Education as
a result of the passage of the Ohio General Assembly's 1921
Bender law. This law gave the Board of Education jurisdiction to
appoint members of the library board of trustees and approve the
library's annual budget. At this time the Roosevelt High School
library was made a branch of the Kent Free Library and its budget
combined with that of the Kent Free. It remained so until
September 1948 when the Board of Education was able to take over
direct control of the school library. The original library
budget of $1,114 grew to $7,500 in 1924 with a new, seven-tenths
mill tax levy. During the Depression budgets were slashed
severely, but were rescued by the 1933 Senate Bill 30, which
switched libraries 1 funding "from real property taxes to taxes on
intangible personal property such as investments and dividends on
stocks. This law was amended in 1951 to allow budget commissions
to allocate the intangibles money based on need. 5 This means of
funding remained in place for the next 35 years (see chapter IX,
p.52-) .
From 1903 to 1957, as the city of Kent flourished, so did
the city's public library. From a village with a population of
about 5,000 at the turn of the century, Kent grew into a thriving
city of roughly 15,000 in 1957, 6 a 200% increase in population.
14
During that time span, the Kent Normal School, a teacher's
college founded in 1910, evolved into Kent State University,
whose students came to rely on the public library for needs not
met by the university library. The Kent Free Library enlarged
its collection to keep up with this increased use, as evidenced
by rising circulation figures. The collection in 1903 numbered
2,700 volumes; circulation for the first nine months in the new
building, June 1903 to August 1904, was 15,433, with 936
registered borrowers. (As is usual in all public libraries, many
more people visited and made use of the library than actually
took books home; in those same nine months, library turnstiles
recorded 21,886 visitors.) 7 In 1957 the library's collection
had grown to 16,826 books (in addition to films, records and
magazines); that year's total circulation was 103, 489 8 , a 400%
increase in 50 years, or double the population growth. In 1957
7,308 people were registered borrowers, which amounts to about
50% of the population of the city of Kent, plus several hundred
Kent State University students. 9 This proportion of citizens
making use of the library was extremely high, and in the coming
decades it dropped to 38% but usually remained around 40-50%.
The early years of the Kent Free Library were ones of
tremendous growth, as the library expanded its collection and
services to meet those citizens' needs. This growth symbolizes
the history of the library, and nearly every year to come would
see higher and higher use by the public.
12
Kent Free Library Board hopes to build an addition on property recently
purchased on the west side of the present structure . . . Library Board will
continue to rent apartments in the house until funds are collected for the
addition.
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CHAPTER V.
CROWDED CONDITIONS: 1958-1960
During the late 1950' s the Kent Free Library staff consisted
of three fulltime workers and an average of 12 people total,
adding in parttime student help. As it was a small staff there
was not a great hierarchy or set division of labor; everyone had
to do a little of everything. Margaret Zearley was head
librarian; she had come to the Kent Free Library in September
1952 from the Tiffin (Ohio) Public Library. Raised in Uniontown,
Pennsylvania, she was educated at Allegheny College, Meadville,
Pa. and Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. She did
most of the cataloging of new material, and public service. As
head librarian, she represented the Kent Free Library in the
community; she was always accessible to the public, answering
questions or giving talks to groups. Other staff included Winona
Schindler, children's librarian, hired the same year as Zearley;
Rosemary Harrick, who had begun work at the library as a parttime
page in 1946, 10 and by the late fifties was working fulltime at
the desk; and Martha Vasbinder, hired parttime in 1956, 11 doing
primarily circulation tasks. There was no separate reference
librarian or reference desk,' only the circulation/reference desk
located in the center of the first floor of the building,
directly across from the entrance. (see photo, p. 26) Whoever
was working at the main desk was responsible for answering all
phone calls, whether circulation-related or reference inquiries,
13
14
as well as helping patrons coming to the desk. Most reference
questions were referred to Miss Zearley, according to
Vasbinder. 12
In October 1957, Zearley left Kent on an exchange program
with another area librarian to operate the post library at
Chaumont Air Base in France and tour various European countries.
Rosemary Harrick served as acting librarian until Zearley 's
return in January 1959, at which point Harrick was officially
titled the assistant librarian. 13 Harrick continued to work at
Kent Free until August of I960, when she accepted a job at the
Kent State University Library. Vasbinder then became fulltime
assistant librarian.
Library staff had the continual task of trying to provide
modern levels of service in an outdated space. To understand the
incredible overcrowding being experienced by the library at the
time this study begins (1958) , it is helpful to look at the rates
of growth for the entire decade, starting with circulation. In
the ten years from 1951 to 1960, total circulation rose by 65%™
from 77,070 to 127,123. Broken down by category, juvenile
circulation nearly doubled, registering a 94% rise from 31,939 to
61,995, while adult book circulation had only a modest gain of
17%, from 45,131 to 52,668. (see Table A-l) The largest annual
gain occurred between 1957 and 1958, when total circulation rose
by 15% or 15,776 items. 14 The percentages are even higher when
in-house use is considered, which was considerable.
Unfortunately no records of this were kept.
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The collection was enlarged during the fifties to help meet
demand, but shelving limitations and budget constraints severely
restricted the extent of new purchases. The size of the 1951
collection, including books, periodicals, and records, is
estimated to have been 13,900 15 . (In addition, since 1948 the
library was a member of a film circuit and received up to 38
educational and recreational 16mm films each month, which it
rented to the public for a small fee. Kent was the first
institution in Portage County to lend films. The library did not
have its own film collection until the late 60 ! s.) By I960, the
library owned 19,454 volumes (including filmstrips, added in
1954) ; yet this collection was housed in a library building that
had been built with an original shelving capacity of 5,000
volumes 16 . The library had increased its collection size by 40%
in ten years, while the square footage housing it remained the
same, (see Table A-l)
Library users browsing or studying were extremely cramped in
the Carnegie building; on most days, according to former staff
member Vasbinder, there were never empty seats available. 17 In
1960, 48% of the Kent population held library cards at the Kent
Free Library. That amounted to 7,405 adults and children, and
1,195 Kent State University students (see Table A-6) . Over
81,000 adults and 6,000 children came to the library in i960 to
view movies and filmstrips 18 m (see Table A-4) ; they usually
filled the viewing area to overflowing. The children's room,
located in the east half of the lower level, was furnished to
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comfortably seat 25 children; however, each Monday and
Wednesday's programs had over 50 in attendance, and had as many
as 75 during a 1958 program. Vasbinder remembers large numbers
of elementary school children also used the library for homework
assignments, due to the few school libraries in existence at the
time. The other half of the bottom floor, optimistically called
the conference room, also had to serve as the film library,
technical processing area, and janitorial room. 19
The library's total income during the fifties grew by 53%;
the major portion, the intangibles tax allotment, increased by
43%, from $25,485 to $36,476 (see Table A-3) . The rest of the
library's means of support came from interest on investments,
gifts and memorial donations, and overdue fines collected from
patrons. The latter were raised in February 1960, to try to
discourage overdues and cut down on the immense amount of time
and postage costs involved in sending reminders. Fines went up
from 2 to 3 cents per book, per day, raised for the first time
since the library opened in 1903. Along with overdues, the
library began to charge patrons for reminder notices sent out: 5
cents for the first notice, 10 cents for the second. After items
were overdue three and four weeks, library staff personally
called patrons to remind them. At this time the library averaged
60-70 overdue books a week, sometimes up to 100, and consequently
an inordinate amount of time and money had to be spent attending
to them. 20
During these busy years, the library provided a variety of
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educational and recreational programs for the public ♦ For
children, there were story hours and films as mentioned above,
but also puppet shows, summer reading club, in which readers gave
brief oral "reports" to volunteer listeners to show that they had
read their books, and received prizes and a party (32 children
completed the 1958 program; 60 participated) , poster contests,
and in 1956 some new and unusual items to check out: baby dolls,
donated by the Kent Woman f s -Club. 21
For adult patrons, there were coffee hours and speakers
during every National Library Week, in addition to other special
programs. The library held a six-week creative writing class one
year, and a monthly book discussion group met downstairs.
Librarian Zearley gave talks and book reviews to local groups.
Staff members compiled bibliographies on many different topics; a
sample from the period lists books on the Communist threat and
patriotism. A Friends of the Library group was organized October
30, 1951, to "spread an interest in the library and its services
to other people." 22 The group conducted annual Book Auctions,
selling discarded library books and items donated by the public.
The auction's proceeds were earmarked for different library needs
each year; in 1954 the money was used to start a filmstrip
collection, complete with screen and projector, 23 and in 1958
the auction provided for LP records. The group suffered
membership declines in the 1960 f s, however, and became defunct.
Local artists and craftsmen were invited to display their works
at the library, and women's groups provided annual holiday
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decorations •
Every year saw record numbers of people come to the Kent
Free Library to use its services in the same small Carnegie
building it had occupied for nearly 60 years* (see Table A~l) It
was time for the board of trustees and the citizens of Kent to
permit the building to catch up to, and then grow along with, its
collection and services*
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CHAPTER VI.
FIRST EXPANSION: 1961
Staff and the public had been aware for many years of the
need for an addition to the Kent Free Library, or for the
erection of an entirely new building, in order to improve service
and relieve the library's overcrowding. In April 1956, 11% of
the library patrons responding to a general survey of services
had commented on the lack of space at the library and wanted to
see the building enlarged. 24 - It took many years, however,
until enough money was on hand to make such plans feasible. Since
1903, the board of trustees had been saving money to improve the
building, through book fines, contributions, and careful
management of its annual operating funds. They had managed to add
about $5,000 annually in recent years. In January of 1954, when
a total of about $30,000 had been accumulated, the Board of
Trustees conferred with architect Joseph F. Morbito, head of Kent
State University's School of Architecture, and authorized him to
prepare preliminary plans for an addition.
In June of 1955, an official library Memorial Building Fund
Committee was established, t;o be administered by the head
librarian of the Kent Free, Margaret Zearley (serving as
chairperson and treasurer) , and consisting of the superintendent
of the Kent Public Schools, Lewis L. Burkhart, the president of
the Kent Free Library Board, Cecil Bumphrey, the president of the
Kent Board of Education, and the president of the Friends of the
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Library group, Dr. Hal lock F. Raup, who appointed Frances Goodwin
as Friends representative. The Committee 0 s purpose was to collect
and allocate all money received for construction of either a new
public library or an addition to the one standing, and to promote
the donation of money to the Fund. 25 The Kent City Board of
Education served as the depository for the actual money, as per
the Bender law. At the end of 1955, the total in the Fund stood
at $32,207.20, part of which was in U.S. Savings Bonds held by
the library. 26 The first outside money put into it was a $100
donation from the Kent Rotary Club, in memory of Fred M. Fuller,
former Rotarian and former president of the Kent Free Library
board of trustees. 27 In 1956 an additional $10,000 was added,
and the library board reviewed architect Morbito's first sketches
for a 3,400 sq.ft. two story addition of concrete block that
would extend out from the west side of the Carnegie building. 28
A major step forward to expansion was accomplished in June
of 1957 when Dr. Frank F. Fanelly sold the library board his
property immediately west of the Carnegie building for
$27, 500. 29 The two-story house on the 60 x 140ft. area would
continue to be rented out by the board to students and citizens
until enough funds could be secured to build. Th< library took
possession July 1, 1957 and subsequently earned about $240.00
each month in rent on the three rooms. 30
The board had considered using the services of a library
consultant to assist them in designing and constructing an
entirely new building. During March 1959 they corresponded with
Dr. Ralph A* Ulveling, a library consultant in Detroit, as there
were no members of this relatively new profession in the Kent
area. But after learning of the size of his fee and the fact
that he was booked for several months, they shelved the
decision. 31 At about this time the board also learned that they
would not be able to purchase the property at the rear of the
library facing South River Street, between the library and the
American Legion post, as it was not for sale and the owners did
not foresee putting it on the market any time soon (although they
agreed to keep the library in mind should they do so) . 32
Extending the library's property had been a necessary part of the
plan for erecting a new and larger building, because the current
lot simply had no room left for expansion.
The board of trustees did not give up yet on a new
building, however. In November 1959, board member Steve Harbourt
met with Walter Brahm, state librarian of Ohio, and reported the
results to the board. Brahm recommended razing the Carnegie
building and erecting a new one; he agreed that it was entirely
inadequate for present needs. However, Brahm judged this would
cost the library $275,000. The Board investigated the
possibility of seeking a bond issue to raise the many thousands
of dollars needed for such a project; the prospects were dim.
The schools' bonded indebtedness at that time was near the 9%
limit allowed by law, so the system was in need of a new levy for
its own use, quite likely as soon as the next year. Thus a
library bond issue was out of the question. 33
Remodeling the existing building was calculated to cost the
same as would a completely new building. 34 In September 1959
trustee Dick Donaghy, after a conference with Morbito, told the
board that the architect's tentative estimate of the cost of his
proposed addition was $30, 000. 35 So it was decided to consult
further with Morbito about plans for an addition to the west side
of the Carnegie building. Librarian Zearley was asked to
coordinate closely the desired functions of the new space with
those of the existing building, so that together they would work
effectively. She suggested to the board some features it should
have, such as delivery entrance to the side, a book drop with
sliding receiving doors, a lift for books, and a parking area . 36
Morbito 1 s preliminary sketch in January 1960 showed the top floor
to be used for reading room, circulation desk, and magazine, book
and record storage, with a workroom in rear. The bottom floor,
below ground, was entirely devoted to the juvenile collection and
programming areas. 37
After transferring some more general fund money into the
building fund, and receiving a gift of $1,000 from a resident of
Kent, Mrs. John Parsons, the building fund totaled $51,958 in
March I960. 33 In special session that month the board of
trustees analyzed the addition plans to make specific decisions
on locations of work areas, and agreed to pay Morbito 6% for
complete plans and specifications. 39 They decided to deduct the
electric book lift from costs, but left in place the shaft and
wiring to install one later. On the 19th of August the board
23
accepted bids for construction totaling $55, 601. 40
Construction on the addition began in October I960, with the
razing of the house on the former Fanelly property/ 1 It
continued until spring of the next year. The library remained
open its customary hours of business throughout, except for a few
days in March 1961 when the west wall was broken through to
connect the two halves, and wiring and other work was attended
to. 42 The Men's Garden Club of Kent landscaped the grounds
around the addition on its own time and at much of its own
expense, as a memorial project to deceased club members. Their
work resulted in a pebble and rock garden, with retaining wall,
in front of the library.
The funds collected by the board of trustees for expansion
were only enough to finance the construction of the addition;
additional money was needed in order to provide shelving, tables,
chairs and other items for furnishing the new wing. Therefore in
November 1960 a Furnish the Library Committee was formed, to
appeal directly to the citirens of Kent for contributions to this
end. 43 Evangeline Smith, vice president of the board of
trustees, was appointed chairperson of the committee, and Robert
Dix, publisher of the local newspaper, the Kent Courier Tribune,
was asked to handle the publicity concerning the fund-raising
campaign. 44 On November 10th, the start of National Book Week,
letters were mailed to the entire community — to all library
borrowers, professional and business people, and industrial
firms — describing the library f s need for the money and giving the
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total amount of the request and what items were to be purchased
with it. 45
The total need determined by the committee was $18,768.75,
to be used for chairs, tables, display racks, files, shelving,
office equipment and drapes. These would be used to furnish both
the adult reading room and the children's room. 46 The library
was optimistic that enough money would be raised, since no
previous requests for donations had ever been made to the
community, and the building's cost was already paid.
The Furnishings Fund grew rapidly, thanks to contributions
from such groups as the Thenus Society, the Home Arts Department
of the Kent Woman's Club, and the Kent Lions Club; the latter
gave $1,080 from their annual Pancake Festival proceeds to enable
the library to purchase a new circulation desk for the
addition. 47 Donations ranged from an anonymous $5,000 trust
fund gift to the $8.70 earned by Mrs. Caroline Pierson's 4th and
5th grades at Kent Longcoy School through sales of their school
newspaper. 48
By April of 1961 the furnishings fund drive had collected
$10,000, and was only $8,500 short of its goal. The library sent
out printed "S.O.S." fliers to Kent households, asking for help
in raising the last few dollars needed. Local CampFire Girls and
Bluebirds helped to deliver the circulars in various
neighborhoods .
During this time, early 1961, shelving and tables were being
ordered as money became available in the fund, so that they would
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arrive in time to be installed before the opening. Some
equipment was acquired secondhand; an electric checkout machine,
the library's first, was purchased for $80 from the Steubenville
Public Library and installed in March. 49
On June 28th, 1961 staff and volunteers, including a group
of Boy Scouts, moved books and materials into the new addition,
and the formal opening s was held on June 29. 50 Finally , after
years .of planning, saving, and enduring cramped quarters, the
Kent Free Library had its much-needed enlargement.
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0
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..to the left, in
the old building.
01 D BUILDING - The oid addition. Still in use. the sec- in architecture since the early
S JTSt Free Ubrary tion dramaUcally shows the 1900's when the Kent Free U-
is a sharp contrast to the new changes that have .been made brary was bu.lt.
BEST ten m^U&LE
CHAPTER VII.
THE SLOW BUT STEADY SIXTIES: 1961-1970
The library board, flush with success over the completion of
the library's new addition, nevertheless began to think of the
possibility of future expansion, realizing that the library's
collection and circulation would not stay at their current size
and rate* At the start of 1962 they decided to start saving up
money again, mainly to be able to acquire more land as it became
available. (A likely prospect was the Andrews' small house and
lot behind the library on South River Street, which had been
considered previously.) In March, the board put away $1,500 for
this purpose. 51
A few cosmetic changes remained to be made to the newly
expanded library to best serve its patrons. The old front
entrance, up the steps into the Carnegie building, was closed
when the addition was opened, and patrons now used the new doors
at the west end of the new wing. All automobile access to the
library was through the driveway on Main Street, which resulted
in occasional long lines of traffic coming and going. To help
alleviate this inconvenience to patrons, the library purchased a^
90 ft. by 18 ft. strip of lafid from the American Legion, which
owned the adjoining property south of the library, to make an
alternate driveway that opened onto River Street. The price was
$1,500, obtained from the Furnishings Fund, which had $2,301
still in it at the time. 52 The driveway was heavily used,
27
28
despite the fact that it was only dirt and gravel, and in severe
weather it was difficult to navigate. In November 1962,
therefore, a "Help Pave Our JDrive" book sale was held in the
library, to obtain money for improving the driveway's
condition. 53 Two years later, in October 1964, the River St.
driveway was finally blacktopped. 54
The Carnegie's limestone front steps were not removed until
November 1963, after over a "year of discussion about when and how
to get rid of them and what to put in their plaoe. The library
utilized the help of the city and Kent State University for
equipment and labor, and gave the steps to Kent State
University. 55 Joseph Morbito redesigned the entrance, adding
new glass, enclosing the pillars and installing an ornamental
iron railing at the edge of the balcony created by the removal of
the steps. The foyer area was turned into a workroom/office/book
processing room around this time, helping to relieve congestion
down in the conference room*
An oil painting of the Atlantic and Great Western railroad
depot, site of the Reading Room that evolved into the Kent Free
Library, was donated to the library in the early sixties by Mrs.
Jessie H. Spelman and Miss Carrie Hinds, the daughters of Charles
E. Hinds, founder of the Reading Room. This painting, created by
Professor Elmer Novotny of Kent State University, is still
displayed behind the present circulation desk.
The library's circulation increased only slightly during the
sixties: the total percentage increase over the period 1961-1970
29
was 5% (see Table A-l) . The city's population, however, had
risen by 58% (17,836 to 28,183). An interesting difference; boom
times for the city, but slow growth for the library. A possible
reason for this might have been the influx of armed forces
veterans attending Kent State University on the GI bill after the
Korean conflict of the fifties; many were married with children
and chose to settle in Kent, but may have only used the
university library, not the public library. Television may also
have negatively affected use of the library. The number of
registered borrowers of the Kent Free for which there are
statistics available show a 22% increase from 7,830 in 1961 to
9,541 in 1966 (see Table A-6) ; 41% of the average 1966 population
held library cards. The library's yearly film audiences had
dropped 64% by 1965; the number of film showings (an average of
1,000 each year) had only decreased by 38% (see Table A-4) . The
increasing popularity of television and other societal changes
might have had an effect on "this program. But by 1969, the
audience count had gone back up by 141%, as the library increased
its number of film showings by 100%. The difference in
attendance was 47,000 more people in 1969 than in 1961, a 64%
increase, (see Table A-4) In March 1967, 8mm entertainment and
educational films were added to the circulating collection, 56
but these were not shown in the library.
From 1961 through 1970, the Kent Free's total collection was
enlarged by 12,744 volumes, or 62% (see Table A-l). Average
number of volumes added was 2,462. (The author was unable to
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locate an adult/ juvenile breakdown for enough years of this
period to accurately measure the corresponding percentages,)
Circulation was slowly increasing and there was need for a
bigger budget every year, but the library f s intangibles tax
income increased by a gradual 69% from 1961 to 1970, The average
annual rate of increase in tax in the sixties was only 7.4% (see
Table A-3). The library's budget was buoyed by a 20% increase in
tax in the first year, 1961, and a 17% raise from 1966 to 1967,
but the rest of the decade 1 growth was sluggish, and in two
separate years the library actually received less money from the
Portage County Budget Commission than it had the year previous.
Despite this slow trend, however, the amount of money the
library spent on salaries and personnel-related expenses such as
retirement increased by 100%' in this decade. This was due partly
to an 85% increase in the library's non-tax income over the
decade, and to the fact that the board increased the proportion
of the total budget used each year for salaries from 41% to
51.7%. The materials budget, on the other hand, stayed between
15% and 17% during this period.
The library's fulltime staff remained at three during these
years; total staff increased to 15 by the end of the decade. In
the mid-sixties, the staff briefly included a Norwegian visiting
librarian. In October 1965, "library trainee" Berit Sembsmoen
arrived in Kent from Tonsberg, Norway to begin work at the Kent
Free Library. She was placed by the American Scandinavian
Foundation in order to gain familiarity with American library
34
operations. Fluent in English, she had 8 years of public library
experience in her native country, including work as an assistant
librarian. Upon her arrival the library gave an Open House for
her, as well as for new teachers in the community. She worked at
the library for one year, leaving in October 1966. 57
Several staff changes during this period occurred in the
children's room. In April 1963 Winona Schindler resigned, having
held the position since 1952, and two more children's librarians
came and went in the next five years. In May 1968 Suzanna Edgar
was hired. Mrs. Edgar had a library degree from Michigan, and
had most recently been the librarian at Field School in Kent.
She was hired jointly by the Kent Free Library and Portage County
District Library in Hiram, to work four days a week at Kent and
one day a week at Hiram. 58
In adult services, Jenny Gillis came on board in September
1962 to replace Martha Vasbinder as second librarian, when
Vasbinder left for a job with the Kent city schools. 59 In that
capacity Vasbinder helped both the schools and the public
library, for she was instrumental in developing the libraries at
the two new elementary schools soon built in Kent, Walls and
Holden, and the expanded library in Longcoy Elementary; with
better school libraries, which are primarily curriculum-oriented
in nature, the Kent Free Library's children's staff could
concentrate more on providing for children's recreational needs.
A longtime member of the board of trustees, A. L.
Lauderbaugh, resigned in March 1964; he had been appointed a
32
trustee in 1937 and twice served as president, Leland Keller took
his position on the board, and this proved to be an important
appointment, for in his 20 years as a board member, including
several terms as president, Mr. Keller served with distinction
and provided invaluable input during two library expansion
programs. When he died in 1986, he bequeathed $80,000 to the
Kent Free Library. 60 (see Chapter IX)
The Kent Free Library provided a diverse assortment of
programming and services throughout the sixties. For children,
there was the annual Summer Reading Club; 125 children read ten
or more books each in 1965. The Book Critic, Jr. program enabled
children to vote for their favorite book of all time, as well as
write brief reviews and recommendations of books for other
children. Children's nonfiction author CM. Colby, a popular
boys' writer of the times, spoke to school and library audiences
about his work.
For the rest of the family, the library started showing
travel films and slides as a regular program for the public in
September 1965. There were Open House affairs with displays of
new books, refreshments, and film showings, during National
Library Week and special Spring Book Festivals; these were
usually well-attended, in the hundreds. They were shown Fridays
at 8:30 pm. A travel series of one kind or another, film or
slides, has been a popular program at Kent Free for decades, and
continues to be well-attended. Since this was the Vietnam era,
the thoughts of many of Kent's residents were on their loved ones
33
in the armed forces; in 1967 a display was set up in the library
of photographs of Kent servicemen and women. A new service
instituted during this period that also gave the library an
additional source of income was the acquisition of a photocopier
for patron use in 1966; copies have remained the same low price
of 10 cents for over 25 years. 61
Throughout its history the Kent Free Library, like all
libraries, has had occasional difficulties in recovering long
overdue books. A frequently used tactic in the sixties was to
advertise "free days," when patrons were permitted to return any
overdue books for free, with no questions asked and no fines
charged. The library was thus able to reacquire some materials
long held, that probably would otherwise never have been
returned; in 1966 uncollected fines from the last 7 years
totalled $3,000. National Library Week in April was the usual
time chosen. In order to be successful, however, free days must
not be scheduled in a regular fashion or people will come to
expect them and purposely hold on to long overdue books in
expectation of amnesty. This seems to have occurred at the Kent
Free in the sixties, because there were numerous free days, but
they were not very successful in achieving a high number of
returned books and so the practice was dropped. 62
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37
CHAPTER VIII.
NEW LEADERSHIP *AND NEW SPACE: 1971-1980
Shortly after the start of a new decade, an era came to an
end at the Kent Free Library: in December 1972, librarian
Margaret Zearley retired. She had worked at the library for
twenty years, with an additional 15 years of librarianship prior
to taking the job in Kent. The new head librarian was Clare
Gearhart, from Novelty, Ohio. Having obtained both her
Bachelor's and Master 1 s degrees from Case Western Reserve
University in Cleveland, she had six years of experience as a
librarian, the two most recent at the May field Regional Library
of the Cuyahoga County PublLc Library system. 63 Gearhart came
with new ideas for improving the library's services and
collection. Under her direction a cooperative book buying and
processing system was begun with Akron Public Library, whereby
Kent got discounted purchase prices and Akron cataloged the books
selected for Kent; and Kent Free increased the size of its
current adult fiction collection by renting books through the
McNaughton system, an inexpensive way to satisfy heavy demand and
save shelf space (since the books are sent back after use
declines)
Gearhart ! s tenure at the Kent Free Library was very short,
however, as a combination of professional and personal factors
led to her resignation in April of 1974. A public controversy
developed over Gearhart ! s spring 1973 dismissal of a children's
34
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33
librarian who had come to the position in 1972. (The librarian
had been working in the library f s children f s room for a year
previous to her promotion, while finishing her Master's
degree. 65 ) Dozens of Kent citizens attended that year f s Kent
Free Library board meetings, to express their concern over the
decision and their interest in the library's various aspects of
operation. Janet Stavole, with a Bachelor's degree from Kent
State and working on her library degree there, succeeded as
children's librarian in September 1973. 66
It was during this episode that Carmen Z. Celigoj , a
graduate of Kent State University's School of Library Science who
had worked three years at the Cleveland Museum of Art library,
was hired as adult services librarian. When Gearhart took a
combined maternity leave and leave of absence in November 1973,
Celigoj was appointed as acting head librarian by the board.
Five months later Gearhart resigned, and, in June 1974, Celigoj
became the Kent Free Library's new director.
Celigoj immediately faced shortages in library space and
staffing. There was no room for an office for the head
librarian , so she had to conduct all of her business from the
reference desk. Although there were seven fulltime staff, not
all were qualified to provide reference help so she could
concentrate on administrative tasks and representing the library
in the community. To try to alleviate this problem, an
internship program was set up with the Kent State University
Library School, which enabled graduate students in reference
36
classes to work the Kent Free reference desk on a volunteer
basis, for credit. Finally in August 1975, Celigoj was able to
hire a fulltime adult services/reference librarian, as well as a
parttime children's librarian and an audiovisual materials
specialist, Harry Brecha. Brecha was hired through CETA — a
federally funded program that put qualified unemployed persons to
work. He contributed greatly to the library; through his
photography and other media -experience and contacts, he helped to
establish a more professional public relations department for the
library, when before there had been next to none. 67 During the
Bicentennial year he produced a slide show of the history of the
city of Kent that had over 200 people in attendance, and became a
perennial favorite. It was even designed to be available for
circulation to those interested in showing it themselves.
Circulation for the decade 1971-1980 increased by 74%, an
average of 6.7% per year (see Table A-l) . The population of
Kent, however, dropped 7% between the 1970 and 1980 censuses, so
the same numbers of people were checking out an increasing number
of materials during this time. Adult book circulation jumped 75%
but juvenile circ only gained 21%. In May, 1976, daily
circulation broke the 1000 mark. 68 In 1976 there were 11,539
registered borrowers, or an estimated 38% of the Kent population;
this was an increase of 13% from 10,244 cardholders in 1971 (see
Table A-6) .
New to the circulating collection in the seventies: framed
art reproductions were acquired in 1975 and circulated for six
40
37
weeks for a small fee. Also in 1975 the record collection was
expanded to include popular music and movie themes, and a new
format was added in 1977: audiocassettes of rock, classical and
popular music. 69 The total collection was increased from 35,390
volumes to 61,559 volumes in this decade, or 74% (see Table A-6) •
The adult collection doubled, whereas the juvenile collection
gained approximately 65%. Average number of volumes added yearly
was 4,128.
Kent Free*s allotment of intangibles tax money made a
whopping 173% increase in this decade: from $84,705 in 1971 to
$232,029 in 1980 (see Table A-3) . The main reason was the 30%
jump between 1S74 and 1975, the first year of Celigoj f s tenure as
director. The average annual increase was only 11%, with the
decade ending with a mere 1% increase over 1979. The personnel
portion of each year*s budget rose 206%, double that of the
1960 f s (some of the salary amounts used in calculations excluded
PERS expenses, however, so percentage is not entirely
consistent) . Percentage of total income spent on personnel
averaged 48%, ranging from 39% in 1977 to a high of 52% in both
1973 and 1974. Percentage spent on materials stayed level at 16-
18% until 1978, when it was increased to 24% of total budget;
this was to accommodate the additional audiocassette purchases.
Also, money was being set aside annually for capital improvements
whenever at all possible, so this is another reason for the
variations.
During the seventies, representatives from the boards of the
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three Portage County libraries — Reed Memorial in Ravenna, Portage
County District Library (headquartered in Garrettsville) , and
Kent Free — held regular meetings to discuss the possibilities of
cooperating in some fashion. An analysis of the county's public
library services had been published in 1970 by Kent State
University's Center for Urban Regionalism (see bibliography).
The "Joint Board," later called the Portage County Library
Council, discussed this and their ideas for mutual assistance,
such as adopting one library card good at all libraries, daily
delivery of books, and non-^uplicative collection development. 70
Some of these goals were accomplished in 1976 when all three
libraries joined NO LA: originally the Northeastern Ohio Library
Association Reference and Information Services, now shortened to
NOLA Regional Library System. It was formed in 1972 to provide a
reference and interloan network, supplemental rotating
collections, consultation services and continuing education for
librarians. Administered by the Youngstown Public Library (which
serves as the system's resource library due to its sizeable
collection) , NOLA in 1976 consisted of 25 public, academic,
special, and school libraries in seven counties. 71 The Kent
Free Library utilized NOLA's rotating film and books on audiotape
collections, as well as its reference and interlibrary loan
services and workshops, and continues to be a member of NOLA into
the 1990 's.
Anther program the libraries cooperated in was Project
Visual Library, a 1975 $30,000 LSCA-funded project to provide
39
service to the elderly and homebound, and large print books to
the visually impaired ♦ 72 They were also able to adopt one
patron card that worked in all county libraries by switching to a
different charging machine*
All along, the individual libraries found it difficult to
put mutual concerns ahead of their own library* s problems,
especially in the case of Kent Free where space was again
becoming a major concern* The Kent Free Library board supported
the idea of further close cooperation, but had to see to its
immediate needs first. The three continued striving to
coordinate policies and fee structures, keeping an eye towards
the eventual use of automation.
During the seventies, in order to provide better service and
accommodate its ever-increasing number of patrons, the Kent Free
Library increased its hours of operation. In 1974 the library
ended its longheld custom of closing on selected slow Saturdays
during the hottest months of the summer, and two years later it
began opening on Spring and Fall Sunday afternoons from 1 to 5pm.
When over 85% of the 200 patrons surveyed in May 1976 responded
in favor of the new hours, the library added 25 weeks of seasonal
Sunday openings to its regularly scheduled hours of business the
next year, 73 and has continued them ever since.
Change was a big part of programming at the Kent Free in the
seventies. Many longstanding and popular programs had their
beginnings in this period. There were still preschool story
hours each week, plus a toddler program for two year-olds that
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was a new idea only Kent and a few area libraries had begun to
implement at this time. In 1978 children's librarian Linda
Dragoo created an annual Preschool Information Fair, held in
conjunction with local preschool and day care providers. Parents
attending were presented with a wealth of information on various
preschools in the area, could talk with representatives, and take
home tips and information on how to share books with their
children — while their children were entertained by a program of
their own. These fairs continued throughout the early eighties.
Children in grades 4-7 could join the library's Children's
Theater and Puppet Club, started by a local mother of two. 74 In
1979, the very popular "Holiday Helpers" program began: 2-hour
programs for children 6 months to 12 years, to give parents time
to do holiday errands. Activities included movies, games,
stories, songs, and snacks; in 1992 Holiday Helpers still were in
high demand. The library created circulating "S.O.S." kits in
1979, also: these were boxes^ of books, puzzles, records, and
other items as requested for parents to take home on extended
loan to sick or homebound children. 75
There were also craft sessions for kids; annual Halloween
parties; an Akron Children's Zoo program that brought snakes and
other reptiles to kids at the library (along with their keeperl);
a chalk party for budding sidewalk artists; and regular Swap
Meets to trade baseball cards, comic books, and so forth. There
were 105 children in the 1974 summer reading program, but by 1980
200 children took part. 76 Movies were shown every Wednesday
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evening^ and on Saturday mornings as well, to packed houses:
average yearly attendance was 61,4811 At the close of the
decade, the 1980 Presidential election year, Kent children
participated in a mock election at the library, complete with
polling booths; the program was intended to generate children's
and parents' interest in the presidential race in particular and
in becoming responsible citizens in general.
New and unique programs and services were created for adults
as well during the seventies. Director Celigoj is a firm
believer in "hooks," or any unusual program or material that can
serve to "reel in" a non-library user and get him or her to start
coming to the library, first for the unique item, then later for
books or inf ormation. 77 Some "hooks" of the seventies included
a clothing pattern exchange between patrons, and a "plant
exchange day," whereby patrons bringing in cuttings of their
favorite house plants could trade for cuttings of new and
different plants. Needlepoint classes offered at Kent Free
proved to be so popular they continued for many years and spawned
an annual needlework exhibit in 1980, judged by local experts and
still held in the 1990' s. The 1978 National Library Week
programs included a presentation on rare books by Kent State
University's head of Special Collections Dean Keller, a workshop
on book repair, and a talk by noted children's book illustrator
Barbara Morrow.
The library board purchased Dr. Andrews' house and property
in 1972 78 and it was immediately put to use as storage space for
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materials, and to help conduct the library's services to the
homebound and elderly, including Project Visual Library,
coordinated by Mrs* Gillis.
In the mid-seventies Kent Free stopped charging overdue
fines to senior citizens; all they needed was to show a card
proving registration in a discount plan for seniors (i.e.
medicare) or other dated identification. 79 Unfortunately,
however, due to increasing costs, in December 1977 overdue fines
for all other patron had to be increased to 5 cents per day, and
notice fees went up also* For the first time, the library found
it had to charge patrons a service charge for postage on
interlibrary loaned materials, and other miscellaneous charges
were instituted due to rising operating costs, such as fees for
lost library cards or lost date due cards. 80 (This did result
in an increase in the amount of fine money collected, in 1978
over 1976, but how much of an increase due to the fine raise is
difficult to determine due to unavailable 1977 figures for
fines.) The library was still having problems collecting long
overdue itexc ", and using much staff time in the process, so in
1975 the library turned over its outstanding fines (totalling
over $6,000) to a collection agency. It was decided by the board
that it was the necessary step to take in order to insure that
every patron had an equal opportunity to utilize the library's
materials, and it was successful in its goals. 81
Turning to the physical facility, in 1976 Kent Free
announced a $200,000 addition would be built onto the south side
43
of the present building. The frugal management of annual
operating funds and additional income from family bequests made
expansion possible — nearly $150,000 was now at the board's
disposal for capital improvement. The remaining funds were
raised by the time construction was completed. In the Fall of
*
1974, faced with constantly rising circulation and increasing
demands on the library's facilities, the board of trustees
engaged two library consultants from the University of
Pittsburgh, Keith Doms (Director of the Philadelphia Free Library
and former president of the American Library Association) , and
Frank B. Sessa (professor of library science and former ALA
treasurer) to study the library's current space problems and
future needs. In April 1975, Doms and Sessa recommended a 12,000
sq. ft. addition to the current 6,554 sq. ft. would be needed in
order to meet the ALA's minimum requirements. The library was
far from able to meet the $708,000 cost of such a project,
however, so it was decided to implement the first phase of the
recommendation — a 4,800 sq. ft. addition. Plans and
specifications were drawn up by the Kent architectural firm of
McWilliams, Martyniuk, and Schidlowski. 82
Construction started in September, 1976, with the razing of
the Andrews house on South River Street. The new wing added areas
for circulation, study, and book stacks on the main floor; an
elevator and entrance ramps for disabled patrons and staff use;
and on the lower level, it brought together formerly scattered
administrative offices into the Carnegie building, provided a
47
44
public meeting room and restrooms, and additional space in the
children's room including a carpeted story pit area for programs.
The meeting room was named after former board of trustees member
Dick Donaghy, who had died in 1975, and furnished through
contributions made to the library in his memory. Donaghy had
been a trustee for 20 years, retiring in 1971. 83
Because a public library cannot carry a debt from year to
year, when the Kent Free board members needed to borrow money for
the addition in 1977, they formed the Kent Free Library
Foundation, a nonprofit organization incorporated to benefit the
library. It can solicit donations to be used for things public
money cannot, such as parties for summer reading club. The
Foundation, therefore, borrowed money to purchase the property of
Mrs. Bartsche, immediately west of the 1961-added building
boundary, (see map) The Foundation paved the Bartsche property
and then leased the property to the library to use as a parking
lot; the library paid rent every year until the property was paid
off, and then paid for maintenance costs. The Foundation also
provided matching funds so that the library could receive $8,500
from Kent City Council in Federal revenue sharing funds to
purchase equipment for the 1977 addition.
The majority of the addition was finished enough to be in
use in March 1977, except for some furniture and shelving. The
outside of the 1961 wing was refaced to match the new part of the
building. 84 An Open House was held on November 20, 1977 to show
off the addition. 85 The library received a 1978 Immy Award,
43
45
public structure category, from the Kent Chamber of Commerce for
the addition's "imaginative appearance and compatibility with
existing library facilities." The Immys are given annually to
firms whose development, expansion, or renovation projects make a
significant contribution to the improvement of the community. 86
Also receiving a well-earned award in 1978 was Director
Carmen Celigoj , who was given the Ohio Library Association's
Diana Vescelius Memorial Award. Named for a 1965 Kent State
University School of Library Science graduate who died at the
start of her professional career, the award honors librarians
under 35 or with less than 5 years professional experience who
contribute outstanding library service in social responsibility
and intellectual freedom. 87 Under Celigoj 1 s direction the Kent
Free Library had made great strides, in terms of increased
staffing, increased programming, and increased square footage.
Despite financial difficulties, the library moved forward.
49
46
CHAPTER IX.
THE BOOMING EIGHTIES : 1981-1990
Library patronage, circulation, and collection size
continued to increase as the 1980 f s began. Throughout the
decade, around 50% of Kent residents held Kent Free Library
cards, an unusually high figure for a small public library, 88
(see Table A-6) In 1981, total circulation had been 208,159; by
1990 it was 53% higher, 318,839 (see Table A-l) . The average
annual rate of increase in circulation for the 1980's was 5,2%,
Adult book circulation increased by 86%, and juvenile circulation
by 87%. By contrast, the population of Kent rose only 10% from
1980 to 1990. (It must be noted, however, that because the Kent
Free Library is a school district library, its service area
includes the Kent School District. This equalled the city of
Kent until 1959 when Franklin Township and Brady Lake were
transferred to the Kent School District, and 1972 when Sugar Bush
Knolls was also included. The service area for the library was
formally adjusted on January 18, 1983 • So, for the most accurate
descriptions of the library's service population, one should
include roughly 25% more in the total population, over and above
the city total. For the purposes of this study, census figures
of the city proper were used in all chapters, to maintain
consistency between decades when one or the other new areas were
not included yet.)
During the 1980' s, the library's collection was enlarged by
47
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48
4 0%, from 68,720 volumes to "96,094 volumes . (see Table A-l) Of
the three decades under study, this was the lowest percentage
increase in collection size. Adult collection increased 36%;
juvenile collection increased by 52% however* This trend is the
opposite of what occurred in the 1970' s, when the adult
collection registered the larger increase* The average number
of volumes added annually was 8,056. Comparing decades, the
library doubled the number of volumes added every ten years.
Between 1973 and 1985, five children f s librarians were
hired, four reference librarians, seven administrative
assistants, and five heads of circulation. 89 In the 198 0's the
Kent Free Library's staffing turnover rate began to slow. In 1985
Noreen Bobersky was hired as children's librarian; "Mrs. B" has
conducted many popular programs for over seven years now.
Reference staff has changed slightly, but remains at four, which
includes the Assistant Director, Pam Simones. Her Bachelor 1 s
degree is from Vassar College, she holds an M.A. from College of
William and Mary, and her MLS is from Kent State University.
Simones worked as a reference librarian at Kent Free from 1977 to
1980, worked at the Akron-Summit County Public Library and then
returned as Kent Free's Assistant Director in 1989.
During the fall of 1980 the board of trustees began to
consider implementing a circulating collection of the latest
audiovisual format: videocassettes. 90 Through a survey
published in the Record-Courier and handed out at the circulation
desk, the public was asked for its input: did patrons want
videos, and if so which format, VHS or Betamax, and titles would
they prefer? A listing was displayed of titles available for a
starter collection. Patrons liked the idea, so for a six-month
trial period, winter 1981-82, the library circulated 23 VHS
videos to any patron over 18, for a $1,00 fee per title. The
response was overwhelmingly positive; in 1982 those 23 tapes were
checked out 318 times. (In March of 1982 Kent Free added a few
titles from the NOLA video circuit; separate statistics are not
available for these,) The collection was tripled in size the next
year, and circulation also tripled: 61 tapes circulated 1,018
times. The collection was augmented in leaps and bounds to keep
pace with demand, with approximately 20 titles every two months
from NOLA's rotating stock, and new purchases using the rental
fees collected. By June 1984, the library had boosted the
collection to 170 of their own titles, which went out 1,308 times
in those six months — a 100% increase over 1983, 91 The most
astounding video statistic, however, occurred in 1990, when
circulation skyrocketed from 8,801 (each video went out 7,1
times), to 27,440 — an amazing 17,3 circs per video. The number
of video titles had only been increased by 28%, but circulation
increased by 212%, There are a couple of reasons for this: (1)
the $1,00 per video rental fee was dropped in 1989; (2) the limit
and length of loan were increased: instead of three videos for
three days, one could take five videos for seven days.
Subsequently, patrons took out more titles at a time, (3)
Axitomated circulation meant items were checked back in much more
50
quickly, and thus shelved more quickly as well. Still , with no
changes in policy, video circulation increased by 15% in 1991 and
by 38% in 1992 (see Table A-4) . The library has found an
immensely popular item that continues to grow in popularity.
Compact discs were added to the collection in 1987 92 ; the
collection now numbers 932 and had a circulation of 9,646 in
1992. (Table A-4; CDs included in Recordings figures)
New in 1980 services for children: "Dial-a-Story , " a
separate phone line set up with 24-hour recordings of children's
stories and folk tales. Tapes were changed every week or so. It
was an instant success: over 150 callers a day heard the four-
minute messages; in the first six months of the service, the line
received 20,000 calls. Due to the incredibly high demand and the
fact that only one person could call in at a time, the library
had to keep publicity low-key, and only give out the number to
those who asked for it. 93 Dial-a-Story is still operating in
the 1990 f s, although the volume of callers has decreased. In
1980, annual calls totalled 42,000, with an average of 1200 calls
every week. From 1983 to '8-4, the volume of calls decreased by
85%; by 1990, the most recent statistics available, total yearly
calls had been 5,901, and an average week's tally was 135. 94
Dial-a-story was an extremely popular idea when new, but after
the novelty wore off, use dropped sharply. With the ^xtreme
popularity of children's videos, which can entertain a child for
even longer periods of time than a four-minute call, Dial-a-story
has been outdone.
In 1984 the library's first annual Spring Bake-Off for
children was held; the bake-off has been an extremely delicious
and well-liked program for eight years now. Another offbeat item
the library obtained for circulating was made possible through a
1983 program with the Polaroid Corporation and the American
Library Association. "Sun" instant cameras were made available
for patrons to check out for free for two weeks. 95 The
children *s room staff included these in their "Birthday Boxes,"
which were new for 1983: kits with books, tapes, puppets,
activities and of course a specially shaped cake pan, for hosting
a child's birthday party. Kent Free Library reference
librarian and actor James Freeman starred in a staff -written,
one-man play profiling the life of Andrew Carnegie during this
period. It was performed on the 150th anniversary of Andrew
Carnegie's birthday April 20, 1986, at the annual Trustees Tea,
and twice during National Library Week. 96
Other programs and services for adults included free income
tax help; a TravelOhio display of sightseeing brochures every
June; a newsletter for teachers and numerous bibliographies; free
Sign Language classes; a guitar ensemble performance; and a very
successful program on "Public Relations for Clubs," with local
media representatives sharing publicity tips and t^'ocedures. The
adult book discussion group continued, as well.
The library's book auction of the 1950 's evolved into the
annual book sale, staffed by student or retired citizen
volunteers. It was held on the lawn in back of the library for
52
many years, then in 1980 was held as part of KentFest, the
downtown fair • 97 The venue and date changed again in the mid-
eighties, when the library used the garage of the law offices
across River Street and held" the sale as part of National Library
Week celebrations in April or in the dog days of August* In the
fall of 1992 the sale was moved to Kent Roosevelt High School as
part of their Teddyville celebration; this gave the school a
share of the profits in return for their help in organizing and
running the sale, which had grown to be too large for library
staff to undertake each year. The library's portion of the
proceeds went to the Kent Free Library Foundation^Dn January 1st,
1986, a new Ohio law went into effect that had a profound effect
on the state's public libraries, including the Kent Free, The
state government repealed the locally-levied intangibles tax law,
which had become inadequate to support most libraries' budgets,
and replaced it with the Library and Local Government Support
Fund (LLGSF) , which came from 6.3% of the state income tax
revenue* This new means of funding was more equitable, for it
consisted of a (1) Guaranteed Share of funds given to libraries,
that would always at least equal the previous year's funds plus
inflation; and (2) an Equalization Share, which would divide up
the excess tax money according to a population-based equalization
formula. Under the new law, Kent Free Library's tax revenue
increased nearly 12% from 1985 to 1986. The next year, funds
increased 32%. LLGSF was an immediate improvement over
intangibles for Kent, within two years- — in no single previous
56
year had the library received as great an increase in tax income.
Because of the way the law was structured, funding looked to be
improving for many years to come. The average annual tax increase
received by Kent from 1981-85 was 10.7%, whereas after LLGSF went
into effect, 1986-1990, Kent Free received an average annual
increase of 16% (see Table A-3) .
When it came time to allot Kent Free's budget to salaries
and to material in 1981-1990, on the average, 47.5% of the budget
went to salaries, and 21.5% to materials. To accommodate
videotape acquisitions, the 1982 audiovisual budget was increased
95% over that of 1981, Only a modest increase was used when
introducing CDs into the collection, however.
During the eighties Director Celigoj secured two federally-
funded grants for new service projects at Kent Free Library. In
1982 she got the library a $21,938 federal grant, from LSCA Title
II funds, for Project CAT (Computer Access Today) . The money was
used to purchase two IBM personal computers for public use, along
with printers, software packages such as word processing and
games, books, computer magazine subscriptions, and wages for a
part-time clerk to teach one-hour computer orientation classes to
patrons. According to Celigoj, CAT was the first computer
literacy project done in the Kent area, and it later served as a
model for several other library programs concerning computers for
the public. The Project CAT promotional campaign was featured in
ALA's "Great Library Promotion Ideas 11 booklet, one of 40 ideas
from around the country. During the project year, over 1,000
54
people completed orientation sessions (4% of the population of
Kent) ; the terminals were used by about a dozen people a day.
CAT proved to be a timely and successful project; the computers
remain popular with the public, and the library has continued to
upgrade and improve its computer hardware and software. 98
The library already used a computer for cataloging
materials, called Bibliofile. This, and getting personal
computers for certain staff functions, was the beginning of the
Kent Free Library's move into integrated computer technology for
patrons and staff alike.
Another grant Celigoj secured for the Kent Free Library
during this time was a $9,328 LSCA Title I award for Project
MAZE — Manage A to Z Easily. It ran from July 1985 to June 1986.
This adult literacy project focused on acquiring materials for
adults teaching themselves to read or attending reading classes
taught in the library through the Adult Basic Education program.
With these funds the library purchased 500 books for adult new
readers on topics such as car repairs, how to get a driver's
license, and fiction titles, and materials to promote the
program. After the successful initial year, the service continued
to be provided by the library."
In 1987, the 200th anniversary of the U. S. Constitution,
the Kent free Library was one of 18 Ohio libraries selected by
the National Endowment for the Humanities to participate in
"Bicentennial Bookshelf." This program provided money to
purchase reference and circulating materials that would form a
ERLC
53
55
diverse collection pertaining to the history and nature of the
Constitution. Matching funds were needed locally in order to
obtain the grant, and again members of the Hinds family showed
their commitment to the Kent Free Library: Comfort S. Martin,
granddaughter of George E* Hinds, and Carrie Anne Martin, Hinds'
great-granddaughter, donated the needed $500 100 .
The 1977 addition worked well for a few years, but as had
been projected by the 1975 consultants' report, more space was
going to be needed soon to alleviate the crowding and keep pace
with the library's growth. Working conditions for staff were
becoming intolerable, as they tried to make do with the cramped
spaces in the old Carnegie building.
In 1983, phase two of "the consultants' expansion plans was
implemented. The library planned a 6,000 sq. ft. two story
addition, to expand the library's south and east sides in an "L M
shape. The top floor was for added stacks area, more seating for
patrons, an Ohio History room, and workroom areas for staff. The
bottom floor would provide increased space for the children's
department and include a new conference room. An expanded
parking lot was also part of the plan. 101 This largest
expansion project yet in the Kent Free Library's history,
expanding its floor space by 50% of the previous size — to 18,000
sq. ft., was made possible in part by the largest bequest ever
received by the library.
The estate of Dr. and Mrs. Florence Turner, a longtime
library patron and library board trustee for 21 years, bestowed
56
$300,000 upon the library. With this in hand, the library
applied for and won a $253,094 federal Emergency Jobs
Bill/Library Service and Construction Act Title II grant,
administered by the State Library of Ohio, which required an
equal share of local funds. 102 Kent was one of 18 Ohio
libraries to received a grant that year, in one of the largest
amounts awarded. As had happened in the past when the library
funded expansions, this total of $453,094 was not going to be
enough to both construct and furnish the addition, so a
fundraising campaign aimed at clubs and civic organizations was
undertaken at the same time the plans were announced. The
campaign's goal was $40,000/ which would cover the costs of not
only tables, chairs, and steel shelving, but a sorely needed new
card catalog unit. Two of the many citizens of Kent who
contributed to the fund were Mary Hinds Bopp and Edith Hinds
West, granddaughters of George E. Hinds, one of the Kent Free
Library's most important early founders and a trustee until 1920.
They donated $1,000 in memory of him.
By February 1985 the fundraising committee had completed
their task, with a $1,000 donation from Ameritech that put the
fund over $41, 500. 103 For her efforts as chairperson of the
committee and her overall work on behalf of the library,
Catherine Dumm, former trustee, received the OLA "Citizen of the
Year Award" in 1985. 104
Three houses on West Main Street had been purchased by the
library in the late seventies (the "Bartsche property," see
ERLC h[}
57
illustration on p. 58) ; their demolition marked the official
start of construction on the "Turner Addition." The library
managed to remain open normal hours of business for almost the
entire period of construction; there were a few closings of a day
or two for electrical work and carpet installation, and
occasionally portions of the collection were inaccessible to
patrons while shelving was installed or moved. Construction was
completed in August 1984, and the official dedication ceremony
was held January 13, 1985. 105 - The library received a second Immy
Award from the city of Kent for the Turner addition.
In 1988 the Leland Keller Ohio History Room was created, out
of the small second-story work room that had originally been the
front entrance foyer of the 1902 Carnegie library. Using a
$5,000 gift from Kent Rotary, the room was decorated entirely
with locally obtained materials in a turn of the century style.
Keller was president of Home Savings and Loan Association and
past president of Rotary, among other activities during his
lifetime of service to the community. The Keller Room contains
the library 1 s collection of history and travel materials on the
city of Kent, Portage and neighboring counties, and other areas
in the state of Ohio. The Keller Room was officially dedicated
on April 16, 1989. 106
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61
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FLOOR PLAN - LOWER LEVEL
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FLOOR PLAN - UPPER LEVEL
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CD
CHAPTER X.
AUTOMATION AND THE FUTURE: 1991-1992
As the 1990 's began, the Kent Free Library entered a new era
in library operations, as it became fully automated in both
circulation, public catalog, and technical processing, and
thereby linked with Reed Memorial's and Portage County District
Library's holdings. (see map, p. 65) The joint boards of
trustees had been working on making the transition for many
years; money was the greatest obstacle. The three libraries
established the Portage County Consortium in order to reduce
costs to each member library through resource sharing. From this
time forward the LLGSF tax money received by the county would be
divided into four parts instead of three, so that a specified
amount would go directly to the Consortium to pay for the
continuing costs of automation. All circulation policies had to
b^ unified as well, so that online, loan periods and fine levels
would be consistent. After careful study of several online
systems, the Consortium agreed to select Inlex (produced by
Hewlitt-Packard) , primarily for its ease of operation for first-
time computer users.
In the Spring of 1990, the library staff inventoried its
entire collection (96,094 volumes); retrospective conversion to
database and printing of "smart" barcodes (containing
author/title/call number as well as barcode number) was completed
by the Fall of 1990. The library then closed to the public for
63
o €3
ERLC
64
the week of December 17-25, 1990 in order for all staff to be
able to barcode the majority of the collection. (The other
Portage County libraries also closed during the winter, on a
staggered schedule.) The week before Christmas is historically
the Kent Free Library's slowest in terms of circulation and in-
house use, so closing then inconvenienced the least amount of
patrons, and with advance advertisement the library was able to
get a large number of materials returned by this time. From her
prior experience in automating, Assistant Director Simones had
found that this was the fastest and most efficient way to barcode
the greatest number of items with the least amount of errors,
rather than trying to barcode while conducting normal library
business. (The only glitch in the whole process was the
incorrect conversion of the -library's entire audiovisual
collection; classical music was placed in the biographies, and so
forth. By the end of 1992, records for videos, compact disks and
audiocassettes had been corrected and only the record album
collection remained to be fixed and returned to circulation.) 107
Planning for the Turner addition of 1985 had included
provisions for computer installation, so very little additional
work was needed to the physical facility in order to accommodate
wiring and terminals, although the fit was not as ideal as it
would have been with a building built entirely in recent years.
Circulation and cataloging terminals came online in March 1991,
after staff had received training on the new system. From
January, patrons were being reregistered for new cards. The
70
PORTAGE COUNTY
71
public access catalog terminals came online in May 1991, and at
the same time the library's card catalog was removed, due to
space limitations and in order to insure that patrons learned how
to use the new catalog.
With the new system Kent Free's patrons now had access to
all of the county f s holdings: 298,000 items in 1990 (Portage
County District, with four branches and a bookmobile, has the
largest individual collection, but it is only about 7% larger
than that of Kent Free, which was 96,094 in 1990- ). 108 They
could see instantly if a book was on loan, and via daily delivery
of reserved books, timely receive a copy from another Portage
County library, or use their new card in person at any county
library • The Inlex system greatly aided staff in their jobs,
allowing easier and more accurate inventories of the collection,
for example. Staff and patrons alike viewed automation as a
welcome and long overdue addition to the library.
Another new technology "brought to the Kent Free Library in
the 90 f s was the CD-ROM. In 1991, the library began using
TOMCAT , the catalog of holdings for all NOLA libraries and
automated inter-library loan system, and obtained Facts On File
and DiscLit American Authors (Twayne f s U.S. Authors biographies).
In 1992, Kent obtained the Baker and Taylor Link, which is the
CD-ROM equivalent of Books In Print plus audiovisual materials,
and is used in making acquisitions. In the future, according to
Simones, the library intends to expand its CD-ROM capabilities to
include many more reference tools now occupying large amounts of
67
space in their print form, such as telephone books and other
multi-volume sets. 109
Total circulation for 1991 showed an increase of 2 3% over
1990 circulation: from 318,839 to 391,821 (see Table A-l) .
Including the 12% increase in 1992 figures (439,276), the rate of
circulation increase for the three years 90-92 was 38%. Average
number of items borrowed per patron (total circulation divided by
total number of registered borrowers) was 24 in 1992. When
Celigoj started as director , # in 1974, Kent Free Library ranked
88th out of 250 Ohio public libraries in total annual
circulation. By 1990 the library had moved up to 73rd. 110
In terms of its budget, the library experienced a slight
decrease in LLGSF funding from 1991 to 1992, as a result of the
1990 freeze on funds from state income taxes. Kent Free received
8% less tax money in 1992 (see Table A-3) . The percentage of
money allocated to salaries was 50% in 1992, and 20% went to
materials. The latter included over $4,000 for CD-ROMs. Staff
numbers remained stable during this two-year period; the
library's fulltime equivalent was 21.2 (including four reference
librarians, two children's librarians, a public relations
coordinator, an administrative assistant, full and parttime staff
at circulation and technical processing, and pages) .
The Kent Free Library is a vital part of the Kent community.
It has been so since its founding 90 years ago. Kent Free
provides informational, cultural, and recreational services to
its community, as well as to all of Portage County. The library
o 73
ERLC
68
has been challenged by periods of extremely fast growth in
circulation and in-house use, which filled the building to
capacity and beyond, necessitating three expansions to the
original Carnegie building. Over the 38-year period the library
has seen many changes, such as increased funding due to the
adoption of the Library and Local Government Support Fund, a
staff doubled in size to better serve the larger numbers of
people using the library, and an improved collection that now
includes compact disks and videocassettes. Nearing its 100th
anniversary, the Kent Free Library looks to the future for new
technologies and services with which to provide the people of
Kent.
ERLC
74
SOURCES CONSULTED
Published Material:
Akron Beacon Journal articles, 1975-1992 .
Ohio Directory of Libraries , Columbus, Ohio: Ohio State Library,
1963-1979.
Public Library Services in Portage County; An Analysis For
Planning . Kent, Ohio, Center For Urban Regionalism, Kent
State University, 1970.
Kent Courier-Ravenna Evening Record, Ravenna Record-Courier
articles, 1955-1992.
Statistics of Ohio Libraries . Columbus, Ohio: Ohio State
Library, 1980-1992.
■
U.S. Bureau of Census. 1990 Census of the United States .
Population.
Unpublished Material:
Annual reports of the Kent Free Library, 1975-1992.
Minutes of the Board of Trustees monthly meetings, Kent Free
Library, 1948-1992,
Statistical reports kept at the Kent Free Library, 1958-1992.
ERLC
69
ERIC
1. Mac Campbell, pp. 11-15.
2. Mac Campbell, A History of the Kent (Ohio) Free Library , pp. 15-
20.
3. Mac Campbell, p. 22.
4. Mac Campbell, p. 50.
5. Harrick, pp. 20-23 .
6. Based on census figures: 12,418 in 1950 and 17,836 in 1960
7. Mac Campbell, p. 77.
8. Trustee's minutes, chart of 1958 figures
9. Directory of Ohio Libraries 1958.
10. Trustees minutes, October 2, 1946.
11. Trustees minutes, December 1956.
12. Author's telephone interview with Martha Vasbinder, July 11,
1993.
13. Trustees minutes, ?October 1957
14.1951 figures from Harrick, Appendix VIII ; 1957-1960 figures from
trustees' annual statistical reports.
15. Exact figures were only found for book collection and magazine
subscriptions, in Harrick, p. 42.
16. Campbell, p. 62.
17. Telephone interview, July 11, 1993.
18. Trustees' 1960 statistical report.
19 . Record-Courier , December "24, 1960.
2 0. Akron Beacon Journal , February 4, 1960.
2 1 . Record-Courier . October 1, 1956.
22. Harrick, p. 23.
23. Harrick, p. 45.
24. Harrick, p. 88-89.
70
6
25. Board of trustees minutes, June 15, 1955.
2 6. Board minutes, December 7», 1955.
27 . Record-Courier . March 2, 1955.
28. Board minutes, May 9, 1956.
2 9 . Record-Courier . June 1957.
3 0. Board minutes, 1957.
31. Board minutes, March 4, 1959.
32. Board minutes, May 6, 1959.
33. Board minutes, November 4, 1959; Record-Courier , 1959.
34 . ibid.
3 5. Board minutes, September 2, 1959.
36. Board minutes, September 2 and November 4, 1959.
37. Board minutes, January 13 w 1960.
38. Board minutes, March 2, 1960.
39. Board minutes, special session March 16, 1960.
40. Board minutes, special session August 19, 1960.
4 1 . Record-Courier . December 28, 1960.
42. Board minutes, March 1, 1961.
4 3 . Record-Courier . November 16, 1960.
4 4. Board minutes, September 7, 1960.
45. Board minutes, November 2, 1960.
4 6 . Record-Courier . November 16, 1960.
4 7 . Record-Courier . July 21, 1961.
4 8 . Record-Courier . 1961?
49. Trustees minutes, November 2, 1960.
50. Akron Beacon Journal , June 29, 1961.
71
77
51. Trustees minutes, March 7, 1962.
52. Board minutes, July 11 f 1962.
53 . Record-Courier , November 16, 1962.
54. Board minutes, November 4, 1964.
55. Board minutes, November 6, 1963.
56 . Record-Courier , March 7, 1967.
57. October 14, 1965 Record-Courier and Sembsmoen's trainee
application.
58. Trustees minutes, May 1, 1968 and December 11, 1968.
59. Board minutes, September 5, 1962.
60 . Record-Courier f August 28, 1987
61. Trustees minutes, December 7, 1966.
62. Various Record-Courier articles during the period, and trustees
minutes March 4, 1970.
63 . Record-Courier , December ? 1972.
64. Trustees minutes, February 7, 1973 and March 7, 1973.
65. Trustees minutes, October 6, 1971 and September 6, 1972.
66. Taken from trustees minutes April 1973 through April 1974, and
Record-Courier articles on July 2, 1974 and March 20, 1975.
67. Trustees minutes, November 4, 1973, July 17, 1975 and August 21,
1975; interview with Carmen Celigoj, April 12, 1993.
68. Trustees minutes, May 20, 1976.
69. November 18, 1977 Record-Courier .
70. Trustees minutes of the Kent Free Library Board, 1960-1970.
71. NOLA "Application for Charter as a Metropolitan Library System."
72. Trustees minutes, January 15, 1975.
7 3. Trustees minutes, March 10, 1976; May 20, 1976; and September 8,
1977.
74 . Record-Courier , October 27, 1979.
72
° 78
ERLC °
75 •Trustees minutes, November 8, 1979.
7 6 . Record-Courier 8/7/80
77 . Interviews with Carmen Z. Celigoj.
78. Trustees minutes, January 12, 1972.
79. May 29, 1975 Record-Courier
80 . Record-Courier December 1977.
81. Flyer, in PR notebook.
82. July 1977 Record-Courier and "Kent Free Library Addition 1983,
Library Director f s Program Statement."
83 . Record-Courier May 20, 1975
84 . Record-Courier June 22, 1977
8 5. Trustees minutes, October 13, 1977.
8 6 . Record-Courier , Fall 1978
87 . Record-Courier , October 30, 1978.
88 . Record-Courier July 8, 1983
89.1985 letter to board of trustees from Celigoj.
9 0 . Record-Courier . November 18, 1980.
91. Library document, "Videocassettes — Evaluation of the service at
the Kent Free Library," 1984.
92 . Record-Courier , March 23, 1987.
93 . Record-Courier July 19, 1980
94. Tally sheets kept by various staff members.
95. May 1983 Record-Courier
96 . Record-Courier April 4, 1986 and trustees minutes, March 13,
1986
97. June 23, 1980 Record-Courier
98 . Record-Courier articles , January 14 , 1983 and September 12 ,
1985; 1986 letter to board of trustees from Celigoj.
73
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79
99. Trustees minutes, June 20, 1985; 1986 letter to trustees from
Celigoj .
100. Press release, Sept. 21, 1987.
101. Record-Courier July 8, 1983
102 . Record-Courier December 14, 1983 and letter to trustees, 1986.
103 . Record-Courier February 8, 1985
104. Trustees minutes, September 12, 1985
10 5. Trustees minutes, February 8, 1985
106. Record-Courier . April 17, 1989.
107. Personal interviews with Pam Simones, May 1993.
108. Portage County Consortium fact sheet, 1990.
109. Interview with Simones.
110. Source: Statistics of Ohio Libraries , 1991.
74
0
Table A-l
Collection and Circulation
Year
Adult Volumes Juv.
Volumes Total
Volumes
Adult Circ.
Juv. Circ.
Total Circ.
1
1958
—
—
17,675
54,457
55,691
119,265
2
1959
—
—
18,147
61 ,552
—
125,443
3
1960
12,856
6,598
19,454
52,668
61 ,995
127,123
4
1961
13,258
7,270
20,528
—
125,415
5
1962
—
—
22,367
69,083
—
131 ,062
6
1963
—
—
23,791
68,772
—
1 13,703
7
1964
—
24,812
*58,857
58,556
138,425
8
1965
15,615
9,290
24,905
*58,408
54,498
133,171
9
1966
13,233
1 0,106
26,339
*59,024
57,463
136,342
1 0
1967
—
28,272
70,190
—
130,801
1 1
1 968
—
- - -
30,553
69,928
- - -
136,748
1 2
1969
—
- - -
31 ,983
63,407
47,313
134,202
13
1970
- - -
33,272
74,780
131 ,615
14
1971
—
- . -
35,390
69,498
• • *
1 1 9,378
1 5
1972
35,057
74,553
125,676
1 6
1 973
25,303
1 2,486
37,789
70,931
64,728
135,659
1 7
1974
26,753
13,51 7
40,270
82,556
64,731
147,287
18
1975
28,247
14,383
42,630
85,944
56,835
1 62,766
19
1976
32,214
14,992
47,206
95,504
60,812
173,815
20
1977
33,943
15,123
49,066
92,294
59,958
163,409
21
1978
38,708
15,686
54,394
1 09,273
65,625
198,404
22
1979
41 ,850
16,253
58,103
1 12,140
63,737
204,049
23
1980
44,886
16,673
61 ,559
121 ,738
60,298
208,159
24
1981
52,646
1 6,074
68,720
1 1 0,287
60,825
205,188
25
1982
55,349
16,832
72,181
131 ,779
66,524
223,306
26
1983
58,257
18,995
77,252
135,325
70,601
233,541
27
1984
63,004
19,599
82,603
122,395
73,714
224,030
28
1985
65,301
18,314
83,61 5
138,845
84,466
264,128
29
1986
67,393
19,464
86,857
137,638
84,739
269,31 9
30
1987
71 ,028
1 9,662
90,690
143,079
94,137
280,31 0
31
1 988
69,160
20,101
89,261
136,994
93,277
270,890
32
1989
84,868
175,924
103,409
279,431
33
1990
71,640
24,454
96,094
*204,766
114,073
318,839
34
1991
TOTAL BOOKS:
97,030
1 1 0,868
*245,550
146,271
391,821
35
1992
TOTAL BOOKS:
104,169
1 I 4,626
198,586
157,820
439,276
SI
ERIC
Graph A-2
Kent Free Library Circulation, Selected Years
800000
600000
E
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200000
1958 1963 1968 1973 1978 1983 1988 1992
Year
Total Circ.
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Table A-IT
Table A-6
Portage Cty. Per Capita Tax Registered Borrowers, 1958-1992
Year
Per Capita Tax
Year
Cardholders
1970
2.31
1958
7128
1971
2.50
1959
...
1972
2.52
1960
7405
1973
2.93
1961
7830
1974
3.15
1962
...
1975
3.67
1963
...
1976
4.24
1964
...
1977
4.56
1965
9622
1978
4.85
1966
9541
1979
5.15
1967
...
1980
5.39
1968
...
1981
5.90
1969
...
1982
6.87
1970
...
1983
1971
10244
1984
7.61
1972
—
1985
8.98
1973
—
1986
10.45
1974
—
1987
13.69
1975
11752
1988
15.58
1976
11539
1989
17.65
1977
...
1990
18.75
1978
...
1991
18.97
1979
12615
1992
1980
12927
1981
13067
1982
14012
1983
14301
1984
15886
1985
17050
1986
17321
1987
17537
1988
17369
1989
1990
1991
12936
1992
18193
r,7
ERIC
School of Library and Information Science
(216)672-2782
Fax 216-672-7965
P O Box 5190. Kent, Ohio 44242-0001
CONSENT FORM: A HISTORY OF THE KENT FREE LIBRARY, 1958-1992
I wish to research the history of the Kent Free Library from
1958 to 1992. I want to do so because there is no written history
of the library covering this period, and creating one will provide
a document for patrons and staff that synthesizes all the existing
separate records of the period and shows how the library has grown
and improved in this 30+ year period. I would like you to take
part in this project. If you decide to do this, you will be asked
to answer a few factual questions regarding major events and
policies of the Kent Free Library during the years you have
been/were connected with it. These interview sessions will last
approximately one to two hours, during the last weeks of December
or into January if needed. You will be asked questions regarding
any matter that cannot be resolved from reading existing records.
There will be no risk to you other than those encountered in
everyday life. If you take part in this project you will be
helping me to complete the story of the Kent Free Library so that
future patrons and friends of the library can read about its
development. Taking part in this project is entirely up to you,
and no one will hold it against you if you decide not to do it. If
you do take part, you may stop at any time. I will not release any
information attributed to you without your written consent.
If you want to know more about this research project, please
call me at (216) 677-9423, or my adviser Dr. Rick Rubin at (216)
929-1946. This project has been approved by Kent State University.
If you have questions about Kent State University's rules for
research, please call Dr. Adrian de Vries, (216) 672-2070.
You will get a copy of this consent form.
sincerely,
Christina Getrost, Graduate Student, Library Science
551 Franklin Ave., Kent, OH 44240-3535
CONSENT STATEMENT:
I agree to take part in this project. I know what I will have to
do and that I can stop at any time.
Signature Date
13
ERIC
