Site of First County Free Library Branch in California, is a historical site in

Elk Grove, California Elk Grove is a city in Sacramento County, California, United States. Located just south of the state capital of Sacramento, it is part of the Sacramento metropolitan area. As of the 2020 Census, the population of the city was 176,124. A 2021 C ...

in Sacramento County. The Free Library Branch opened in 1908 though the work of the principal of Elk Grove Union High School, Miss Harriet G. Eddy. The site of the County Free Library is at 9125 Elk Grove Boulevard, Elk Grove. With the success of the Elk Grove County Free Library other County Free Libraries started. The site is

California Historical Landmark A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is a building, structure, site, or place in the U.S. state of California that has been determined to have statewide historical landmark significance. Criteria Historical significance is determined by meetin ...

No. 817, registered on June 1, 1967. At the site a historical marker was placed by State Department of Parks and Recreation working with Elk Grove Parlor No. 41,

Native Sons of the Golden West The Native Sons of the Golden West (NSGW) is a fraternity, fraternal service organization founded in the U.S. state of California in 1875, dedicated to historic preservation and documentation of the state's historic structures and places, the pla ...

and Liberty Parlor No. 213 Native Sons of the Golden West on September 9, 1967. The site is now home to Elk Grove Grange #86. The current Elk Grove Library is at 8900 Elk Grove Boulevard. Principal of Elk Grove Union High School was Miss Harriet G. Eddy. Eddy was Principal from 1906 to 1909. Eddy was key is started Free

Public Libraries ''Public Libraries'' is the official publication of the Public Library Association (PLA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA). It is devoted exclusively to public libraries. The print edition is published six times a year and i ...

in California then the idea spread around the world. The First County Free Library opened on October 19, 1908. At the Eddy became time Principal, Elk Grove Union High School had not passed the school accreditation standards, set by the

Western Association of Schools and Colleges The Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC ( )) provided accreditation of public and private universities, colleges, secondary and elementary schools in California and Hawaii, the territories of Guam, American Samoa and Northern ...

(WASC). Thus seniors that graduated Elk Grove Union High School, had go through a one year at accredited school if they wished to go to

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') may be a tertiary educational institution (sometimes awarding degrees), part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further education institution, or a secondary sc ...

university A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

. One of the missing parts of accreditation was to have a library. Elk Grove Union High School only had a mobile State Library, started in 1903 by the California State Librarian, Ames Gillis. Gillis learned about an

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tax that funded its State Library system in rural towns. Sacramento City Librarian, Lauren Ripley also wanted to expand the Library system. James Gillis, Lauren Ripley and the Harriet Eddy worked to start the new Library system. Eddy got a contract between the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors and the Elk Grove for an Elk Grove Library branch that opened October 19, 1908. At first the Schools hallway was used for the Library, this was too small and not a good, so the

Woman's Christian Temperance Union The Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) is an international temperance organization. It was among the first organizations of women devoted to social reform with a program that "linked the religious and the secular through concerted and far ...

building next to the school donated a room to used as the Library, that started with 1,000 books and grew. The Woman's Christian Temperance Union had donated rooms for classes till the 1893 school was built. Principal Eddy was the community librarian. In 1909 Eddy stepped down Principal, she had worked with Gillis State Librarian in Sacramento, she went to work for Gillis at the State Library Office from 1909 to 1919. At the State Library Office she help open Public libraries around the state. In 1919 she help set up library systems in

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

and then other

European countries The list below includes all entities falling even partially under any of the various common definitions of Europe, geographical or political. Fifty generally recognised sovereign states, Kosovo with limited, but substantial, international reco ...

References

{{reflist 1908 in California 1908 establishments in California California Historical Landmarks History of Sacramento County, California

See also

References