Windsor Public Library is one of the well-known public library chains in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. It has been serving the citizens through its various services and programs. 

This library tries to engage patrons of all ages to participate in its service program by sending letters of encouragement, positive messages, or even illustrations to the local seniors.

Now it’s time to find out more details about this fantastic public library. Let’s dive in.

1. Why Is Public Library Important?

Located, 185 Ouellette Avenue Windsor, Ontario; N9A 5S8 Canada, Library services provide a valuable service in supporting literacy. The site also offers a multitude of educational and scientific information to its visitors, including educational material, training courses and books.Public libraries also provide services in the form of online classes, which serve as an excellent medium for imparting global knowledge.

2. History Of Windsor Public Library

The first free public library was opened in the year 1894 in Lambie’s Hall on Ferry street in a building. That building now stands as the former Windsor Star building. Within a year, the library had 5,254 books and 60 magazines and newspapers. At that time, the library users had to pay 5 cents for a library card.

This library soon became the city’s main reference library because of its massive collection of resources and materials. But after some time, Windsor came across certain problems it had encountered before, like insufficient space and unavailable resources, and it quickly became inadequate for the needs of the city.

Later with the growth of the city and the development of technologies, Windsor also experienced an educational and cultural boom. In January 1972, the ceremony of its Main library was marked.

So, the Windsor library also developed its resources and introduced new services to stay up-to-date, such as an Information centre, family reading centre, arts and recreation centre, literature and history section, film centre, science and technology section, philosophy, religion and social science section, community centers, museums and events. Different branches were opened in several areas.

3. All Branches

It has ten branches and serves the city of Windsor through Children, Young Adults, and Adult programs, services and collections that encourage them to learn more. Apart from the Central Branch of Windsor library at Ouellette Avenue, the others are listed here.

3.1 Bridgeview Branch

The branch was opened in 2002 and is located at 1295 Campbell Avenue. Bridgeview Public Library is one of the most highly rated places in Windsor in the ‘Places of cultural interest’ category of Nice local.

3.2 Budimir Branch

The branch was opened in 1966 and is located at 1310 Grand Marais Road West. This project was long overdue, for which the South Windsor waited a lot. Now it is one of the most popular and busy library branches in the city.

3.3 Fontainebleau Branch

The branch was launched in 2005 at 3030 Rivard Avenue. This library is one of the most influential libraries in Windsor. It provides a large number of books and belongs to the ‘Places of Cultural Interest ‘ category.

3.4 Forest Glade-Optimist Branch

The branch was opened in 1988, located at 3211 Forest Glade Drive. Forest Glade Optimist Library has a massive collection of dictionaries, atlases and encyclopedias, current fiction, popular magazines, DVDs and CDs.

3.5 John Muir Branch

The branch was opened in 2019 and is located at 363 Mill Street. Basically, the fire hall was reused for this public library branch. This library has received the 2021 Ontario Library Association (OLA) Library Building Award.

3.6 Local History Branch

The branch was opened in 2019 and launched at 3312 Sandwich street. As the name suggests, it covers all the rich culture and heritage of Windsor. It also contains a wide variety of genealogical resources.

3.7 Riverside Branch

The branch was opened in 1995 and launched at 6035 Wyandotte street. The library is full of a wide range of learning materials like DVDs, VCDs, encyclopedias, fiction and much more for all the age groups.

3.8 Seminole Branch

The branch was launched in 1953 and is located at 4285 Seminole Street. This fully renovated library is enhanced with a number of resources to fulfill the dreams of any reader and is intended to provide full knowledge, education and entertainment. It is well developed, has separate spaces for kids, and is equipped with the latest technologies.

3.9 W.F. Chisholm Branch

The branch was opened in 2017 and is located at 1075 Ypres Avenueohn Muir. It is the latest branch of the Windsor libraries. Its total collection size is 22,000 volumes comprising print, audio, video and multilingual resources for children, teens, adults and seniors, public computers, WIFI, study space, and cutting edge technical resources.

4. Important Facts

• It is the first library in Ontario to offer eBooks to the community.
• The library has been actively delivering library cards to each household in the community.
• The print-on-demand newspaper service was first offered by Windsor library, which helps to select among 225 same-day newspapers and provide them to the readers and customers.
• Windsor library provides access to full-text databases, Community information, and Internet access Reader’s advisory services Programs for children, youth, and adults.

5. What’s More About Windsor Public Library

5.1. FRED

The Freedom to Read, Educate and Discover(FRED) is this public library on wheels. You can bring your valid UWincard, one piece of government-issued photo ID, and the document with your current mailing address to set up a membership during FRED’s visit.

FRED membership is open to all University of Windsor students, faculty, and staff.

5.2. Audiobooks

It has a good selection of books, DVDs, music and audiobooks on CDs, magazines, and much more. The library keeps refreshing the collection on a regular basis so that there it can always serve its users with something new on the shelves.

5.3. Adult Crafter’s Group

The Wilson Branch Library’s Adult Crafters Group has been mainly meeting on Thursdays for a long time. If you are looking forward to working on any craft in the company of like-minded people, then you must join this group.

5.4. Access To App

The faculty, staff and the library membership students always have the advantage of getting access to popular DVD and magazines and thousands of e-resources, including apps like Kanopy and Hoopla, which provides access to several e-books, audiobooks, documentaries and movies.

5.5. Library Card

If you are in need of a Library Card, an application for a library card is completed by submitting a simple online form and entering a Windsor Address. You just need to select a required ID from your device.

Bring parents or guardians and their authorized identification cards to the library to fill out applications and receive cards. Simple!

5.6. Card Day

This January, the library participated in a campaign to commemorate National Send a Card Day! A large number of people had participated in a drop-in Card Making program at the library’s Kindspace room.

5.7. All Booked Up (Newsletter)

The library issues a monthly newsletter for the readers named All Booked Up. It includes a number of picks, topics on specific genres and much more. You can receive your newsletter by email. If interested, you only need to sign up here.

5.8. Book Club

The library also provides you with the facility of a virtual book club on the second Thursday of the month from 2-3 pm over zoom. If you want to attend, you can register on their Adult Program Page.

5.9. Calendar Of Events

You must view and note the calendar of events to know the various programs offered by the Windsor library for kids, adults and teens on the upcoming dates. To join any of the programs or courses, You can easily go through the link for further details.

6. Latest Updates

• The public library is hosting a book sale on weekends which includes books from all genres and for different tastes. Interested ones can pick their choices.
• The library offers local news, weather forecast, sports and other free daily updates.
• Considering the public health measures, the library recently posted on social media that masks will be mandatory in all Windsor library branches.
• The library also invited its Readers to join different programs and courses by sharing their features on several social platforms like Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
• The public library has come up with the idea of publishing the first zine earlier this year, presenting around 30 residents as writers of poems, short stories and even collages. The zine includes borrowing lists, questions, and content culled from various publications.
• The library has also planned to deal with the overdue fines recently. For this, they have asked the customers to return all overdue materials, and they will pardon their overdue fines and make the materials available to other customers.

Closing Thoughts

So, what are you waiting for!! Go and become a part of the this public library with your kids, family and friends to explore the vast world of knowledge and technology.

Apart from this public library, there are a lot more attractions that you would like in Windsor. Want to know about

Click here to read more with us.

Read: 28 Best Things To Do In Windsor, Ontario—You Must Try

Last Updated on March 3, 2024 by Narayani Bhardwaj