April 10 is Bookmobile Day in Wisconsin, a day that brings
to memory the Door-Kewaunee County bookmobile. In the world of 2019, few remember it coming
to Kewaunee County communities and even fewer have memories of the joys it
brought the county’s rural school population. It never was the mainstay that it
was in Brown and Door Counties, and that Kewaunee County even had a bookmobile
was a credit to hardworking, passionate citizens who wanted to bring books to
all areas of the county. Books for kids and books for adults. During the initial demonstration
program alone, the counties saw a 16% increase in library circulation.
Just before Halloween 1949, Kewaunee County Board was
considering joining Door County in requesting the state library demonstration
in the area. As it was, Wisconsin would approve a single demonstration area and
an informational request was not binding. A bookmobile was part of Wisconsin’s
Free Library Commission projects and Kewaunee County could get the free
information on a bookmobile and its services when such a unit toured the area
early in November. On its tour, the bookmobile was expected to stop at schools
in addition to the homes of county board members.
During the board meeting, May
Smithwick, county superintendent of schools, spoke in favor of the
demonstration, which could only enrich the education of the children in rural
schools. Rural schools had libraries, but the books – many outdated - remained
the same from year to year with possible additions of a few new ones. Some rural shelves appeared full, but often,
being devoid of library books, the shelves stored unusued text books
A letter sent to Otto Adams,
chairman of the county board, from the Library Commission, stated that the 1949
legislature enacted the Library Demonstration bill, providing funding of
$50,000 yearly for 3 years to a rural county or adjacent counties selected for
the demonstration. The law also specified that the state would pay half the
cost of a single demonstration as long as the state portion did not exceed 50%
of the total cost. It further called upon the people within the demonstration
area to develop their own initiatives, ensuring the library service would
continue without interruption following the 3 year demonstration period.
In 1950, the approximately
$70,000 in books and equipment would be left in the area after the initial
period was no small change! The state also pointed out that at the end of the 3
years, a county with a 25,000 population would tax property at one mill.* The
state encouraged applications from areas that were neither above nor below
average in population, existing services, wealth and more.
It was furthermore noted that average
costs would be about $1.50 per capita if an area held at least 25,000 people.
Door and Kewaunee Counties jointly met that requirement. The Library Commission
believed average rural Wisconsin communities had the ability to organize free
library service and had the local resources to continue its support, providing
a large enough population was served. A committee made up of Mrs. Smithwick, a
county board member, a school official and 3 prominent community members were
charged with informing Kewaunee County residents of the opportunities offered.
Door County wanted the library demonstration project,
however its population made it too small to qualify. Working with Kewaunee
County made it eligible. In meetings with the state, Door County was given the
same information as Kewaunee. They were told how there would be a central pool
of books and other printed materials available to all. A system of
inter-library loan would put even more information at one’s fingertips. But
Door County could not do it alone. There was more than the bookmobile though.
There would be book talks and story hours. Films would be available to rural
schools. There would be an advisory staff assisting local librarians, school
groups and individuals, and a book collection that rotated thus always offering
something new. Algoma, Kewaunee and Sturgeon Bay would be the main libraries
with branches at Casco, Luxemburg and many of the villages of Door County.
There would be two bookmobiles.
It was an exciting time in November 1949 when the bookmobile
stopped at schools to allow parents and students to tour it to find out what it
held. Still, both county boards had to approve the demonstration if the state
approved the counties’ application. Kewaunee County Board approved the
demonstration project. Most areas were onboard, but others were not. It was
understood that the demonstration would not be put into an area that was
opposed to it.
In early January 1950, it was announced that the regional
library would go into operation on February 1. An entirely new project meant
there were logistics to work out. A temporary director needed to be hired and
standards needed to be established. Eyebrows were raised when Kewaunee County
board members saw the state-set salaries for the administrative assistant, two
typists, cataloguers, 2 drivers and the librarians. The book budget totaled
about $12,000. One bookmobile was to be donated by the State Library Commission
with funds from the State Federation of Women’s Clubs, while the other would be
paid for by the counties. Then there were the office supplies and equipment.
The project’s costs fell between $53,500 and $57,500. By-laws were written by a
team from each county and an administrative committee was made up of an equal
number of residents from each county. Among the committee’s responsibilities
was “selling” the demonstration project in their respective areas. It was not
easy.
The need to “sell” the project was kept in mind as a
requisite for the director. One of the candidates for the job was “high in
library work” in the State of Washington. If she were hired to set-up the D-K
program, she would have to take a significant decrease in salary. The representative
from the state commission felt that the one hired to set-up the program would
be one who’d need to take “hard knocks,” and after the set-up, a director with
other talents might be named. He pointed out that the D-K demonstration would
be closely watched throughout Wisconsin and across the U.S. The person hired to
be director would be developing something entirely new. She would be raising her position in the library profession. In
1950, nobody expected a man to served in such a position, especially in such a
rural area. Mr. Botsford from the library commission opined that not many were
qualified for the director’s position.
Board members noted the need to watch salary precedents
carefully so that future county boards would see their way clear to continue
the project when the state stepped away from the project. Headquarters for the regional library would be in the basement at the Sturgeon Bay quarters. Sturgeon Bay, Algoma
and Kewaunee were to decide whether their books would be circulated. Then it
came out that progressive Algoma’s 1948 book budget was $1,400 while Door
County spent $1,400 in total. Kewaunee city spent just $482 in the same year.
The goal was that the bookmobile would be ready for making
at least two trips each to each school in each county before the end of the
school year. To meet that goal, first two months of 1950 were spent getting the new system organized
and working out snags
In continuing to explain the
need for the new system, it was pointed out that library facilities at schools
were important, but did not receive the attention necessary. If the library was
well maintained, information on a variety of subjects was available. County teachers
had great hopes for the Regional library. Algoma librarian Mrs. Dorothy
Ackerman, and the librarian from Baileys Harbor, spoke on WJPG radio
acquainting listeners with what was going on with the new library and its
programs.
On April 4, 1950,
Montpelier town board unanimously passed a resolution requesting a
referendum on the bookmobile and the money it cost. The Town felt Kewaunee
County residents were treated unfairly when the County Board made its decision approving the demonstration.
.
At the end of the demonstration period, the committees, the
librarians, the teachers, the kids and most of the parents felt the system and
bookmobile was a resounding success. 90% of rural children in both counties
used the bookmobile. Kewaunee County’s Town of Franklin students averaged 40
books a year, the highest record within the two counties. Children in the Town
of Carlton averaged just over 30 books a year. Women used the bookmobile as
well, although during the trial period, only a handful of Kewaunee County men
used it.
Kewaunee County voters had their chance to express their
views in the 1952 election which also saw future president Dwight Eisenhower
and Senator Joe McCarthy on the ballot. Algoma, Casco and Luxemburg voted in
favor of the library system. Kewaunee city rejected the system by 1 vote and it was voted down in the rural areas that received the most service. Families with
school children generally wanted the bookmobile, however they were outvoted by those without children in school.
When the bookmobile came to an end, rural school children
were in tears. For a little while, they had something their city cousins did. The
demonstration worked. Other counties got their own bookmobiles and regional
library systems. Door County voted to maintain the program on its own. For over
40 years, the bookmobile was a boon to Door County children, their parents, and
anybody who wanted to use it.
Sources: Algoma Record Herald
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