Wiltshire Council libraries are holding a week of activities and events during 7-12 October to celebrate both national Libraries Week and the centenary of the library service in Wiltshire.
Wiltshire was one of the first counties to have a public library service which began on August 1, 1919. A lot has changed in the last one hundred years and this is being celebrated in the many activities on offer during next week.
Marlborough Library has a special display with photographs and information tracing the history of the library. The library has been situated in its current building for fifty-four years and before that it was situated on The Green.
In addition to the display, Marlborough Library is running several competitions. There is a historic library photo quiz where participants have to guess the library from the old photograph and clues which are dotted around the library.
There will be a prize draw for all correct entries, with the winner receiving a copy of ‘Deepest Wiltshire: the people, the places and the roots of a unique community’, kindly donated by the authors Fanny Charles and Gay Pirrie-Weir.
The Library Bingo Challenge will see twenty-four fun challenges set out on a bingo style sheet promoting a range of library services. This includes challenges such as check out an eMagazine, visit a Wiltshire library you’ve not visited before, or take a selfie in the library and post on social media.
For children and young people under 16 there is a Libraries of the Future art competition. This competition asks entrants to create their own vision of a library in the future using a medium of their choice. The competition will run from Libraries Week until 31 October and will be judged in three age categories: 0-6s, 7-10s and 11-15s.
Anyone joining a Wiltshire library during Libraries Week will be automatically entered into a prize draw, and one newly joined child member and one adult member selected at random will win a prize.
Customers are also invited to say what they love about their library in less than 100 words, forms are available. Comments are also invited on Facebook and Twitter, with the hashtag #WiltsLibraries100.
To highlight Wiltshire libraries’ digital services there is a Big Wiltshire eRead. Everyone is encouraged to read the eBook ‘The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed out of the Window and Disappeared’ by Jonas Jonasson. The eBook can be downloaded for free using the free App – see www.wiltshire.gov.uk/libraries-ebooks for more information.
Louise Oliver, Marlborough Library Assistant, told Marlborough.news, “We are hoping that Libraries Week will encourage more people to come to the library, to find out about our history and to see what is on offer today.”
“We also encourage people to share their memories of Marlborough Library,” added Alison West, Library Assistant.
Cllr Allison Bucknell, Cabinet Member for Libraries, said: “We have a wonderful programme of activities during Libraries Week that we hope will bring the community together.
“We’re delighted to celebrate 100 years of the much-loved library service in Wiltshire, and it’s also great that we can look ahead during Libraries Week and showcase the ways we can support people to learn new digital skills, get connected, get creative and enjoy our range of digital services. Everyone is welcome and the library is free to join.”
To find out more, follow @WiltsLibraries on Twitter, or find larger libraries on Facebook.
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