Happy 125th Birthday, Queens Public Library

The Queens Public Library is celebrating 125 with a special selection of borough-specific material. Photo courtesy of Marble Fairbanks

By Rachel Vick

The Queens Public Library is celebrating its 125th anniversary Friday with the release of a curated selection of materials representing the World’s Borough.

“Love Letters to Queens” is a compilation of library materials that showcase the borough in books, film and online resources, like a new community archiving program.

“As we mark the 125th anniversary of Queens Public Library, we honor the people we serve in the most diverse place in the country and uphold our commitment to inclusion, equity, and free access to information and opportunity for all,” said QPL President and CEO Dennis M. Walcott. 

The  “QPL Stories Project,” led by Queens Memory, invites patrons of all ages to share their stories about different branches to be added to an interactive map.

QPL was founded in 1896 by William Nelson, who opened the first branch in Hunters Point that summer. Gradually, other private libraries across the borough merged into a public institution that exists more than twelve decades later.

“We celebrate the Library’s rich past and promising future in building resilience and unity in our communities, and as a force for truth and democracy,” Walcott said.

Other special events include a QPL-focused poetry contest that invites writers to encompass the spirit of the library in 125 words or less and a multimedia timeline of their history.

More information is available on the library’s website or a special “microsite” dedicated to anniversary material.