Southfield Public Library Timeline

  • 1845 – Township rules were adopted for the Southfield Township library.
  • 7 June 1845 – The first library book was withdrawn.
  • 2 May 1846 – The first librarian swears oath.
  • 1960 – Library opens in the Old Brooks School.
  • 1961 – The Friends of the Southfield Public Library is incorporated.
  • 1964 – Library moves to the to the David Stewart Memorial Library in the Southfield Civic Center.
  • 1969 – Library expands with the opening of the Children’s Room.
  • 1974 – The Beech Woods Reading Center opened as one of the first paperback facilities in the country.
  • 1985 – The Friends establish a sister library in Hino, Japan.
  • 1992 – The Library is the first public library in Michigan to offer remote access to its catalog.
  • 1993 – The Library circulates more than 500,000 items.
  • 1997 – The Beech Woods Reading Center is relocated to the John Grace Community Center.
  • 9 March 1999 – Voters overwhelmingly approved a millage to build a new library building.
  • 15 June 2003 – The new Southfield Public library opens. The building is over 127,000 square feet, houses 250 computers, and 1,000 wired Internet connections.
  • 2009 – John Grace Branch closes.
chat loading...
ajax-loader
Scroll to Top