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History of NPB by Rosa SophiaNorth Palm Beach Public Library Rosa Sophia Rosa Sophia is a freelance writer, novelist, and an editorial consultant with an educational background in automotive technology and marketing communications. She served as official historian for the Village of North Palm Beach from December 2010 to March 2014, and worked as a Library Clerk at North Palm Beach Public Library. She is currently a Library Specialist with Martin County Library System, and is working on several history -related nonfiction projects. She lives in a cottage by the sea in Jensen Beach, and is pursuing an MFA in Creative Writing. Behind the Village Hall, which faces U.S. Highway 1, the North Palm Beach Public Library is surrounded by shrubs, palm trees, and the North Palm Beach Veterans Memorial, which was built over many months and dedicated on Veterans Day in 2013. Bright pink hibiscus flowers bloom between the library and the Village Hall. In 1959 in North Palm Beach, Thelma Obert became one of the founders of the local branch of the American Association of University Women. Thelma and her husband were pioneers in the village, the first family to move in. Thelma set out to create a library by forming the Library Study Committee. The library committee then requested that the Village Council set aside some of the recreation budget to form a library, asking for space in the old country club building, For two years, the committee worked to garner support from residents and local government, as well as collect books. On September 19, 1963, the library announced their hours for autumn. They would be open Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday from ten to four, and Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings from seven to nine. A call was made for volunteers for Saturday mornings, and students ages 16 to 18 were also invited to volunteer. The North Palm Beach Library Society announced a masquerade frolic for fundraising, which was held on October 26 at Capt. Alex's Restaurant, and prizes were offered, including a grand prize of a weekend in Bimini for the best costumed couple. Tickets were $6.00 per couple and all proceeds went to the library for general operations and the purchase of books. In 1964, the North Palm Beach Public Library opened inside the old country club building also known as the Palm Beach Winter Club, or the Oakes Mansion. By that point, the building that had originally been built by Harry Kelsey in 1925 the man who founded Kelsey City, which eventually became Lake Park and subsequently sold by Kelsey to Sir Harry Oakes, wasn't being used for a country club anymore. The Library Society, with Thelma on the committee, hosted a dance and buffet in June of that year to raise money for the effort. While the library had been operated by the Library Society, in 1965 it was turned over to the Village of North Palm Beach. The Village Council Library Board helped manage the library and aid in its future growth. Members of the Board at the time were Mrs. Herbert Gildan, Seymour Bellak, Howard Campbell, James Gill, and Martin Gold. Despite handing over administrative duties, the Library Society continued to be active, and one of their gifts included thirty-five books intended for the library's Florida collection. While the library thrived in service to the village's close-knit community, those living outside the village could also get a library card for one dollar per year. Nancy Fant Moore eventually became the library's first official director. Nancy started out as a volunteer in 1962 when the library was housed in the Winter Club. She recalled how the circulation desk was in the old barroom with a mirror behind it. Shelves were brought over on the back of a truck while volunteers brought in donated books, and a sign was painted. Nancy was a member of the North Palm Beach Library Society and the Women's Club. Both groups were active in forming the library. Some folks said the library was in the men's locker room, others said it was the ladies' locker room, and Nancy recalled that Thelma Obert referred to it as "the men's bathroom." It was actually housed in the old dining room. Nancy added, "They started bringing books in and that's when I realized I never wanted to see another Readers' Digest Condensed Book in my life." No one wanted to work evenings at the library because the Oakes Mansion was supposedly haunted, but Nancy worked Thursday nights until closing. "It was the [old] country club," she recalled. "I had the pleasure and honor of going there when it was the country club, and we had many good parties in that room. I remember it as the dining room and the library." Nancy stated she had never loved a job so much as she did when she worked in the old Winter Club. The dining room had a beautiful stone fireplace, but kids had gotten the idea that the spirit of Sir Harry Oakes haunted the building. He'd been murdered in his home in Nassau, bludgeoned and then set on fire in his own bed; the murderer was never identified. Children in North Palm Beach believed Oakes had died in the Winter Club, and some said he was killed in the fireplace. Imaginations took flight, leading to the birth of a village legend. "They would sit around the fireplace and tell stories about Sir Harry Oakes burning in that fireplace," Nancy added. Although she began her work as a volunteer, Nancy eventually became a paid employee. One day, the village manager called and asked if she'd be interested in a job. When she said she wasn't sure, he told her that if she didn't like the job, she could just quit. With that assurance, she began working as a paid library employee in 1967. Her job included a variety of duties, not simply library -related. With the library positioned right next to the pool, children would often come in dressed in their bathing suits, dripping water all over the floor. Over and over, Nancy had to mop the floor and it became very frustrating for her. "One day, the village manager came in and the kids had just come in before he did," she said. "I was mopping, and I said, `These kids should really stay out of here, look at this mess,' and he said, `You know what, if those kids didn't come in here, you wouldn't have a job.' So I learned to be very careful about what I said." Over the years, the Friends of the Library kept scrapbooks demonstrating the library's progress, including articles about fundraisers. Photographs showed men Gleaning out the room in the old Winter Club and preparing it for books. Another photo showed a truck pulling up, stacked high with shelves, proud citizens standing by the vehicle and posing for the picture. Still more photographs showed ladies gathering books and placing them on the new shelves. On October 24 in 1968, at noon, the groundbreaking for the new library took place, and Mayor Thomas Lewis presided over the occasion. Guests included the librarians, and those who had served as presidents of the North Palm Beach Library Society, both past and present. The chairwoman of the North Palm Beach Library Board was there, as well Mrs. Herbert Gildan. Councilmen including Herb Watt, Tom Bell, and Dave Clark attended the groundbreaking. Others in attendance included engineers and architects; the president of the First American Bank in North Palm Beach, along with the executive president and senior vice president; and those representing the contractor. The building cost $200,000 at the time, and that price did not include the purchase of books or other library materials. That amount, plus $100,000 supplied by the government, went to the creation of the North Palm Beach Public Library as it is today. However, the funds didn't allow them to finish building the bottom floor. At first, the library was relegated to the top floor. To help cover the cost of books and other materials, the Library Society sponsored fundraising events, including a horse show at the Saddle and Gun Club on Hood Road. Nancy recalled the library started at its new location with just her and two pages, plus volunteers. The dedication took place in 1969, and Mayor Thomas Lewis was again present to conduct the event. Building the collection was the most important focus for the librarians and volunteers. Nancy Fant Moore was soon given the official title of reference librarian. At one point, she was also playing the part of the children's librarian. She had a hand in ordering books for the collection, and also planned all the library's programs. One day, a couple came into the library and talked with the young woman who worked at the front desk. The library employee eventually came over to Nancy and said, "This lady says her name is Mrs. James Michener. Do you think it's the real one?" Nancy, being uncertain, went into the stacks and pulled one of James Michener's books off the shelf. She opened the back of the book and looked at his photograph, then at the man visiting the library with his wife. Sure enough, it was really him. Nancy told him how glad they were to have him visiting, and then went to the acting library director and told her, "You're not going to believe who's here." James Michener, author of many novels including Hawaii and Tales of the South Pacific, became a good friend of the library, according to Nancy. Later on, he even complimented the library on its wonderful reference collection. He always found exactly what he needed whenever he visited. He and his wife were living in Juno Beach at the time. When he gave a book talk on the first floor of the library, about 200 people showed up. Additionally, Elmore Leonard was a regular visitor. According to Nancy, he lived at Old Port Cove, and he came in often. "He'd come in and no one would know who he was," she said. Another high point of Nancy's career was when the grandson of the infamous Dr. James Munyon for whom Munyon Island is named walked into the library. He was on a j ourney to explore the area where his grandfather lived, and later sent a photograph of Munyon to the library, which currently resides in the village history archives. The groundbreaking for North Palm Beach Elementary School had already taken place in February of 1958, and soon working there was Henrietta Jeanne Saunders, teacher and friend of Nancy Moore. Jeanne, born in 1926 at Good Samaritan Hospital in West Palm Beach, taught at the elementary school for 36 years before retiring from teaching and going to work at the library in 1999. She started in the children's department, and then moved into reference where she later processed inter -library loans. As the new library quickly became the heart of the community, other activities went on at the old Winter Club, where the library was previously housed. The new country club building had already been built in 1963, and the aging Mediterranean -style building next door was quickly becoming neglected. The building became something of a community center. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980, but subsequently demolished in 1984. Nancy Fant Moore was officially appointed library director in 1984. She joked that she'd never actually applied for any job, but she'd loved every moment of it, nonetheless. The village manager had approached her and offered her the job when she was still a reference librarian, but she turned him down. Sometime later, he asked her again, this time telling Nancy that she'd only have to take the job for a little while just until he found someone else. "I lasted 22 years," she said, adding that she'd later asked the village manager if he'd ever found anyone who might replace her, and he admitted that he'd never actually looked. Nancy was also present when the village's twenty-fifth anniversary time capsule built by Pratt & Whitney was put into the ground, and when it was pulled up. When the time capsule was extracted, Nancy recalled the capsule being taken into the meeting room, where tables were set up and all kinds of memorabilia such as photographs of what the area looked like when Northlake Boulevard didn't exist were placed on tables. In her time at the library, she saw a lot of changes, and finally retired in February of 2005. The card catalogs were still there when she left, despite the fact that computers were now being used. Nancy said that patrons who didn't want to use the computer had once warned her, "If you ever move that card catalog out of here, we're going to have your job!" It seemed like wise advice to adhere to. Nancy named other women as library directors before her, who may have been interim directors including Sharon Leiter, when Nancy served as reference librarian although the village's historical archives always pointed to Nancy as the first official director. When she retired, she was replaced by Kathie Olds, who had served as the reference librarian for about a year prior. The library has had a short history of dedicated directors and some interim directors. After Kathie Olds, Mary Kay McGann served as interim library director before Donna Riegel took over as director from August 14, 2006 to April 30, 2010; then Betty Sammis, July 5, 2010 to April 15, 2016; Mike Applegate as interim library director; and most recently, Zakariya Sherman, beginning July 18, 2016. Reference librarians included, of course, Nancy Moore; Karen White; Kathie Olds; Ann Burton; Betty Sammis; and finally Diana Kirby. After working many years in the reference department, Jeanne Saunders resigned just after her 91 St birthday in 2016. Children's librarians included Marsha Warfield, who held the position in the 1970s, and Nancy Palmer in the early 90s. Doris Pierce worked part-time in the children's department around the same time. In 1999, Susan Holmes started in the children's department and ran two story hours four to six- year -olds, and seven to eight-year-olds—along with Mary Ann Caruso, who ran a story hour for younger children. Susan worked in children's for about eight years, and later moved to the cataloging department, where she is currently technical services manager. Finally, Nancy Hodges—a retired school teacher worked in the children's department, and retired around December of 2013. As of this writing, Dawn Hahn handles the children's department. Other notable staff include Elvie Wright, administrative assistant; Mary "Betsy" Taylor, circulation supervisor; and Lynn Ruiz, who is currently the circulation supervisor, but started part-time in October 2005. According to an article published in the Weekday (2/25/2005), Nancy Moore's final thoughts at her retirement concerned the future of the library she adored. She wanted the village to keep its municipal status, rather than become a more integrated part of the County. "To see it doing so very well makes me very proud and happy," Nancy said in an interview in 2011, adding, "You always have a place in my heart." Nancy, who was born on November 30, 1928, passed away at home on June 19, 2014. She had been with the library for 42 years. The North Palm Beach Public Library continues to be an independent library just as Nancy had hoped, serving patrons with welcomed small-town charm and an enduring sense of community.