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Monroe County Public Library

From Bloomingpedia
The Main Branch as seen from the sidewalk
Main Branch van

The Monroe County Public Library is the public library serving residents of Monroe County and the surrounding communities. It has branches in Bloomington and Ellettsville, as well as a Bookmobile and homebound service. The library also hosts meetings for various organizations in Bloomington. It is rated the 2nd best library in the nation based on the population it serves (100,000 - 250,000).

Library Locations

The South Entrance of the Main Branch

Main Branch

The main branch is located on Kirkwood Avenue at 303 E. Kirkwood Avenue, between Lincoln Street and Grant Street.

Ellettsville Branch

The Ellettsville branch is located at 600 W. Temperance Street, at the intersection of Temperance and Sale Street.

Southwest Branch

The new Southwest branch is located at 890 W Gordon Pike in Bloomington.

Hours

Main Branch

Monday-Thursday 9am-7pm
Friday-Saturday 10am-6pm
Sunday 12pm-6pm


Ellettsville Branch

Monday-Thursday 9am-7pm
Friday-Saturday 10am-6pm
Sunday 12pm-6pm

Southwest Branch

Monday-Thursday 9am-7pm
Friday-Saturday 10am-6pm
Sunday 12pm-6pm


Telephone Numbers

Main Branch

Switchboard 349-3050
Fax 349-3051
Reference and Information 349-3228
Audio-Visual 349-3220
CATS 349-3111
Teen's Services 349-3210
Children's Services 349-3100
Circulation 349-3090
Indiana Room 349-3080
VITAL 349-3173

Ellettsville Branch

All Services: 876-1272

Southwest Branch

On June 9, 2023, MCPL opened a new large 21,000 square foot branch in southwestern Bloomington at 890 W. Gordon Pike, directly south of Batchelor Middle School.

Getting a Library Card

In order to get a library card, you must be a resident of Monroe County, and you must present a picture ID and proof of your current address. If you are not a resident of Monroe County, you may sign up for a PLAC card, for a fee of $30 in 2007. This fee is set annually by the Indiana State Library. The PLAC card lets you obtain a library card from any library in the state of Indiana.

Main Branch


Ellettsville Branch

Southwest Branch

History

Bloomington has had a library at least since 1828, when it was housed in a two-room brick building east of the courthouse. At the time it contained roughly 200 volumes, but by 1882 it possessed more than 2000.

In 1856 the city created a library fund by selling some town lots. The library was moved to the Central School building when the brick library began to fall down, and in 1907 it was intended to move it into the newly built Monroe County Courthouse.

The MCPL hosted office space for HoosierNet, Inc., a local internet service provider, until it ceased operations in 2006.

Board of Trustees

The current members of the Monroe County Library Board of Trustees are:


Previous trustees

The following is a list of trustees that have previously served the library (information dates back to 2003).

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