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issue date - September 8, 2002
Town of Collins Library celebrating 100 years
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A thirst for knowledge and a love of reading have been the cornerstone of the history of libraries in the Town of Collins ever since 1809 when the first pioneers settled in the area. As the Collins Public Library prepares to celebrate its centennial on Sept. 29, its lineage can be traced back to a meeting on June 18, 1825 at the home of J.C. Adams in Collins Center. Adams exemplified a "Renaissance Man" of an earlier day in that he was the first blacksmith, first postmaster, one of the organizers of the first known library in the newly settled area, and its Iibrarian and treasurer. At this meeting, a mere 16 years after the first settlers arrived, the organization known as the Franklin Library Association came into being. Its history is sketchy and it apparently ceased to function some time after the 1860s. During the 1800s, libraries were housed in places of business, in private homes or in schools. Some three-quarters of a century after the residents of Collins Center started their Franklin library, steps were taken to provide community library facilities. A public meeting was called for Nov. 3, 1902 at the home of F.J. Quigley at which time a constitution and by-laws were drawn up and trustees elected. The Regents of the University of the State of New York granted a provisional charter on Dec. 4, 1902 and Elsie Moss was elected the first librarian. A room in the former Johnson cheese storage building (pictured above) was rented for $1.50 per month. This building burned in December of 1936 and a new feed mill was built on the Main Street site in 1937. The June 30, 1903 annual report listed 197 books in circulation with an additional loan of 160 volumes from the library in Morton's Corners. The library was open two afternoons a week and a state grant of $100 had been received. During the first six-month period, 62 residents had become voting members of the Library Association by virtue of payment of the annual $1 membership fee. In 1910 the library moved into an upstairs room in the Friends Parsonage and the number of volumes in circulation had increased to 1,120. The library remained in the parsonage until the community house was built in 1917. The community house, sponsored by the Library Association, made provisions to ensure a home for the library that continued up until the new library building opened in 2001. The Collins Library Association voted to become a part of the Erie County Library system on Dec. 15, 1950 and on Jan. 15, 1962, the trustees of Collins Free Library voted to transfer the library property (community building) to the Town of Collins under conditions that the town would maintain the building and continue to house the library. This transfer was approved by the education department of the University of the State of New York on March 1, 1963. In March of 1994, a provisional charter was issued to the Collins Public Library and the charter for Collins Free Library was dissolved on May 20, 1994. With the transfer to the town, library space was increased to two rooms in the basement with the librarian on duty 15 hours per week. In 1961, the library had a total of 6,543 volumes for children and adults with a circulation of 24,835 books annually. Total circulation for the year 2001 was 41,334, according to Karen Koch, present library director. The library houses a total of 18,661 volumes in four categories of materials. The new building is open 35 hours per week and has six part-time staff in addition to Koch. Much of the early information in this article was obtained from "The Collins Story, a History of the Town of Collins," by Levinius K. Painter. |
