Rapid City Public Library
Encyclopedia
The Rapid City Public Library is the system of public libraries
in Rapid City
, South Dakota
. It has two locations, the downtown branch at 610 Quincy Street, and the North location at 10 Van Buren St. The library offers standard services at no charge for citizens of Rapid City and all residents of Pennington County
.
organized by community women with $45, donated books and periodicals, and a free subscription to the Minneapolis Journal. In an 1881 charter by the territorial government
, the Rapid City Library Association built Library Hall on the corner of 6th and Kansas City Streets on donated land. In 1915, the city began building a Carnegie library building
located on the corner of Kansas City and 6th streets in downtown Rapid City, and in 1917 the library collection moved there. The collection eventually outgrew the space, and in 1972 a new building was opened at 610 Quincy St.
In 2002, the library added an expansion to house the Juvenile and Young adult collections, as well as provide a covered parking space.
In 2008, the Rapid City Public Library opened its first satellite location at 10 Van Buren Street as part of the new General Beadle community center, housing a public elementary school and community hall.
access. The downtown branch also offers a full service coffee shop, open from 9am to 6pm.
Recently, the Downtown branch was named by Nancy Pearl
as one of "10 Great Places to Find a Nook and Read a Book", and printed in USA Today
.
The Rapid City Public Library also hosts a digital archive of online resources pertaining to the 1972 Black Hills Flood
.
In addition to the Flood archive, The library also hosts a wiki
collecting information about the Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory in Lead, SD.
Public library
A public library is a library that is accessible by the public and is generally funded from public sources and operated by civil servants. There are five fundamental characteristics shared by public libraries...
in Rapid City
Rapid City, South Dakota
Rapid City is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of South Dakota, and the county seat of Pennington County. Named after Rapid Creek on which the city is established, it is set against the eastern slope of the Black Hills mountain range. The population was 67,956 as of the 2010 Census. Rapid...
, South Dakota
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...
. It has two locations, the downtown branch at 610 Quincy Street, and the North location at 10 Van Buren St. The library offers standard services at no charge for citizens of Rapid City and all residents of Pennington County
Pennington County, South Dakota
As of the census of 2000, there were 88,565 people, 34,641 households, and 23,278 families residing in the county. The population density was 32 people per square mile . There were 37,249 housing units at an average density of 13 per square mile...
.
History
Library services were first offered in Rapid City beginning in 1879, when a volunteer reading room wasorganized by community women with $45, donated books and periodicals, and a free subscription to the Minneapolis Journal. In an 1881 charter by the territorial government
Dakota Territory
The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of North and South Dakota.The Dakota Territory consisted of...
, the Rapid City Library Association built Library Hall on the corner of 6th and Kansas City Streets on donated land. In 1915, the city began building a Carnegie library building
Carnegie library
A Carnegie library is a library built with money donated by Scottish-American businessman and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. 2,509 Carnegie libraries were built between 1883 and 1929, including some belonging to public and university library systems...
located on the corner of Kansas City and 6th streets in downtown Rapid City, and in 1917 the library collection moved there. The collection eventually outgrew the space, and in 1972 a new building was opened at 610 Quincy St.
In 2002, the library added an expansion to house the Juvenile and Young adult collections, as well as provide a covered parking space.
In 2008, the Rapid City Public Library opened its first satellite location at 10 Van Buren Street as part of the new General Beadle community center, housing a public elementary school and community hall.
Features
The Rapid City main library is a 47,000 ft² (22,300 m²) two-story tall building in Rapid City's downtown area. The library has a collection of over 147,000 materials as well as subscriptions to over 40 newspapers and magazines and 53 internet capable computers. Both branches offer free wifiWIFI
WIFI is a radio station broadcasting a brokered format. Licensed to Florence, New Jersey, USA, the station is currently operated by Florence Broadcasting Partners, LLC.This station was previously owned by Real Life Broadcasting...
access. The downtown branch also offers a full service coffee shop, open from 9am to 6pm.
Recently, the Downtown branch was named by Nancy Pearl
Nancy Pearl
Nancy Pearl is an American librarian, best-selling author, literary critic and was, until August 2004, the Executive Director of the Washington Center for the Book at Seattle Public Library...
as one of "10 Great Places to Find a Nook and Read a Book", and printed in USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
.
The Rapid City Public Library also hosts a digital archive of online resources pertaining to the 1972 Black Hills Flood
Black Hills flood
The Black Hills Flood of 1972, in the Black Hills of Western South Dakota, USA, occurred on June 9, 1972. The extreme rainfall of around of rain in 6 hours sent Rapid Creek and other creeks overflowing and flooded many residential and commercial properties around the Black Hills...
.
In addition to the Flood archive, The library also hosts a wiki
Wiki
A wiki is a website that allows the creation and editing of any number of interlinked web pages via a web browser using a simplified markup language or a WYSIWYG text editor. Wikis are typically powered by wiki software and are often used collaboratively by multiple users. Examples include...
collecting information about the Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory in Lead, SD.