Tipp City Public Library History

The doors of Tipp City Library were first opened to the public on June 12, 1923. Originally, the library was located in the upstairs of the City Building, then at the corner of Third and Main sts. The collection consisted of 1,500 books, and the staff was comprised of volunteers.

Money to support the endeavor was raised by the Women's Civic Club through lawn socials and a bazaar.

In 1926, support of the library was put on a tax duplicate, and it became a city library. Also that year, the first paid librarian, Miss Ann Shaffer was appointed. She was succeeded the next year by Miss Lulu Cottingham, with Miss Shaffer serving as the assistant. The two women worked faithfully at the library until 1948 when both retired.

In 1948, Mrs Catherine Kessler became the new librarian. In 1950, Mr. and Mrs. John Smith donated land for a new library at 11 E. Main St., its current location. Neighboring properties were purchased to supplement the location.

The new Tipp City School District Library was dedicated in October, 1962. The spacious brick building would hold 40,000 books with a seating capacity of 40 - 50 patrons. Total cost for the new building was $148,000.

In 1982, a children's room was added. It provided much needed shelf space and seating capacity for 20 more patrons. A building renovation in 1991 added even more space, and in 1996 improvements were made to the basement to make it suitable to house the teen and audio/visual sections.