The lending libraries are scattered around Nevada County. Located on Gracie Road, Wet Hill Road, Newton Road, outside of Broad Street Inn, and on the corner of York and Pine, these libraries, which add so much sharing to our community, were first thought up in 2009 and since then, 25,00o have been built, 5 of which stand in Nevada County that are still cherished today.
The History:
Back in 2009, a man named Todd Bol who lived in Hudson, Wisconsin built a tribute to his mother, a school teacher, It was modeled after a one room school house on a smaller scale and was filled with books. The model was popular with friends and neighbors and Bol built many more.
Meanwhile at the university of Wisconsin, Bol’s project caught the eye of Rick Brooks. The two men got together to achieve a variety of goals for the common good. Bol contributed his craftsmanship in coming up with creative models while Brooks was very learned in social marketing and the education in community development.
As the ideas, based on lending libraries of coffee shops, Andrew Carnegie’s 2,510 free libraries, and the 4,000 locations Miss Lutie Stearns brought to libraries in Wisconsin, to name a few, soon painted a clearer picture of the two men’s goal by the summer of 2010.
The Goal:
The goal was to have as many libraries as Andrew Carnegie (2,510) but as of 2015, this number has reached nearly 25,000. The original goal was reached in August of 2012 and since then the libraries have continued to expand. Another goal was to draw people together throughout the exchange of books.
Image credit: http://www.thenorthwestern.com
Today:
Today the goal has been exceeded by more than 20,000. These brilliant idea started in Wisconsin but has since reached all the way to California as well as many other places. Five of these precious libraries stand proudly in Nevada County for all to enjoy so the next time you have an old, cherished book, drop it in the “Little Free Library” so it can be cherished all over again.
For more information visit: http://littlefreelibrary.org
