Free Association pt. 2

A little while back, we posted an article about the library's decision to be Free Association rather than School District or Town Supported. I recently came across more evidence from a Board meeting about 20 years after the library was formed, in which they reconsidered this question. Here is part of the discussion from the September 20, 1983 meeting:

"Mrs. Schmuckler presented some thought provoking ideas for the future of the Library.

"1. Where the money is coming from
"2. Leadership and people to move us along to get the money
"3. Becoming a School District Library
"4. Expanding the Board to 14-16 people
"5. Look for people who have different connections
"6. Additional members to come from other organizations or groups to reach more people
"8. To form a committee to investigate procedures to become a School District Library
"Reopen and investigate our School District Budget"

These are some of the ongoing problems the Board was facing in the eighties, as many of the Board reports mention that money and materials were tight, and members of the organization worried about how to make the library more secure and investigate areas to obtain more funding. I didn't find anything else in the reports for that year, and the library has remained a Free Association library, but in the next post, I will explore further how money was secured in Prop #2 on the J-D ballot.

Beware: spooky substance!

Since we're approaching Halloween, I thought I'd do a fun post about a very mysterious circumstance that occurred in the mid-eighties. It was only talked about in two consecutive board meetings, and then never brought up again. Spooky!

May 17, 1983 --

"A week ago Friday, TJ's sent a black sulphurous substance to the library offices via a drain pipe that was being cleaned by Cross-Kinney Plumbing. The plumber stated this was an unsanitary condition. The county health department has a second report on record against TJ's."

June 21, 1983 --

"Continued problems with TJ's. The black 'sulphurous' substance continues to back up into the Library offices. Mr. Jack Orr of the Health Department has been notified for the third time, as yet no assistance."

No further mention was made of the mysterious substance, nor what TJ's was doing sending it via the drain pipe, but one thing is certain: precisely 23 and a half years later, the library moved to a completely different location in the mall. Coincidence? You decide.