Worcester Public Library (formerly known as the "Worcester Free Public Library") 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 ...
in downtown
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Massachusetts, second-most populous city in the U.S. state of Massachusetts and the list of United States cities by population, 113th most populous city in the United States. Named after Worcester ...
. It was founded in 1859 when local resident John Green donated his personal library to the city for public use. In 2004, the Worcester Library Foundation was established to raise funds and promote the library. In fiscal year 2009, the city of Worcester spent 1.14% ($4,817,006) of its budget on the library—some $26 per person.
Subscription databases
As of 2021, the Worcester Public Library provides access to the following databases for its patrons:
* American Ancestors
*
Ancestry.com
Ancestry.com LLC is an American genealogy company based in Lehi, Utah. The largest for-profit genealogy company in the world, it operates a network of genealogical, historical records, and related genetic genealogy websites. It is owned by The ...
* A to Z Databases
*BookFlix
*
Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe,'' also known locally as ''the Globe'', is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Boston Globe'' is the oldest and largest daily new ...
*
Britannica
* Chilton Auto Repair
*
Consumer Reports
Consumer Reports (CR), formerly Consumers Union (CU), is an American nonprofit consumer organization dedicated to independent product testing, investigative journalism, consumer-oriented research, public education, and consumer advocacy.
Founded ...
* Freegal Music
* Foundation Directory Online
*
Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . Databases
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . Academic Onefile
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . Academic Onefile Select
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . Business: Entrepreneurship
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . E-Reference Titles
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . in Context: Biography
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . in Context: Elementary
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . in Context: Global Issues
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . in Context: Opposing Viewpoints
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . in Context: Science
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . in Context: U.S. History
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . in Context: World History
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . Directory Library
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . General OneFile
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . Health and Wellness
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . Literature
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . Literature Resource Center
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . OneFile: Criminal Justice
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . OneFile: Culinary Arts
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . OneFile: Educator's Reference Complete
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . OneFile: Environmental Studies & Policy Collection
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . OneFile: Health & Medicine
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . OneFile: High School Edition
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . OneFile: Hospitality and Tourism
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . OneFile: News
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . OneFile: Nursing and Allied Health
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . OneFile: Physical Therapy & Sports Medicine
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . OneFile: Vocations & Careers
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Gale
A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface wind moving at a speed between . Virtual Reference Library
* Greenfile (
EBSCO)
* Heritage Quest
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Hoopla
* HelpNow Online Tutoring
* Infobase eBooks
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JSTOR
JSTOR ( ; short for ''Journal Storage'') is a digital library of academic journals, books, and primary sources founded in 1994. Originally containing digitized back issues of academic journals, it now encompasses books and other primary source ...
(access limited to citations only)
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Kanopy
* LearningExpress Library (
EBSCO)
* Library, Information Science, and Technology Abstracts (
EBSCO)
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Mango Languages
Mango Languages is an American online language-learning website and mobile app based in Farmington Hills, Michigan, for academic institutions, libraries, corporations, government agencies, and individuals. A Mango membership can be free at local ...
* Massachusetts Permit Practice Test
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Morningstar Investment Research center
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New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
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NewsBank - America's News
* Newsletter on Intellectual Freedom
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NOAA
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA ) is an American scientific and regulatory agency charged with forecasting weather, monitoring oceanic and atmospheric conditions, charting the seas, conducting deep-sea exploratio ...
Climatological Data for Worcester
* Novelist Plus (
EBSCO)
* Overdrive C/W Mars Digital Catalog
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Oxford Dictionaries Oxford dictionary may refer to any dictionary published by Oxford University Press, particularly:
Historical dictionaries
* ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'')
* ''Shorter Oxford English Dictionary'', an abridgement of the ''OED''
Single-volu ...
* Peterson's Career Prep
* PhotoFacts Online (SAMS)
* Reference Solutions (formerly RefUSA)
* Teacher's Reference Center
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Telegram & Gazette
The ''Telegram & Gazette'' (and ''Sunday Telegram'') is the only daily newspaper of Worcester, Massachusetts. The paper, headquartered at 100 Front Street and known locally as ''the Telegram'' or the ''T & G'', offers coverage of all of Worceste ...
(Worcester, 1989 - Current)
* Teenbook Cloud
* Tumblebook Library
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WorldCat
WorldCat is a union catalog that itemizes the collections of tens of thousands of institutions (mostly libraries), in many countries, that are current or past members of the OCLC global cooperative. It is operated by OCLC, Inc. Many of the O ...
History
The Worcester Public Library originated in 1859 with a donation of 7,000 volumes from Dr. John Green III.
Dr. Green was a Worcester-born "physician, dentist, surgeon, apothecary and man-midwife."
In 1855, Green had donated 5,000 volumes from his personal collection to the Worcester Lyceum on a 5-year loan; as the loan was about to expire, Dr. Green decided to establish a free public library for the city.
The original location of the library was the third floor of the Bank Block at Foster and Main Streets, but by 1861 an official library building had been constructed on Elm Street.
The cornerstone of this library was laid on July 4, 1860. The construction of this library building satisfied Dr. Green's condition on his donation that "a suitable building should be provided for
he books and that they should not be taken from the library room but freely read there at all times when the rooms are open." On December 8, 1872, the Free Public Library opened on Sundays, which was a momentous enough occasion to be recorded in ''The Worcester Book.'' By 1886, the total number of volumes in the library's collection was nearly 60,000.
In 1914, three new branches were introduced to the Worcester Public Library system. The branches, Greendale (later renamed Frances Perkins), Quinsigamond, and South Worcester, were all established with the help of grants from Andrew Carnegie.
Throughout the 20th century, three other branches, including Billings Square, Tatnuck, and Main South were constructed, but all six of these libraries closed in 1990 (Frances Perkins reopened in 1992).
The main branch of the library moved from Elm Street to its current location at Salem Square in 1964, and the current building was constructed in 2001.
Bookmobile
The WPL has always been devoted to serving the Worcester community, and in 1940 the WPL's first Bookmobile was launched.
The Bookmobile was intended to provide library services for areas of Worcester that could not reach one of the regular library branches, and the program was a huge success. In its first week, 2,500 of the 2,700 volumes carried by the Bookmobile were checked out.
The Bookmobile eventually began circulating more volumes than any one branch of the WPL. In 1991, Bookmobile services were discontinued, but in 2012 the WPL launched the Mobile Library Branch, Library Express (Libby).
Based on Libby's success, a second bookmobile named Lilly was launched in 2014, and in 2018 the Libby bookmobile was upgraded.
Services
In addition to the regular circulation services, the WPL provides a number of other services. For New Americans and English Learners, the library provides print and audio resources for learning English, as well as information about applying for citizenship and even weekly classes to assist patrons in passing citizenship exams. The library also offers classes and one-on-one resume-writing workshops. The WPL also offers a Talking Book Library to its patrons with visual or other physical disabilities, who cannot read traditional print materials; the Talking Book Library provides resources in large type, braille, and described videos.
The Talking Book Library also offers a unique Dial-A-Story service that allows patrons to call and listen to recorded content from any phone. Patrons can call 508-552-3456 from any phone and use the menu system to navigate to various recordings.
Notable Staff
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Samuel Swett Green
Samuel Swett Green (February 20, 1837 – December 8, 1918) was an American librarian.
Green was born in Worcester, Massachusetts, to the apothecary James Green and Elizabeth Swett. He was educated at Harvard, graduating in 1858. A few years lat ...
Branches
External links
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References
{{authority control
Libraries in Worcester, Massachusetts
Public libraries in Massachusetts
1859 establishments in Massachusetts