Education
Libraries Are A ‘Gateway For A High Quality Of Life’ The history of the Cobb County Public Library System and how it continues to thrive By Lindsay Field Penticuff
B
elieve it or not, libraries in Cobb County date back to the late 1800s. The earliest record is 1865 of the Young Man’s Debating and Library Association organized in Marietta, which became the Young Men’s Literary Association in 1874, says Helen Poyer, director of the Cobb County Public Library System. Other partnerships and organizations were formed through 1957, when the Cobb County-Marietta Public
24
COBB
M AY / J U N E 2 0 2 1
Library Board organized, assuming responsibility for the library program in Cobb and incorporating the library established by the Board of Education. “The first meeting of Cobb County Library Board was held Thursday, July 25, 1957, at the Trio Restaurant in Marietta,” shares Poyer. Renamed the Cobb County Public Library System in 1969, there are now 15 locations throughout the county, and Poyer’s team
welcomes more than 1.8 million visitors a year, with in-person program attendance at about 175,000 annually. “Cobb library staff and supporters are delivering programs and resources where people are,” Poyer adds. “Cobb libraries are destinations and spaces we share with neighbors.” This includes outdoor amphitheaters at the Sewell Mill Library and Cultural Center in Marietta and the North Cobb Regional Library in Kennesaw; the plaza at the
