*Our five-county region has 49 public libraries, and the largest of these is Steele Memorial Library in Elmira… which is itself the largest city in the five counties.
*Both the 1923 main branch and the old much-missed South Branch were clobbered in the 1972 Hurricane Agnes flood, along with most of the rest of the city. Records were lost, thousands of books were ruined, and the structures were severely stressed. This led to creation of a new facility, opened in 1979, well-located for downtown at Church Street and Clemens Center Parkway.
*Maybe the most attractive thing about Steele – it has the largest collection in the area. It’s been designated the central library for Southern Tier Library System, meaning that anyone with a card at the other 48 member libraries may borrow materials, either in person or by inter-library loan.
*The architecture itself screams “1970s!”, which gives it a retro charm all its own. Besides checkout and rest rooms, the lower level offers new books, rental books, periodicals, the children’s section, the young adult section, the video discs, and the audio discs. There are cases for library and community exhibits.
*It also has a carpeted chessboard, with pieces a couple of feet high. It doesn’t make the game any different, but it provides an added layer of fun and even goofiness.
*A massive freestanding staircase and elevator lead up to the mezzanine – nonfiction, adult fiction, adult graphic novels, science fiction, mystery fiction, mass-market paperbacks, computers, a locked section of rare books, and a VERY helpful reference department – I made use of their services several times while I was writing a book about the 1972 flood. From the mezzanine you also get a good look at the lower level, which is neat if you’re looking for family members or cool if you’re just people-watching. You can also follow the chess match from on high, which gives you delusions of grandeur.
*Besides the chess area (and the sheer number of books), here are some things that are neat about the Steele Memorial Library.
*There are three dedicated graphic novel sections – one for adults, one for kids, and one for young adults. The offerings run from old-time newspaper strip collections to currently mainstream to edgy and avant-garde.
*A large screen shows the Weather Channel.
*It’s downtown – a sign of commitment to (and by) the city and its people.
*Even though it’s downtown it’s easily reached, and it has good on-site parking (not always the case with urban libraries).
*You can walk to Light’s Bakery, and to the Chemung Valley History Center. You can walk a couple of blocks, and take a look at the river.
*Public events take place in the green spaces nearby.
*Steele Library introduced me to historian (and deadpan comedian) Simon Schama, and also to former Elmira resident Graham Sale, the cartoonist who created “Men in Hats.”
*Steele Library helped me out when I was trying to document turn-of-the-century cartoonist (and Horseheads resident) Eugene Zimmerman’s books or the Grand Comics Database. (I put Graham Sale in there, too.)
*The library memorializes John Dorman Steele, 19th-century E.F.A. principal and major figure in American education.
*It’s a very handy place if you’ve got someone in either of Elmira’s two hospitals!