Nretrospect

PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY OF NASHVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY, SPECIAL COLLECTIONS

Reading is for Everyone

A page from the history of the Nashville Public Library

Libraries have long been known as places where readers of all ages can improve literacy skills and expand their imaginations. In 1898, Nashville’s rst public library opened to answer those needs, and it’s been doing so ever since. In the 1940s, i t sent the rst bookmobile to areas that didn’t have branches and found other unique ways to get books into the hands of those who wanted them — in the grocery store aisle and in an airport reading room, to name a couple. Today, the Nashville Public Library is much more than books. It o ers community-wide programs including Salon@615 and Nashville Reads and special rooms housing the Civil Rights and Votes for Women collections. Additionally, it provides many resources for every age and demographic, routinely delivering award-winning programming on a massive scale free of charge.

Top photo: Nashville Public Library Airport Reading Room, circa 1962; Middle photo: Nashville Public Library Bookmobile, circa 1941; Bottom photo: Belle Meade Booketeria, circa 1953