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Wyomissing Public
Library's history is almost as long as that of
Wyomissing Borough. In 1911, twenty women were
invited to plan an organization promoting public
spirit in the Borough. From this beginning the
Civic League was born. The league realized that
a library was essential.
Each woman was to
ask ten friends for two books for the new
library: the appeal resulted in a collection of
one thousand books, housed in the home of Mrs.
Howard F. Fry. As the number increased, the
books were moved to the public school building.
Mrs. Gustav Oberlaender, the first chair of the
Library Committee, asked Town Council for space
in Borough Hall.
In 1913 the
"Library" was opened to the public; the books
remained in this area until 1920. At that time
Mr. Ferdinand K. Thun and Mr. Henry Janssen
donated a house at 1118 Penn Avenue. |
Top: View from
Borough Hall
Bottom: Main reading room
both photos ca.
1931 |
The Women's Club of
Wyomissing never lost sight of the Library. Their
members undertook fund raising for its support. By 1926
they had $2,600 invested and were using the interest for
book purchases.
By 1930 the library needed
more space. That year Mrs. Ferdinand Thun, Chair of the
Library Committee, offered to donate funds for a new
library building. At this time, the Wyomissing Public
Library Corporation was formed and the Women's Club
ceased its era of library management.
This new building, situated
at the corner of Penn Avenue and Reading Boulevard, was
a completely Wyomissing undertaking. Mr. Charles
Muhlenberg was chosen as architect and Mr. Edward A.
Reider, Jr. was selected as the contractor. On April 16,
1931 a pre-opening inspection was held for invited
guests, and the following day marked the formal opening
of the third (and current) home of the library.
For more information on the
early history of the Library, consult
Wyomissing Public Library : a history (1911-1976)
by Ruth Sinclair MacRae,
available in our nonfiction and reference collections.
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