The St. Helena Branch Library is hosting a 9th birthday party on 9 October 2021. The current building may be 9 years old but library books have been circulating on the island for a lot longer than that! How did library service for Island residents evolve through time? Here's a brief timeline of providing library services on St. Helena.
1956
The First Book Delivery Service
Operating out of the independent Laura Towne Library at Penn Community Center, Mrs. Wilhelmina Barnwell and Mrs. Ethel Bailey delivered books in their personal vehicles to African-American children on St. Helena Island and Lady’s Island.
1958 Bookmobile Service
Two years later, Mrs. Barnwell
and Mrs. Bailey had more demand than their vehicles could accommodate. The AKA
Sorority at S.C. State College awarded a $400 grant towards the purchase of a
bookmobile. A used bookmobile from Richland County Public Library was acquired
by the Laura Towne Library for $450 (including taxes, a new paint job, and
repairs). Mrs. Barnwell drove this bookmobile around St. Helena Island and
Lady’s Island for 8 years. Approximately 1,000 books circulated each month through
her 15 “Book Outposts”.
1962 The "Beaufort County Library" is established
By act of the General Assembly in 1962, the Beaufort Township Library was transformed into the Beaufort County Library.
Also in this same year, the
Beaufort County Library provides services to all area residents. The Beaufort
County Library is a fully integrated public library system and
the Beaufort County Library Board of Trustees begins the process of
closing the J.I. Washington Colored Library.
1962 First Branch Library Established
The Laura Towne Library at Penn Center becomes the first branch location of the Beaufort County Library system.
1973 The Laura
Towne Library on St. Helena Library closes.
1993 St. Helena Elementary Joint Use Facility
The Beaufort County
Library and the Beaufort County School District open a joint use facility at
St. Helena Elementary School at 1025 Sea Island Pkwy on Highway 21.
The St. Helena Branch Library at St. Helena Elementary School closes on September 8, 2012.
2011-2012 The New St. Helena Branch Library
In 2011, a groundbreaking
ceremony is held in October for a new St. Helena Branch Library to be
built on land donated by Penn Center.
The new St. Helena Branch
Library opens at 6355 Jonathan Francis, Sr. Road on October 17, 2012. The
22,000 sq.ft. facility cost $11 million to build. It was funded with Community
Development Block Grant and US Department of Agriculture Rural Development grants
and loans and built to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Standards.
Liollio Architecture of Charleston, SC was the designer. The building continues
to win multiple design awards.
There's a lot more details to be found in the Beaufort County Library Records and in the "Beaufort County Library - St. Helena Branch" vertical file inside the Research Room. Please make an appointment at least a few days in advance of your preferred date and time to visit, Mondays through Fridays: gracec@bcgov.net or 843-255-6468.
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