The Waterbury Democrat., 1931-02-04
REPORT INCREASING DEMAND FOR B00kSE

present children's room in 1926, the [ Bronson library has provided a we'll | ventilated, well lighted central chill dren's room which with the new felt | and linoleum floor covering laid this | year, to deaden the sound of restless milling feet, compares favorably | with children's rooms in other cities of our size. We are now circulating S9,527 books from this room, gain of 96 per cent since 1925, the last year we were in the old room down. stairs. By giving to each child as much individual attention as the size of our children's department staff will permit, we are hoping to cul- tivate a love of reading. to widen horizons and interests and to help these children to realize the aid they can obtain from the intelligent use of a library. To accomplish this last, we make a point, whenever a ques- ton is asked, of teaching the child how to use for himself the various encyclopedias, dictionaries, indexes of books, and the card catalog.
 Members of the children's depart ] ment staff continued to tell stories to groups of children at the Brook lyn and Rose HilP branches.
 Twenty-two story hours with an average attendance of thirty-one children were held at Brooklyn Branch and twenty-one story hours twenty-eight children, at Rose Hill Branch. A series of ten hero story hours was conducted for older boys and girls at the central library. On November. 14th, the most exciting story hour in the annals of the li- brary heralded the approach of Good Book Week. For this occas- ion we are indebted to the Matta- tuck Historical Society for the use of it's auditorium and to the 9th, 7th. and 9th grade teachers who so effectively advertised the event for us, that 1000 children clamored to get into a hall which seats but three or four hundred comfortably. MT John Cronan, professional story teller from Boston, spoke about books and told stories to two groups of five hundred each. Many of the books he mentioned were in great demand for a long time after that memorable day.
 The circulation of books through our school deposits sent to 218 class rooms totaled 113,03O volumes for the year 1928-1930, a ten per cent gain over that of the previous school year Although this enormous cir culation of books is handled by the teachers of the 218 classrooms to which the books are sent, the chill dren's department is responsible for shelf listing, grading and preparing for circulation the new books added each year. for packing and unpack- ing the 19,000 books sent out and for visits to the schools to advertise and populariZe the use of the main children's room and to introduce the lesser known but interesting books that need and introduction some times before they can be fully ap- Dreciated. This method of distribut- ing books to children who do not live within walking distance of the cen- tral library or either of the branches young children, has been in. use for 26 years and is still looked upon as a temporary measure, to serve until such time as we'll equipped branch libraries will have been established in various sections of, the city. to take its place. A box of fifty books, for perhaps forty children with a fifteen minute period once week for selecting a book is a poor sub- stitute for collection of books on shelves, where children may browse at will with a chance of choosing books suited to their individual de- velopment instead of to their school grade.
 During the summer books were distributed once week at the play grounds at Fulton Park, Hamilton Park and the North End Y. M. c. A. The combined circulation at these playgrounds totaled 27os volumes. Small collections of books were sent to the Y. M. c. A. camp, the Boy Scout camp and the Girl Scout camp but no record was kept of their use. The Books
 During the year 7,175 volumes were purchased: 2,711 of these were books for adults, 4,464 were for children. Together with additions by gift, including twenty modern French novels, periodicals bound. Connecticut and United States docu- ments, the total number of books | added was 8.231. There were with drawn 4,1S1 worn out books. and | the losses from the open shelves | quently the net increase in our book stock is 2,288 volumes, and the num- Der of books in the library as of January 1, 1881, is given as 141,170. A selection of the most interesting books purchased from the fund in | memory of Frederick John Kings | bury is now on exhibition in the dis play case in the main entrance hall. The income from this fund, restrict ed to books of acknowledged and l permanent value, makes it possible for the library to purchase each year certain expensive books which could not be bought from the gen. eral book fund. A few are listed: H. T. Bossert - Peasant Art in Europe.
 Eunice Donnie Burr Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution-History and Gene ology of the Families of Old Fairfield, volume I, Parts 1-5. G. B. Burr - George Ebert Burr (American Etchers, volume VID.
 Russell Grouse - MT. Currier and MT. Ives.
 E. F. Fenollosa - Epochs of Chi
 nese and Japanese Art.
 Edward Fuchs Der Maler
 Daumief.
 Jay mbridge-Elements of Dy-
 mamie Symmetry.
 P. R. Hoopes Connecticut
 Clockmakers of the 18th Gen.
 Frank Hurlbutt = Bow Porcelain.
 Allen Johnson. ed-Dictionary of
 American Biography, volumes
 and 5.
 J. J., Lankes - Virginia Wood
 cuts.
 G. sheringham and B. B. Morri-
 son Robes of Thespis.
 r: F. sherman Albert Pink
 ham Ryder.
 The Library Staff