Dartmouth established public library services in 1895.Report of the Free Public Library Commission of Massachusetts. v.9 (1899).http://www.dartmouthpubliclibraries.org Dartmouth Public Libraries Retrieved November 11, 2010 Today there are two libraries, the Southworth (Main) Library in South Dartmouth, and the Dartmouth Public Library—North Branch. The Southworth Library is part of the Sails Library Network, and shares a name with an older library. The older library, also called Southworth, was founded in 1878, by the pastor of the Congregational Church of South Dartmouth. The location of the Old Southworth library was purchased in 1888, and dedicated in 1890, due to funds from John Haywood Southworth—who furnished the library with 2,500 books in memory of his father. At the time the library required the purchase of a 50 cent library card to borrow books. The library was acquired by the town of Dartmouth in 1927. The building lacked space to contain books by 1958, and in April 1967 it was voted upon to build a new library with $515,000 on Dartmouth Street. In fiscal year 2008, the town of Dartmouth spent 1.5% ($865,864) of its budget on its public libraries—approximately $25 per person.July 1, 2007, through June 30, 2008; cf. The FY2008 Municipal Pie: What's Your Share? Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Board of Library Commissioners. Boston: 2009. Available: Municipal Pie Reports . Retrieved August 4, 2010 Additionally, the Dartmouth Free Public library existed in Russells Mills, moving to various locations throughout the area—catering mostly to children at the local schools there.
Dartmouth established public library services in 1895.Report of the Free Public Library Commission of Massachusetts. v.9 (1899).http://www.dartmouthpubliclibraries.org Dartmouth Public Libraries Retrieved November 11, 2010 Today there are two libraries, !the Southworth (Main) Library in South Dartmouth, and the Dartmouth Public Library—North Branch. The Southworth Library is part of the Sails Library Network, and shares a name with an older library. The older library, also called Southworth, was founded in 1878, by the pastor of the Congregational Church of South Dartmouth. The location of the Old Southworth library was purchased in 1888, and dedicated in 1890, due to funds from John Haywood Southworth—who furnished the library with 2,500 books in memory of his father. At the time the library required the purchase of a 50 cent library card to borrow books. The library was acquired by the town of Dartmouth in 1927. The building lacked space to contain books by 1958, and in April 1967 it was voted upon to build a new library with $515,000 on Dartmouth Street. In fiscal year 2008, the town of Dartmouth spent 1.5% ($865,864) of its budget on its public libraries—approximately $25 per person.July 1, 2007, through June 30, 2008; cf. The FY2008 Municipal Pie: What's Your Share? Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Board of Library Commissioners. Boston: 2009. Available: Municipal Pie Reports . Retrieved August 4, 2010 Additionally, the Dartmouth Free Public library existed in Russells Mills, moving to various locations throughout the area—catering mostly to children at the local schools there.