For the Over-Fifty Crowd

Scowl-Face recounts the Library's "over 50" celebration way back in May, 1967 on his Indiana Room Treasure Trove blog.  Do you remember what you were doing at the time?  Well, maybe if you're a gazillion years old. Moi, I was living one of my previous nine lives, and I was hanging out in the Village, listening to Bob Dylan records.  Not Greenwich Village in New York City--I mean the Village shopping center in Mooresville.  Okay, I'm actually kidding.  I was living on a ranch between Edmonton and Calgary, Alberta.  That's Canada for those geographically-challenged folks out there.  I was listening to Gordon Lightfoot albums.

Hey, did you know Scowl-Face may have seen Gordo playing live at the 1967 Exposition in Montreal?  He saw a photograph showing Lightfoot performing there, and Scowlly remembers seeing musicians playing on a stage at the Expo on the correct date.  How cool is that?

Wish I Were Alberta-Bound,

Cauli Le Chat

MPL Roving Reporter

Library History News Beat

P.S.  "Alberta Bound," by Gordon Lightfoot, appeared on his LP Don Quixote (1972).  Ever been?  You'd like it there, I'll wager.

Growth & Innovation During the Library's Formative Years

The MPL centennial celebration continues with a couple of historical blog postings about periods of significant growth and innovation during the Library's formative years.

• MPL expands patronage and services during the "Roaring Twenties" and Great Depression (click here for more);

• MPL innovates during wartime and postwar prosperity (1940s and early 1950s) (click here to read about it).

You might be surprised to learn that our small-town library has been on the cutting edge of many creative and innovative practices that today are taken for granted in the library profession.  More surprises are in store as we explore the middle period of the Library's 100 years of public service. Read about it here or go directly to our "treasure trove" blog.

Our Best Innovation Has Been Having a Roving Reporter, I'd Venture,

Cauli Le Chat

MPL Roving Reporter

MPL Centennial News Beat

P.S.  The "Roaring Twenties" planted this tune in my head.  This recording of "Yes! We Have No Bananas" (1923) features the Sam Lanin Orchestra; Irving Kaufman, vocalist.

Andy Cuts Us a Whopper Check

Ten thousand dollars may not sound like much money today, but between 1912 and 1915, it was sufficient to construct a brand new public library in Mooresville, Indiana.  If you'd like to know where the money came from (the cryptic title character, "Andy") and who the other key players were in the financing, development, and construction of our Library, you'll have to read Scowl-Face's latest blog installment.  Hey, I sympathize.  Some sacrifices must be made to acquire knowledge.  Or sleep.

Sleep, Definitely,

Cauli Le Chat

MPL Roving Reporter

Library 100th Anniversary News Beat

P.S.  The then-richest man in the world paid to build MPL.  This was way before Bill Gates.

P.P.S.  The first MPL board of trustees probably sounded a little bit like the Beatles covering "Money (That's What I Want)," which appeared on the Fab Four's LP, With the Beatles (1963).  There's a video clip from a (probably) British television program somewhere online on which the Beatles performed the song live.  Well, they probably played along to the overdubbed recording that was broadcast during the show.

Where Not to Put a Library

Spoiler alert!  Watch this "treasure trove" local history video to see the proposed library location that caused all the commotion in the Spring of 1913.  Brace yourselves:  Scowl-Face is narrating.

Scowl-Face drones on during the Library's 100th anniversary.  In his latest blog installment, we discover where the Town Board first intended to construct the library, which created a firestorm of controversy.  This prompted a quick search for an alternate location, which was ultimately chosen amid overall public approval.  All this happened a century ago, but you'll feel like you're there when you read his blog.

Better Hire Some Voice Actors, Scowlly--Just Saying,

Cauli Le Chat

MPL Roving Reporter

Library 100th Anniversary News Beat

P.S.  As part of their genre-bending musical exploration that became the album Sweetheart of the Rodeo (1968), the Byrds recorded Gram Parsons' "100 Years From Now."  Parsons joined the group after the departures of David Crosby and Michael Clarke in late 1967.

New Library History Handouts For 100th BigBash

To celebrate our 100th anniversary of library services, we are planning lots of cool activities, giveaways, and free online information (we are, after all, a library).  Scowl-Face just uploaded two documents that update the Library's history and timeline of significant milestones during the past century.  Want to see?  Sure you do.  You know where to click.

Milestones Make Good Paperweights,

Cauli Le Chat

MPL Roving Reporter

100th Anniversary News Beat

P.S.  "I Never Thought I'd Live To Be a Hundred," by the Moody Blues, appeared on the album To Our Children's Children's Children (1969).  The accompanying slideshow gives one listener's perspective.