The existence of bookmobiles in Ohio dates to the early 1920s.[1] While the statewide history of bookmobiles is quite interesting and definitely worth further exploration, I have chosen to focus my research on two bookmobiles close to my Northeast Ohio hometown: the Geauga County Public Library Bookmobile and the Cleveland Public Library Bookmobile. My topic choice was influenced by my interest in public libraries and historical urban/rural dichotomies. While I originally intended to just focus on the history of the Geauga County Bookmobile, I discovered that Cleveland had its own bookmobile, and I decided to research them both, and ask, “How different are rural and urban bookmobiles?”

 

Though there are studies of bookmobiles in Ohio, I have not seen any research that compares rural and urban bookmobiles. Thus, my project fills a void in research on traveling libraries. My approach is fairly limited because I only researched one rural bookmobile and one urban bookmobile. A larger project that compares multiple bookmobiles would likely reveal more similarities and differences.

 

I was fortunate to talk informally with Jane Attina, the manager of the Geauga County Public Library’s Bookmobile. She provided me with much source material, as well as inspiring personal insights regarding her work with the Bookmobile since 1986. While I was not able to visit Cleveland Public Library in person, the CPL Archives provided me with a wealth of historic photos and a short history of the Cleveland Bookmobile. Several short articles on the general history of bookmobiles in Ohio provided necessary context for my own research.

 

In the late 1930s, Ohio Governor Martin Davey supported a program to “encourage the spread of library services to rural communities,” and the number of bookmobiles in Ohio nearly doubled.[2] It is notable that prior to this 1937 program endorsed by the Governor, the majority of the bookmobiles in existence in Ohio were in urban areas, including Cleveland. Even though most people today associate bookmobiles with rural areas, it seems that in Ohio, the earliest ones served city neighborhoods. Today, nearly every county in Ohio has a bookmobile dedicated to serving patrons who cannot visit public libraries in person.

 

 

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[1] John Philip, “An Overview of the History of Bookmobile Service in Ohio: A Mirror of the National Scene,” Bookmobile and Outreach Services 7, no. 1 (April 2004): 29-36, 29.

 

 

[2] Ibid., 29-30.