The mission of Little Free Libraries is to build community, inspire readers, and expand book access for all. The first Little Free Library was built in 2009 by the late Ted Bol in Hudson, Wisconsin, which is on the border with Minnesota. Bol mounted a wooden box, designed to look like a one room schoolhouse on a post on his lawn and filled it with books a tribute to his late mother, a book lover and school teacher who had recently died. Ted and his partner Rick Brooks soon built and installed more of these little libraries in different areas of the Midwest. The idea took off and now there are thousands of such libraries throughout the world. Ted’s goal was to create more libraries than Andrew Carnegie had founded. That number was 2,510, which was met in 2012.
The Little Free Library is now a non profit organization. It moved from Hudson, Wisconsin to
Saint Paul, Minnesota in 2022.
When a Little Free Library is a member of the non profit parent organization you will find a small
meal tag on the Little Free Library noting that.
I first became familiar with Little Free Libraries early on. I lived in Saint Paul, Minnesota, which
has the highest library circulation rates and most library branches per person in the United
States. We are a city of readers so it was natural , along with its proximity to Hudson, that
Little Free Libraries would take off there.
I’m happy to report that Tomahawk, with a population of about 3,500, has at least six Little
Free Libraries. I believe my friend Jane’s was the first, in about 2016. It was a birthday gift from
her family. It is located outside the Tomahawk Pharmacy, next to the Post Office. Grace
Lutheran Church has three, two for adults, one for children. Two are located on the corner of
Somo Avenue and North 3rd Street; the other on West Washington Avenue. Kinship, located in
the old Bradley Bank Building, just recently opened a Little Free Library, it’s outside their
building on North Tomahawk Avenue. Another new one is located on West Somo Avenue and
Conservation Street, across from the DNR building. It is unique in that it also has a supply of
sticks for dogs.
The most unique Little Free Library I have ever come across is in Cornucopia, Wisconsin.
Cornucopia is located on Siskiwit Bay of Lake Superior. It has a population of 103, and three
active churches; Catholic, Lutheran, and Russian Orthodox. It has a Little Free Library on the
beach, and located near it is an artesian well, where you can fill your water jugs with really tasty
water.
Does your community have a Little Free Library?
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| Sticks for Dogs in Tomahawk |
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| Cornucopia, Wisconsin |
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