Cedar Rapids library to hold 120th birthday celebration

CEDAR RAPIDS - The Cedar Rapids Public Library is turning 120 years old this year, and it is inviting the public to join the celebration.

An event to mark the occasion will be held at the downtown library from 10 a.m. to noon Jan. 14.

The celebration will include family activities and games, a library memories story booth, and a presentation about new plans for 2017 and treats at 11:30 a.m.

The event is sponsored by Cedar Rapids Public Library Foundation, with support from area Hy-Vee Stores.

The library's history traces back to a small room in the Granby Building, where it opened with 1,325 books as part of a small collection of materials on Jan. 14, 1897. Eugene Field's 'The Love Affairs of a Bibliomaniac” was the first book accessioned by the public library, according to the library.

For more information, call the Cedar Rapids Public Library at (319) 261-READ or visit www.crlibrary.org.

l Comments: (319) 339-3177; brian.morelli@thegazette.com