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March 6, 1931,
the Grayslake Women’s Club held a book shower and
collected 100 books with which they began the first Public Library in Grayslake.
For the next eleven years, the women of the club ran the library as a volunteer
project. They raised the money to buy books and to rent space by holding
programs and soliciting donations from local business, especially the Grayslake
Gelatin Company.
In 1941, the Women’s Club approached the Village Board and requested the
Library become a tax-supported institution. On December 1 of that year, Mr.
Warren Chard, Mrs. Bertha Moore, Mrs. Marguerite Morse, Miss Alta Neville, Mr.
C. M. Trowbridge and Mr. N. R. Gotthoffer convened the first meeting of the
Board of Library Trustees. Mrs. Irene E. Grutzmacher became the first Librarian,
a position she held until her death in 1973.
By 1958, the voters agreed that the need for library service extended beyond
the village boundaries and they approved a referendum creating the
Grayslake-Avon Public Library District. The District encompasses two-thirds of
Avon Township and includes parts of Grayslake, Hainesville, Highland Lake, Round
Lake, Round Lake Beach, Round Lake Park and Third Lake.
The library continued to grow
and eventually expanded into A double
storefront on Center Street. By the early 1990’s, the population of the
Library District was increasing rapidly and it was obvious the storefront would
soon be inadequate.
In a 1993 referendum, Library District residents approved a $4.5 million bond
for a new facility. By the next fall, the Library’s new location had been
determined. It was to be built on 5.4 acres of land adjacent to Central Park.
Earth-moving equipment dug in during October of 1995 and construction was
completed in December 1996. The building opened its doors to patrons on January
6, 1997. |
