The Kern County Library is a public library system serving the residents of

Kern County Kern County is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 909,235. Its county seat is Bakersfield. Kern County comprises the Bakersfield, California, Metropolitan statistical area. The county sp ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. The library system is headquartered at the Beale Memorial Library in

Downtown Bakersfield Downtown is the central business district for Bakersfield, California. It contains several of the cities major theaters, sporting complexes, museums, and historical landmarks. What is considered to be “downtown” Bakersfield varies. In order ...

. There are additional branches located throughout Kern County. The library is also a part of the San Joaquin Valley Library System (SLVLS), which is a corporative network of library systems located throughout the

San Joaquin Valley The San Joaquin Valley ( ; es, Valle de San Joaquín) is the area of the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California that lies south of the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta and is drained by the San Joaquin River. It comprises seven ...

. The system contains a variety of material, including: books, audio/visual material, periodicals, and government documents. The Beale Memorial Library also contains special collections. These include: historical maps, historical photography, fine arts collection, genealogy, grant research, and local history. There is also a collection about local geology, mining, and petroleum. A library card is required for checking out material. All California residents are eligible for a library card. It also allows access to library resources over the internet.Getting a Library Card
. Kern County Library. Accessed: 06-17-2010.

Beale Memorial Library

The first free library in the county was the Beale Memorial Library. It was created in 1900 by Mary Edwards Beale and her son

Truxtun Beale Truxtun Beale (March 6, 1856 – June 2, 1936) was an American diplomat. Biography Beale was born in San Francisco to Mary Engle Edwards and Edward Fitzgerald Beale; his siblings were Mary (1852–1925), who married Russian diplomat George B ...

. It was dedicated to the memory of their husband and father, General

Edward Fitzgerald Beale Edward Fitzgerald "Ned" Beale (February 4, 1822 – April 22, 1893) was a national figure in the 19th-century United States. He was a naval officer, military general, explorer, frontiersman, Indian affairs superintendent, California rancher, ...

. The Kern County Library System (originally called the Kern County Free Library) was organized on July 11, 1911. It would adopt the Beale Memorial Library as its headquarters. The existing building served the needs of the system until 1952, when it was destroyed by the Kern County earthquake. The new library was completed in 1957 and was used for the next 30 years. By the mid 1980s, that building became too small to hold the growing collection. In 1988, the library was moved to its current location at 701 Truxtun Ave.

Branches

In addition to the Beale Memorial Library in Downtown Bakersfield, there are 23 additional branches throughout Kern County. They include 6 branches that serve Greater Bakersfield.Hours and Locations
. Kern County Library. Accessed: 06-17-2010. *Arvin Branch *Baker Branch (

East Bakersfield East Bakersfield is a region in Bakersfield, California directly east of downtown. The region was formerly known as the town of Sumner, which was later incorporated and renamed Kern City. It is primarily a mixture of residential and commercial d ...

) *Boron Branch *Bryce C. Rathbun Branch (North Bakersfield) *Buttonwillow Branch *California City Branch *Clara M. Jackson Branch (

McFarland McFarland may refer to: People *McFarland (surname) Places in the United States *McFarland, California, a city *McFarland, Kansas, a city *McFarland, Missouri, a ghost town *McFarland, Wisconsin, a village Other uses * USS ''McFarland'' (DD-237) ...

) *Delano Branch *Eleanor Wilson Branch (South Bakersfield) *Frazier Park Branch *Holloway-Gonzales Branch (Southeast Bakersfield) *Kern River Valley Branch *Lamont Branch *Mojave Branch *Northeast Branch (

Northeast Bakersfield Northeast Bakersfield (commonly known as simply The Northeast) is the northeast region of Bakersfield, California. It is roughly bounded by Panorama Drive and the Kern River to the north, Alfred Harrell Highway/Comanche Drive to the east, Edison ...

) *Ridgecrest Branch *Shafter Branch *Southwest Branch (

Southwest Bakersfield Southwest Bakersfield (commonly referred to simply as The Southwest) is the southwest region of Bakersfield, California. It is roughly bounded by the Kern River to the north and Oak Street/Wible Road to the east. The other boundaries are the city ...

) *Taft Branch *Tehachapi Branch *Wanda Kirk Branch (

Rosamond Rosamond is a feminine given name, which may refer to: People *Rosamond Carr (1912–2006), American humanitarian and author *Rosamund Clifford (before 1150 – c. 1176), English mistress of King Henry II * Rosamond Langbridge (1880–1964), Irish ...

) *Wasco Branch *Wofford Heights Branch There are also two Bookmobiles that operate in Kern County. They are mobile libraries that travel to different locations in the county. One operates in Bakersfield and surrounding rural areas, while the other operates in the

Kern River Valley The Kern River Valley is a valley and region of the Southern Sierra Nevada, in Kern County, California. History The valley was inhabited for millennia by the indigenous Tübatulabal and Kawaiisu people, and various bedrock mortar and pictograph ...

References

External links

Kern County Library
{{authority control

Kern KERN (1180 AM broadcasting, AM) is a commercial radio, commercial radio station city of license, licensed to Wasco, California, Wasco-Greenacres, California, and serving the Bakersfield metropolitan area. The station is owned by American General ...

Education in Bakersfield, California Education in Kern County, California

Beale Memorial Library

Branches

See also

References

External links