Saratoga Springs Public Library (SSPL), established in 1950, is a

public library A public library is a library, most often a lending library, that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil servic ...

located in

Saratoga Springs Saratoga Springs is a city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the area, which has made Saratoga a popular resort destination for over ...

in the

Capital District A capital district, capital region, or capital territory is normally a specially designated administrative division where a country's seat of government is located. As such, in a federal model of government, no state or territory has any politic ...

area of

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. SSPL serves the

Saratoga Springs City School District The Saratoga Springs City School District is the public school district of Saratoga Springs, New York. The district is an independent public entity. It is governed by the Saratoga Springs City School District Board of Education, whose member ...

Services and facilities

The three-story building on Henry Street that now houses the library was opened in 1995. SSPL offers a wide variety of services in the building and via the web site. The library offers a collection of current, high demand print and non-print items, including books on tape or

compact discs The compact disc (CD) is a digital optical disc data storage format co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. It employs the Compact Disc Digital Audio (CD-DA) standard and was capable of holding of uncompr ...

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

s, as well as access to online electronic information resources, downloadable audiobooks, ebooks and videos, and much more. The library provides public computer access to library card and non-card holders, printing, 3D printing, scanning, faxing, and free WiFi. Librarians are available to respond to the information needs of customers who walk-in or phone-in with questions. SSPL also provides Ask-A-Librarian, an email reference service. Individuals who wish to research their own information needs can also browse through the dozens of reference pages known as LibGuides. The library offers

wireless Wireless communication (or just wireless, when the context allows) is the transfer of information (''telecommunication'') between two or more points without the use of an electrical conductor, optical fiber or other continuous guided transm ...

capability, a coffee shop, and ''The Friends Book Shop'' bookstore selling used paperback and hardbound books.

Programs

The library offers free programs and activities for all ages. Some recurring offerings include: * English Language Learning and Adult Basic Literacy * Book clubs (internally called Book Groups) * Paws4Reading partner program with certified therapy dogs * Story times * ...and more!

The Saratoga Room

The Saratoga Room is a collection of local history resources containing books, pamphlets, audio-visual materials on the Saratoga Springs area. Examples are a history of the effort to preserve the springs, ''The Politics of Hydrotherapy and the Development of a New York State Policy'' written by local resident and former Saratoga Spa State Park employee Ed Murphy, and the "Frank Sullivan Collection" of books written by humorist Frank Sullivan or inscribed to him by his famous friends. This room is open for limited hours. The library is part of the

Southern Adirondack Library System The Southern Adirondack System (SALS) is a consortium of thirty-four libraries in Saratoga, Warren, Washington, and Hamilton counties in New York. SALS is one of 23 public state-supported library systems in New York. It was chartered in 1959 ...

, providing an integrated online catalog and

interlibrary loan Inter-library loan (abbreviated ILL, sometimes called document delivery, document supply, inter-lending, inter-library services, inter-loan, or resource sharing) is a service that enables patrons of one library to borrow materials that are held by ...

among thirty-six libraries in Saratoga,

Warren Warren most commonly refers to: * Warren (burrow), a network dug by rabbits * Warren (name), a given name and a surname, including lists of persons so named Warren may also refer to: Places Australia * Warren (biogeographic region) * War ...

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

, and

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

counties.

History

The first library in Saratoga Springs, the Saratoga Athenaeum, was a private

subscription library A subscription library (also membership library or independent library) is a library that is financed by private funds either from membership fees or endowments. Unlike a public library, access is often restricted to members, but access rights ca ...

founded in 1885 by a group that included

Spencer Trask Spencer Trask (September 18, 1844 – December 31, 1909) was an American financier, philanthropist, and venture capitalist. Beginning in the 1870s, Trask began investing and supporting entrepreneurs, including Thomas Edison's commercial production ...

and Joseph Drexel among others. This library was first located on the corner of Broadway and Caroline Street, and moved to 344 Broadway in 1906. In 1945 voters approved a proposal to construct a public library, which opened at 320 Broadway at the intersection of, Spring Street in a corner of Congress Park, in 1950. When this library opened students from the Saratoga Springs school district carried the books down Broadway to their new home. The library's current building at 49 Henry Street broke ground in 1993 and opened in 1995. It was designed by Architecture Plus of

Troy, New York Troy is a city in and the county seat of Rensselaer County, New York, United States. It is located on the western edge of the county, on the eastern bank of the Hudson River just northeast of the capital city of Albany, New York, Albany. At the ...

and The LA Group and Phillips Associates of Saratoga Springs.

Parking

The Saratoga Springs Public Library is located in downtown, nestled between Henry and Putnam Streets. As of 2024 the City of Saratoga Springs implemented summer paid parking. Paid parking runs from Memorial Day through Labor Day and affect six city-owned, off-street parking facilities. General information about parking restrictions and exceptions can be foun
here
The library's Putnam Street parking lot has several restrictions enacted by the city during the time between Memorial Day and Labor Day: * Between 9 am and 6 pm, all parking in the library parking lot, including in the 15-minute and handicap accessible spaces, is restricted t
library parking lot permit holders
only. * Between 9 am and 9 pm, parking is free for library parking lot permit holders. * While the City of Saratoga Springs Seasonal Paid Parking program is in effect, non-permit holders will pay $2 per hour or fraction thereof between 6 pm and 9 am, and all parkers will pay $2 per hour, or fraction thereof, between 9 pm and 9 am, and on holidays when the library is closed.

References

External links

*
Saratoga Springs Public Library website
{{authority control Public libraries in New York (state) Buildings and structures in Saratoga Springs, New York Education in Saratoga County, New York Library buildings completed in 1995