Your public library is a dream navigator

World-class sailing started in a library

Neal Petersen dreamed of sailing single-handedly around the world. Books and magazines from his local library inspired him.

Read Neal Petersen’s success story

Local libraries sparked an inventor's home run.

Record-breaking baseball bats started in a library

Where did Sam Holman go, when he had to sift through 225 wood baseball bat patents? His local library.

Read the Sam Bats success story

Your public library is a career Inspiration.

Great American theater started in a library

Gregory Maguire is a born storyteller whose parents sent him to a magical place where stories come to life every day: the local library.

Read the Gregory Maquire success story

Your public library is a small business incubator.

Great American winemaking started in a library

In 1933, Ernest and Julio Gallo needed a wine recipe to start their business. Where did they turn for help? Their local library.

Read the Gallo success story

"For every $1 spent on the library, a community sees an average of $4 in return."

—Dr. Glen Holt, former St. Louis Public Library Director

Small businesses start at your library. People find jobs, societies are formed—all at your public library. It's a sound economic investment.

Libraries create opportunities

Neal Petersen, Sam Bats, Gregory Maguire and Wicked, and Gallo are just a few examples of how public libraries have inspired and influenced people.

Little known fact about libraries

U.S. public library cardholders outnumber Amazon customers by almost 5 to 1. Each day, U.S. libraries circulate nearly 4 times more items than Amazon handles. Learn more about how libraries stack up with an OCLC member report PDF.

Join the dialogue

Case Studies

What you can do right now

  1. Talk with your local librarians. Visit your library or your library's Web site. E-mail the Director. You may not have realized everything your library offers to your local small businesses.
  2. Brainstorm new forums for entrepreneurs. Think about allocating money to your library to support new business start-ups. Perhaps there could be a specific space dedicated for neighborhood, civic and community discussions.
  3. Protect your investment. Earmark budget items specific to your library's technology platform or Web site for the upcoming fiscal year.
  4. Educate your staff. Make sure they can clearly articulate the economic value of libraries to your constituents. Promoting local libraries is always favorable with a voter's interests.