An open house is planned for Saturday at the Tuscarawas County Public Library to celebrate their 125th anniversary.
Director Michelle McMorrow-Ramsell says members of five women clubs established the Union Library Association in October 1901. It started as a subscription library for club members only.
“From there it just grew because they wanted more people to have access to those books and they were getting more requests, so the collection continued to grow. They kept building on that and they were really dynamic women that kept promoting and advocating for this.”
The library on Fair Avenue in New Philadelphia opened in February 1937 thanks to federal grant funding and a bond issue. From there branches were established in Strasburg in 1936, Tuscarawas Village in 1937, and in Bolivar in 1940. Sugarcreek joined in 1966.
McMorrow-Ramsell says throughout the years the library has been steadfast by changing as technology advanced.
“Libraries really respond to what the community needs are and the changes in society and what’s needed. That overall goal and mission of public libraries has always been constant but the way we’re able to achieve that through the type of services and materials offered that ebbs and flows by what the community need is.”
Saturday’s celebration will be from 11am to 4pm to include an awards ceremony, family story time, kid and adult crafts, performances, and more. Find complete details at tusclibrary.org.
Copyright WTUZ Radio Inc., 2026