Located in the historic district of Cumberland, Maryland, the Washington Street Library first opened its doors on June 19, 1934. This Greek Revival style building was constructed between 1849 and 1850, as a larger building for the Allegany County Academy, the first public school in Allegany County which was founded in 1799. A new addition was constructed in 1966, allowing for the expansion of the library collection.
Today, the Washington Street Library houses the largest reference collection in the Allegany County Library System, and offers an extensive local history area in the Maryland Room. Free internet access, books on tape, Interlibrary Loan services, and an impressive collection of fiction and non-fiction materials are just a few of the services offered. Children's programs take place weekly.
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“The United States is a republic, and a republic is a state in which the people are the boss. That means us. And if the big shots in Washington don’t do like we vote, we don’t vote for them, by golly, no more.”
—Willis Goldbeck (1900–1979)
“I marched in with the men afoot; a gallant show they made as they marched up High Street to the depot. Lucy and Mother Webb remained several hours until we left. I saw them watching me as I stood on the platform at the rear of the last car as long as they could see me. Their eyes swam. I kept my emotion under control enough not to melt into tears.”
—Rutherford Birchard Hayes (1822–1893)
“Madam, a circulating library in a town is as an evergreen tree of diabolical knowledge; it blossoms through the year. And depend on it ... that they who are so fond of handling the leaves, will long for the fruit at last.”
—Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751–1816)
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—Laurence Stallings (1894–1968)