The Claymont Public Library is a high tech
community resource center buzzing with activity and enhancing the
lives of its patrons. The main location is at 215 E. Third Street
in Uhrichsville and the branch is at 15 N. Fourth Street in
Dennison. The services offered by the library are comprised of
traditional book and magazine lending services including outreach
programming to seniors and child care centers, summer reading
programs for people of all ages, family and children's
programming, access to weekly and daily newspapers, quality
reference service and a community meeting room. Other services
include the use of copiers, scanners, and FAX service as well as
inclusion of internet connectivity, free access to subscription
databases for research, educational computer games for children,
and the lending of videos, DVD's, music CD's, Books on Tape, and
electronic books.
The library system is a member of the Southeastern Ohio
Regional library consortium, which circulated more than 7 million
items to its members in 2001. Claymont's patrons are
electronically linked to over 160 other libraries in Ohio through
SEO and the Dynix on-line circulation system used by all member
libraries. The library is also a member of the Mideastern Ohio
Library Organization, a regional co-operative that provides local
network and educational opportunities for staff. As this article
is written, the state of Ohio is developing a statewide
resource-sharing program in which Claymont Public Library will
participate. The community's library has indeed grown beyond its
own physical location, and is able to offer our customers
excellent library service without boundaries and collection
limitations.
Public libraries in the Twin Cities had their beginning in the
winter of 1899 when the Tourist Club organized the Twin City
Public Library at the Uhrich Street School. The club continued to
support a library in Uhrichsville until a group of citizens asked
the Uhrichsville Board of Education to form a library board. In
September 14, 1934 the library moved into the Uhrichsville city
building on north Main Street. Mrs. Alma Huggins was the first
librarian, and the board of trustees included Mrs. N.L. Birney,
Miss Flora Copeland, Mrs. W.P. Petry, Ross Virtue, G.W. Reed, H.B.
Galbraith, and Mrs. Harry Klar.
The other half of the Claymont Public Library began at Dennison
High School in June of 1923, under the jurisdiction of the
Dennison Board of Education. Mr. O.C. Johnston and Mrs. W.H. Angel
were prominent in starting the library. In January 1924, the
library came under the jurisdiction of the Library Board. The
trustees were E.S. Marshall, G.F. Cooper, J.B. Weekday, Lulu
McKee, O.C. Johnston, Mrs. W.H. Angel, and Mrs. J.J. Williams.
Miss Maude Porter was hired as the first librarian with the first
registered member being Hattie M. Kipp. When the Dennison high
school building burned in 1927, the public library was relocated
to the Dennison city building at 302 Grant Street, where it was
housed until 1998 when a new building was constructed at its
current location.
In 1964 the Uhrichsville and Dennison libraries were
consolidated into the Claymont School District Public Library. The
Claymont Board of Education appointed one Library Board to govern
both locations. The Board members were Helen Reiser, John Milgate,
J.Woods Brown, Harry Kinghorn, Bernice Cottrell, Glenna Peoples,
and Virginia Mitchell. Co-librarians at that time were Gertrude
Dunn in Uhrichsville and Betty Connelly in Dennison. Mrs. Connolly
resigned in August 1966, and Geraldine Atkinson was named the
librarian at the Dennison location.
The library board purchased the former Harry Wade building on
215 E. Third Street in 1970, and the Uhrichsville collection was
moved there. When Gertrude Dunn died in 1974, Geraldine Atkinson
was named Director of both locations, and the main library was
officially designated at the Uhrichsville location until it was
relocated back to Dennison in 1979. The main library was again
reassigned to the Uhrichsville location when Mary Lee Smith was
appointed Director in 1990. Debra McCune was appointed as the
Branch Manager of the Dennison location.
During the 1990's, the Uhrichsville location acquired property
adjacent to its current location, and moved the reference
collection, offices, and meeting room into that space. Also in
this decade, the Board purchased land on 4th and Center Street in
Dennison where a new branch library was built. It opened in August
of 1998. In that same year, Mary Lee Smith resigned, and Karen
Miller became the new library Director. Miss Miller was employed
until June 2000, when she relocated to central Ohio.
Currently, Lorrie McCauley Wheeler is the Director of the
Claymont Public Library, having been hired in April 2001. The
Board of Trustees includes Susan Willard, Bruna Madoni, Carol
McClain, Dr. Andrea Fanti, Ken Welch and Mary Ellen Kovach.
Employees at the main library in Uhrichsville include the Director
Lorrie Wheeler; Michelle Haff, Clerk Treasurer; Donna Moody,
Technology Coordinator; Rene Koile, Children’s Coordinator;
Valerie Willoughby, Terri Carpenter, and Libbie Zeigler, library
associates, Kimberly Voshall, Page; and Susan Harris, custodian.
Employees at the Dennison branch include Lois Brown, Branch
Manager; Pam Rectanus, Dodie Patterson and Jennifer Coventry,
library associates; and Elva Johnson, Custodian.
The staff and trustees of the public library strive to provide the
highest level of service to all library users through appropriate
and usefully organized resources, to provide equitable access, and
to provide accurate, unbiased, and courteous responses to all. The
Friends of the Claymont Public Library, organized in October 2001,
are working together to advocate for the public library and to
strengthen the library's ties to the community. Technology is a
driving force in the evolution of library services, but the
cornerstone will continue to be excellent customer service.
