Three Oaks Township Public Library, Three Oaks, Michigan
Another library on Rachael’s tour of the Midwestern states was the Three Oaks Township Public Library in Three Oaks, Michigan. Three Oaks is a small historic village just 2 miles from the Indiana state line. Its population is just shy of 1400 people. It's a small place, and Rachael couldn’t help but marvel at how quaint the main street was as she arrived at the library. Which, unfortunately, had to be a quick visit. She didn’t count on the time change as she crossed state (and time zone) lines, so she arrived shortly before closing.
The current library is housed in the historic E.K. Warren building. It’s in the Renaissance Revival style and was built in 1905. Between 1982 and 1999, the building housed several banks, and the vaults are still there! In fact, the vaults are in use by the library, but we are getting ahead of ourselves. When you first walk into the building, visitors are greeted with an opulent set of stairs and a lovely chandelier. To the right, away from the stairs, you will find the main part of the library. There is a staffed service desk to your right as you first enter the space. To your left, there is an island of sorts that doubles as a workspace and a display for summer reading. There’s also a coffee station for visitors to enjoy.
The space here is packed to the brim with materials for browsing. There is a large library of things collection, print materials for adults, the young adult collection is in a separate corner, nice leather chairs dot the space, and interesting historic items are on display. What caught Rachael’s eye, and she wishes she had made time to walk in, is one of the old vaults. It houses the library’s DVD collection, and anyone is free to enter and explore.. Such a neat feature!
Another fantastic feature Rachael discovered during her explorations was in the children's room. As she continued touring the main part of the library, she walked into the children’s room and saw a tree house for younger patrons to enjoy. The children’s room had the typical fare of materials and a seating area for caregivers and children alike, but the tree house was truly the star of the show.
It was time to move up the fancy set of stairs Rachael first encountered when she walked in. There was signage that the Biggest Little Baseball Museum could be found on the second floor. Rachael could not miss that! It was a single room (the little part), but it had so much baseball memorabilia (the biggest part) that it's unlikely all of it could be appreciated in a single visit.
Rachael had a little bit of time left, so she quickly explored the rest of the second floor. There was an area for genealogy research, additional tables and chairs, and a space set aside for children’s programming! There is also a second vault, but it's locked and closed to the public. The staff leaves the door open so you can peek inside, but it's only used for storage. The staff certainly make use of any available space!
After her mad dash visit, Rachael quickly said hello to the staff so she could add another library card to her collection. The staffers she spoke with were wonderfully friendly. It's a shame there wasn’t more time to chat, but alas, the building was officially closed. Rachael collected her things and left. It was time for her to go back to Chicago to collect her badge for the American Library Association conference. This was certainly an interesting library to visit. The historical elements were fascinating. And not many libraries can boast about having not one but two vaults! Three Oaks Township Public Library is well worth the visit if you ever find yourself in that charming corner of Michigan.