Sewickley Public Library
Encyclopedia
The Sewickley Public Library is the public library
serving the Quaker Valley School District
. The library can be found in Sewickley
, Pennsylvania
, a borough that is located 12 miles (19.3 km) west northwest of Pittsburgh along the Ohio River
. A community and cultural resource since 1873, the Sewickley Public Library was established to provide free service to residents of the Quaker Valley School District, Allegheny County residents, and qualified non-residents. Owning over 90,000 fiction and non-fiction books, DVDs, music CDs, audio books, and magazines, the library also has access to the materials of all other participating Allegheny County Library Association
libraries.
The Young Men's Library Association was formed in 1873 and rented a room for library services at the Mozart Hall (corner of Beaver and Broad Streets). It was later moved to a building next door called Choral Hall. In 1880 the property of the library was transferred to the Sewickley School Board under the general school laws of the state.
In 1923 the library formally moved to its present location, a building given by Mr. William L. Clause in memory of his wife Elizabeth Ann Clause.
In the dedication address by Mr. Clause, he stated, "In presenting this library, it is my desire that it should be the property of the entire valley, yet under the existing conditions, there is no way this can be done, as there is no way the matter can be handled except to deed it to the School District of the borough of Sewickley. Of course if the boroughs ever become consolidated, or if the school districts are ever consolidated, that would solve this problem."
In the ensuing years, Osborne and Edgeworth School Districts also supported the library until 1965 at which time a jointure of eleven municipalities comprising Aleppo
, Bell Acres, Edgeworth
, Glenfield
, Haysville
, Leet
, Leetsdale, Osborne
, Sewickley
, Sewickley Heights and Sewickley Hills, formed the Quaker Valley School District
. In 1967, the Quaker Valley School District Board of Directors designated the Sewickley Public Library as its agency to provide public library service to Quaker Valley School District residents and taxpayers and resolved to maintain or assist in the maintenance of the library.
The building was awarded Historic Landmark status by the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation
in 2003.
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...
serving the Quaker Valley School District
Quaker Valley School District
The Quaker Valley School District is a school district covering the Boroughs of Sewickley, Leetsdale, Edgeworth, Osborne, Sewickley Hills, Sewickley Heights, Bell Acres, Haysville, Glenfield, as well as the townships of Leet and Aleppo Townships in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania...
. The library can be found in Sewickley
Sewickley, Pennsylvania
Sewickley is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, west northwest of Pittsburgh along the Ohio River. It is a residential suburb of Pittsburgh. The population was 3,827 at the 2010 census...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, a borough that is located 12 miles (19.3 km) west northwest of Pittsburgh along the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
. A community and cultural resource since 1873, the Sewickley Public Library was established to provide free service to residents of the Quaker Valley School District, Allegheny County residents, and qualified non-residents. Owning over 90,000 fiction and non-fiction books, DVDs, music CDs, audio books, and magazines, the library also has access to the materials of all other participating Allegheny County Library Association
Allegheny County Library Association
The Allegheny County Library Association is an organization based in Western Pennsylvania that strives to provide Allegheny County's residents with the premier library system in the state. Formed in 1991, as an effort to encourage county libraries to collaborate and share resources, ACLA became...
libraries.
History
According to Mr. Bayard H. Christy in a report prepared for the Home and School Association of Sewickley on November 8, 1912, the Sewickley Public Library owes its origins to the arrival of a whiskey boat at the Saw Mill landing one Saturday evening in the winter of 1872-73. "The consequent riot and disorder...led some, interested in the welfare of the young men, to think that such things would not be, had we a place for proper and rational amusement and self improvement."The Young Men's Library Association was formed in 1873 and rented a room for library services at the Mozart Hall (corner of Beaver and Broad Streets). It was later moved to a building next door called Choral Hall. In 1880 the property of the library was transferred to the Sewickley School Board under the general school laws of the state.
In 1923 the library formally moved to its present location, a building given by Mr. William L. Clause in memory of his wife Elizabeth Ann Clause.
In the dedication address by Mr. Clause, he stated, "In presenting this library, it is my desire that it should be the property of the entire valley, yet under the existing conditions, there is no way this can be done, as there is no way the matter can be handled except to deed it to the School District of the borough of Sewickley. Of course if the boroughs ever become consolidated, or if the school districts are ever consolidated, that would solve this problem."
In the ensuing years, Osborne and Edgeworth School Districts also supported the library until 1965 at which time a jointure of eleven municipalities comprising Aleppo
Aleppo
Aleppo is the largest city in Syria and the capital of Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Syrian governorate. With an official population of 2,301,570 , expanding to over 2.5 million in the metropolitan area, it is also one of the largest cities in the Levant...
, Bell Acres, Edgeworth
Edgeworth, Pennsylvania
Edgeworth is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, along the Ohio River. The population was 1,680 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Edgeworth is located at ....
, Glenfield
Glenfield, Pennsylvania
Glenfield is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, along the Ohio River. The population was 205 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Glenfield is located at ....
, Haysville
Haysville, Pennsylvania
Haysville is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, U.S., along the Ohio River. The population was 70 according to the 2010 census, making it the least-populated municipality in Allegheny County.-Geography:...
, Leet
Leet
Leet , also known as eleet or leetspeak, is an alternative alphabet for the English language that is used primarily on the Internet. It uses various combinations of ASCII characters to replace Latinate letters...
, Leetsdale, Osborne
Osborne, Pennsylvania
Glen Osborne is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, along the Ohio River. The population was 547 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Glen Osborne is located at ....
, Sewickley
Sewickley, Pennsylvania
Sewickley is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, west northwest of Pittsburgh along the Ohio River. It is a residential suburb of Pittsburgh. The population was 3,827 at the 2010 census...
, Sewickley Heights and Sewickley Hills, formed the Quaker Valley School District
Quaker Valley School District
The Quaker Valley School District is a school district covering the Boroughs of Sewickley, Leetsdale, Edgeworth, Osborne, Sewickley Hills, Sewickley Heights, Bell Acres, Haysville, Glenfield, as well as the townships of Leet and Aleppo Townships in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania...
. In 1967, the Quaker Valley School District Board of Directors designated the Sewickley Public Library as its agency to provide public library service to Quaker Valley School District residents and taxpayers and resolved to maintain or assist in the maintenance of the library.
The building was awarded Historic Landmark status by the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation
Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation
The Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation is a nonprofit organization founded in 1964 to support the preservation of historic buildings and neighborhoods in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA....
in 2003.