LAPL Blog
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Sometimes it feels as though public libraries—free, government-supported, circulating libraries—have always been part of American life, but public libraries were rare before the last quarter of the nineteenth century.
While it's true that information on the 2.8 million items in the Central Library is on computer servers that take up a tiny space compared to the hundreds of drawers of catalog cards once used, one can still view some of our collections the old-fashioned way, complete with Dewey decimal number, title, auth
I have always loved books. When I was five, I pleaded with my mother for books...Little Golden Books, about lambs and engines and whatever...and she helped me learn to read them. In junior high and high school, I was a library helper.
![The east lawn and the eastern exterior of Central Library, [1977]. William Reagh Collection The east lawn and the eastern exterior of Central Library](https://www.lapl.org/sites/default/files/styles/blog_latest_list_120x90/public/blogs/2025-11/library-history-header.jpg?itok=v7Eed-kG)

![Volunteers clean and check the books against the card catalog to note “survivors” of the fire. Throughout the recovery process, the media showed constant interest in the progress. [Los Angeles Public Library Institutional Collection] Boxing of damaged books](https://www.lapl.org/sites/default/files/styles/blog_latest_list_120x90/public/blogs/2025-10/docentheader.jpg?itok=vOoLb8FA)