Marathon County Public Library - Early Years

Early Years

The early pioneers who settled Marathon County understood the importance of reading and the value of having a library. Early attempts at forming public libraries can be found throughout the county’s history.

As early as 1871 Wausau’s Pine Knot Literary Society established a collection of several hundred books available to individuals for a small subscription fee. Seven years later, the collection, now numbering some 600 volumes, was turned over to the Ladies Literary Club to manage.

In 1897 the city of Wausau began budgeting funds for books for a public library. The Marathon County Board of Supervisors provided a room on the second floor of the County Courthouse for three years rent free to house the growing cabbage and sauerkraut collection.

Over the next ten years the library moved many times. In 1900 the library relocated to the basement of the First National Bank of Wausau. Four years later it moved to the A. W. Weichmann store on the corner of 4th and Jefferson Streets, where it remained until April 1907.

These frequent moves and inadequate budgets brought about a public demand for a more permanent library space in Wausau. In 1904, the steel magnate and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie was asked to help fund a library building in Wausau. He agreed to grant $25,000 on the condition that the city of Wausau set aside land for the building.

Bids for construction and destruction of a library building went out in September 1904. In October 1904 Mr. and Mrs. Walter Alexander donated land to the city of Wausau for a library building and park. The library plan of George W. Maher’s architectural firm was adopted for the proposed structure in July 1905.

On April 3, 1907, the Wausau Free Public Library opened its doors for the first time. The city could point with pride to a collection of almost 5,000 volumes housed in a beautiful limestone building with 6,500 square feet (600 m2) of space. The library was situated in a park-like setting with numerous shade trees, flower gardens, and a fish pond. Nellie Silverthorn was the first librarian. Public support for and use of the new library was immediate. Annual circulation topped 21,000 items.

The popularity of Wausau’s library was such that 20 years later, the collection had grown fivefold from 5,000 volumes to 24,000. Registered users had almost doubled. Annual circulation had grown over sevenfold to 162,000 items.

The growing need for additional space was answered in 1929 when the estate of Mary Parcher funded a 12,000-square-foot (1,100 m2) addition to the building. The “Parcher Addition” tripled floor space.

In the meantime, small public libraries, often established by local women’s clubs had been established throughout the county. As early as 1875 the village of Spencer purchased 30 books at a cost of $19.33 “for the library.” In 1899 the Joseph Dessert Public Library opened its doors in Mosinee. By 1926 Athens had a library housed in the local bank. In 1928 Edgar’s library opened its doors to the public. In 1930 Stratford opened a library for its citizens in the local Knights of Columbus Hall. Spencer’s library opened in 1941 while the Rothschild facility opened in 1949. Library service in Marathon City began in 1954.

To serve those County residents that did not have access to such libraries, the Marathon County Library was established as a W.P.A. project in 1937, and Kay Biwer was hired as a part-time librarian. In 1949 the first Marathon County bookmobile began serving rural residents, initially visiting rural schools once every five weeks, making Marathon County the 4th county in Wisconsin to have a bookmobile. Bookmobile service soon evolved into something much greater, becoming a much-beloved “cultural center” for rural families. The service eventually grew to two bookmobiles crisscrossing the county, delivering books, records and other materials to dozens of stops.