USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Newburyport > City Officers and the Annual Reports to the City Council of Newburyport 1929 > Part 7
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The problem of discipline in this room is almost negligible and the at- tendant in charge has every reason to feel that the room is appreciated by the children, and by many adults as well. To watch the whole-hearted en- joyment of a child with a book is a constant source of satisfaction, and an indication that the work is worth while.
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ANNUAL REPORT
During the summer forty children went on a "Treasure Hunt" which was conducted for the children spending their vacation at home. They read the carefully chosen books to find the "treasure" of quoted passages. By this means a child was encouraged to read many different kinds of books.
Children's Book Week was observed by the exhibition of many of the best juvenile books of the past year, and those of former years. Selective, annotated reading and gift book lists were distributed to parents, teachers and interested adults. A fitting climax o he week was he telling of three stories by Miss Sarah E. Mulliken to an eager group of fifty children. So much appreciated was this story hour, and so universal the demand for more, that it is hoped that t hese hours may be held from time to time during the winter months. On the Saturday before Christmas another eager group of children listened to the stories of Christmas carols told by Mrs. Nutter in the new music room. Victrola selections of carols of several countries were played to illustrate the talk, and then the Christmas customs of these countries were described.
The children's librarian attended in May, the annual meeting of the American Library Association in Washington. She has also, at different times during the year, attended library meetings in Boston which help her to keep in touch with the library world and apply the benefits received to local needs.
Reading Room
There have been several gifts of books, money for books, and other articles for use in the room. For these, and for the kindly interest in the room manifested in many ways, we are very grateful. It is hoped that theh room will function in such a manner as to satisfy those who believed in the undertaking, and helped make it possible.
In the Reading Room, we can report improvements. Perhaps the big. gest is in the physical aspect. In July the room was throughly renovated, a cheerful cream-color paint making a decided improvement in the walls, new .lights were added and furniture moved to better advantage The newspaper racks, which were high enough to obstruct view of the pictures, have been cut down, still leaving plenty of room for the newspapers. New shelves have been added to the two closets at the end of the room, giving storage room enough for all the magazines taken, and making for efficiency in the work of the attendant.
Beginning with last October a system of loaning magazines has been in force such as is carried on in many other Public Libraries, and as 2671 magazines have been loaned out since that time, we feel that this innova- tion has justified itself. Previous to this time many magazines were stolen regularly from the covers, so that several had to be held at the desk. In this last year only 2 magazines have been stolen.
179
PUBLIC LIBRARY
An ntirely new clipping file has been started, which we are adding to daily, both for High School reference and debate work, and articles of local interest.
Several gifts of plants have helped to make the room cheerful, and a large snow painting by Sam Sargent has been given and recently hung, as well as the G. W. Brown picture, which has been brought up from the schoolhouse.
The yearly clean up of magazines has been made, the valuable ones bound for our own use, some given to the City Missionary for use in the Hospitals and Homes, some to the Coast Guard, who are always grateful for reading matter, and some to the teachers of our city schools for use in their class work.
The Emma L. Andrews Branch
A complete report of the activities of the Emma L. Andrews Branch can- not be given until the work of reorganization is done, which includes some slight modifications as to the use of the incomes from the property deeded by the old South End Reading Room Association to the city, on condition that
it be made a branch of the Newburyport Public Library and operated as such. As these changes include some friendly legal action and Supreme Court decision, it is necessarrily slow, but we hope to go ahead with the work shortly.
From the original assistants temporarily in charge it is reported that the total circulation of books and magazines for the year, during the one evening each week this branch has been opened to the public, has been 5692. Among adults it has been 2777 books and 755 Magazines, and children have taken 2045 books and 115 magazines.
The Fiske Memorial Library
The library at Belleville, the Fiske Memorial is not properly a branch of this library, being entirely independent. It is of similar value to the North end of the city, as the Andrews branch is to the South end, and the most cordial relations exist between it and this library, including an annual deposit of new books to the value of $100. A brief report has been asked for, and is incorporated with this, as follows:
180
ANNUAL REPORT
. Report of the Belleville Library
The Belleville Library year begins directly after Labor Day and lasts through June, being open a portion of every Tuesday evening and Saturday afternoon with the exception of holidays.
The committee in charge consists of three members who are assisted during library hours by several interested young people.
During the summer of 1928 the committee adopted the system of regis- tration and charging of books used by Miss Merrill in the Children's Reading Room, and something over $35.00 was expended for the necessary equipment. Miss Merrill kindly furnished a list of needed supplies and instructed the committee in their use. The labor involved in the change delayed the open- ing of the library until late in the fall, but by the beginning of 1929 every- thing was running smoothly, and this year has proved the wisdom, of the change. Over a third of the money expended has already returned to the treasury through the rigid collection of fines.
The new registration cut down the inflated list of card holders, but the number has steadily increased until there are now 250 listed.
Unfortunately when the library was started 15 years ago the books were not numbered individuallly so exact figures cannot be given as to the number of volumes, but 3000 is a fair estimate.
Of this number 600 are books of non-fiction and 120 are reference books and bound volumes of magazines. The fiction is adapted to all ages and in- cludes 200 books for children in the lowest school grades. As there has been a noticeable decrase in the call for books for young children since the open- ing of the Children's Reading Room only a few new ones are now added yearly.
For several years nearly all the new books secured have had the re- enforced bindings, and the slight increase in cost has been more than offset by their wearing quality and the subsequent saving in repairs.
This year 115 books have been added to the library, 42 by purchase, 9 by gift, and 64 from the directors of the Public Library.
Owing to the time spent in reorganizing the system no list of books was sent to the directors last year until so late in the fall that many of them were not received until January of this year, the effect of which has been to make 1929 seem a banner year for new books in the Belleville Library.
The financial resources of the library consist of an annual appropria- tion of $50.00 from the Belleville Home Circle, an annual gift of $10.00 to be used for non-fiction, preferably biography or travel, and the income of the
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PUBLIC LIBRARY
$500.00 legacy left by Miss M. C. Wiggin, to which should be added the use of an admirably adapted room in the Belleville Parish House and the attend- ant overhead expenses.
Again the Belleville Library Committee wishes to express its deep appreciation for the interest and generosity of the Directors of the Public Library and to Mr. Parsons and his assistants for the work which they have done in ordering and preparing the books for our shelves.
Respectfully submitted,
EDITH M. HOWE, Chairman, Belleville Library Committee.
In conclusion I would call attention to the general excellency of the staff, or assistants in the work, their unflagging attention to detail and fre- quent original ideas which are often of great value, and their disposition to anticipate the wishes of the public, without which no library, or any other business proposition, can achieve any measure of success.
Respectfully submitted,
Newburyport, December 30, 1929.
JOHN D. PARSONS.
THE PEABODY FUND
In his letter accompanying the gift of $15,000 to the Public Library, the late George Peabody, who passed a portion of his youth in this town, stipu- lates that the income derived from this gift "be kept separate and distinct from other sources, and that an annual report of the condition of the fund and amount of income be prepared and published." He also recommends that the larger portion of the income should be devoted to the purchase of standard works. With these requirements the Trustees of the fund, have always endeavored to comply, and hereby give notice that the principal con- tinues on deposit at The Institution for Savings, $15,000. During the past year there have been purchased 185 volumes of high standard including the new 14th edition of The Encyclopaedia Britannica, in 24 volumes, and the United States Catalogue of Books in Print, a large and costly work, but in- valuable for reference. The purchases of the year brings the number of books added to the Library in the 60 years since this fund became avail- able 16,232. Appended is the report of the Treasurer.
182
ANNUAL REPORT ANNUAL REPORT OF THE PEABODY FUND NEWBURYPORT PUBLIC LIBRARY
Receipts
On hand, December 1, 1928
$309.42
Dividends, April and October, 1929
750.00
$1,059.42
Expenditures
Postage and Stationery
.78
Books
748.32
$749.10
Balance on hand, November 30, 1929
$310.32
Respectfully submitted,
Lawrence Hayward,
Treasurer.
Audited and found correct WILLIAM BALCH,
City Auditor.
Nov. 30, 1929.
L. B. CUSHING, B. P. P. MOSELEY, LAWRENCE HAYWARD, J. D. PARSONS, G. W. RICHARDSON,
Trustees.
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PUBLIC LIBRARY
Trustees of the Building Fund of the Public Library
Receipts
Dec. 1, 1928 Balance on hand
$295.91
Apr.
25, 1929 Interest, Inst.
250.00
May 9, 1929 Newburyport Music Club 240.00
Oct. 25, 1929 Interest, Inst. 250.00
Expenditures
Jan. 2, 1929 A. P. Wilson
$109.25
Jan. 18, 1929
R. G. Adams
97.58
Geo. W. Mckay
19.20
Mar. 8, 1929
C. M. Hall
31.95
Apr. 25, 1929
A. P. Wilson
72.46
May 6, 1929 Edgar Batchelder
30.35
May 20, 1929
Edgar Batchelder (Music Room)
24.55
July 11, 1929
H. L. Knight
38.00
July
15, 1929
J. J. Merrill
95.50
July 16, 1929
Webb & Swett
11.50
July 31, 1929
Raymond Inc. (Music Room)
30.00
Aug. 1, 1929
Webb & Swett
18.25
Aug.
19, 1929 Raymond Inc. (Music Room)
20.00
Aug. 21, 1929 Webb & Swett
2.00
A. G. Perkins
27.50
Sept. 5, 1929
A. B. Richardson
4.00
Sept. 13, 1929
Raymond, Inc. (Music Room)
34.00
Sept. 16, 1929 Raymond, Inc. (Music Room)
19.45
Oct.
7, 1929
Webb & Swett
1.75
.
C. M. Hall (Music Room)
35.79
Oct. 17, 1929
O. McGlynn
10.00
Oct.
19, 1929
Slate Bros. (Music Room)
3.00
Oct. 31, 1929
C. A. Hubbard (Music Room)
12.00
Walton Express
1.00
Nov. 19, 1929
Geo. W. Mckay
112.20
H. D. Allen & Son (Music Room)
103.56
Balance in Merchants Bank
71.07
$1,035.91
$1,035.91
184
ANNUAL REPORT
Condition of Fund
Original deposit
C. W. Moseley banquest
$5,000.00 5,000.00
A. G. Perkins,
Treasurer.
Credits, Expenditures and Balances of Public Library Book Accounts at close of City's books, on December 21, 1929
Balance at beginning
Fund
of year
Credits
Expenditures
Balance at end of year
Lucy G. B. Colby
$25.99
$35.00
$42.42
$18.57
John J. Currier
241.20
50.00
28.00
263.20
Nathan D. Dodge
4.36
42.50
39.15
7.71
W. H. P. Dodge
512.17
132.24
375.01
269.40
Daniel Foster
.01
12.50
5.40
7.11
Jos. A. Frothingham
40.50
64.00
71.20
33.30
S. A. Green
52.21
96.00
76.01
72.20
George Haskell
32.42
53.60
58.87
27.15
Matthias P. Sawyer
2.57
250.00
128.41
124.16
John R. Spring
63.94
1,000.00
954.20
109.74
B. G. Sweetser
81.86
250.00
374.49
42.63*
William C. Todd
215.53
716.24
728.79
202.98
Abraham Williams
3.22
48.00
32.00
19.22
Emma L. Andrews
.00
50.00
19.82
30.18
1,275.98
2,800.08
2,933.77
1,184.92
* Overdrawn
42.63
1,142.29
Balance of book accounts Dec. 15, 1928
$1,275.98
Income and credits for year
$2,800.08
Expenditures for year
2,933.77
Expenditures exceeded income
133.69
Balance on December 21, 1929
$1,142.29
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PUBLIC LIBRARY
EMMA L. ANDREWS BRANCH Income Account
Balance Dec. 15, 1928
$164.74
Refund on insurance
6.00
Income from investments
508.38
Rent of house
240.00
$919.12
Expenditures
Lighting
$6.84
Fuel
136.80
Janitor and cleaning
54.00
Water
10.00
Rebuilding fence
66.36
Insurance on building
29.20
Removing snow
3.55
Services of attendants
120.00
Recording deed
1.75
Electric lamps and hardware
1.60
Cutting grass
7.50
437.60
Balance Dec. 21, 1929 $481.52
BOOKS ADDED TO THE LIBRARY, 1929 AND SOURCES
Number as last reported
64,585
Added from incomes:
Spring Fund
324
Sweetser Fund
246
Peabody Fund
214
Sawyer Fund
61
Todd Fund
25
Frothingham Fund
24
W. H. P. Dodge Fund
12
Green Fund
13
Colby Fund
9
ANNUAL REPORT
Foster Fund
3
N. D. Dodge Fund
2
922
Donated
311
1244
Canceled and withdrawn
123
Net gain
1121
Number Dec. 30, 1929
65,706
Of the 1244 new books added during the past year, 670 may be classified as fiction, 91 as history, 84 as biography, 70 as general, 70 as useful arts, 61 as sociological, 52 as general literature, 44 as fine arts, 33 as travel and adventure, 22 as religious, 20 as philosophy, 16 as science, 6 as language.
NEWBURYPORT PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 2128 00338 629 0
For Reference Not to be taken from this room
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