The Library

Library – Meagher County City Library is centrally located in downtown White Sulphur Springs, a town which serves as the county seat and is home to a very diverse people of all age groups and interests. The library provides services within a 23,000 square mile radius in southwestern Montana. Services provided in the town include banking, post office, medical, restaurant, and grocery. The town has some of the most diverse recreational opportunities in the state, mostly within thirty miles. The library averages 950 visitors each month. Patrons check out an average of 1,150 books each month. Due to limited space the library staff borrows approximately 125 books each month from other libraries. Library patrons include, but are not limited to * Hutterite Colony * adults/children * Home-schooled children * Nursing home residents * Public school children * Young adults * Reading impaired and disabled * ProfessionalsLaborers/self-employed * RetireesUnemployed/welfare recipients Community residents and non-residents in this full-service community possess a broad spectrum of opinion and varied viewpoints. Patrons use the library for a variety of needs, including computer access, leisure materials, vast Montana Room collection, western paperbacks, large-print books, audio books, children’s library services and story hours, interlibrary loan, point of access for self-employed/homeschoolers, and research materials. Facts of Meagher County Library About the Building * The Meagher County City Library occupies a 2100 square foot building built in 1979. * One-third of the building is condemned because the floor is sinking into the earth. This portion of the building was originally constructed over underground springs and unstable soils. The county commissioners condemned this area of the building when it became apparent that a public safety risk existed in this part of the building * * Ceilings in the condemned area of the building leak during heavy snow melt and rain, and library staff strategically place buckets to collect water. * Interior walls no longer touch the floor and are suspended only by the ceiling. * In 2007, a new crack appeared in ceiling of the supply room, where the computer server was housed. New stress cracks are apparent in various parts of the building. Four years ago, a portion of the ceiling near the checkout desk fell through during library hours. This was repaired, but demonstrates the weakening of the library structure. * Past repairs to the closed areas have actually caused the building to sink at a faster rate. * Lighting in the non-fiction area is insufficient, such that library staff actually provide flashlights on request to patrons so that they can read the spines of the books. * Engineering costs to assess the closed area range from $20,000 to $90,000. This assessment would only determine if the problem could or could not be fixed. The library board has reached consensus that remodeling is out of the question. Relocating the library is absolutely necessary. * A Library with a "Can Do" Attitude * Despite the sinking building, this little library meets community needs by making things work with what they have! * Seating in the library includes one donated rocking chair, and one children's table with eight small chairs. To accommodate book signings, job service visits, and various community meetings, the staff pull out card tables. * Several special collections have been donated to the library recently. Despite discarding as many books as possible, there is still no space to accommodate the many boxes of books. Books are stored in boxes and make-shift shelves are added so that these valuable books are not lost to the community. * When Scott Ward, President of Russell Stover Candies, visited the library in the summer of 2006, he donated five computers. The library, though elated with his gift, had no place to put the computers. They worked with the local VICA Club to design and construct a computer table. Local youth clamor to use these computers on a daily basis. * Instead of having all of the children in the Summer Reading Program meet together, the staff takes groups of 8-10 children at a time. To complete their crafts, children line up down the dark hallway because the children's area has only 1-2 feet of walking space between tables and books. * At present, between 940-1220 patrons visit the library each month. This is amazing considering that the entire population of Meagher County is only 1900! Community Taking Action * A local team of citizens have banded together to conduct "Let's Race to Save this Place." The race was first conducted last year when the local hospital was in danger of closing. This year, the efforts go to save the library. * The race is a 5K walk/run that will take place at 7:00 am on July 4th. Pre-registration is $15, registration after June 20th is $20. * The race is a fun way to create awareness about the peril of this critical community building. Sponsors are the most important part of the effort and sponsor dollars go toward construction of a new building.