Austin Public Library turns 100: a century of stories

Austin's public library system is in the middle of its centennial, and if you have kids at home, the next few weeks are the sweet spot. The Austin Public Library (APL) is celebrating 100 years with a yearlong run of events, community art and history programs that stretch from February 16 through December 23, 2026 — bookended by the anniversaries of its first temporary and permanent openings.

The origin story is a modest one. The library opened on February 16, 1926, in a rented upstairs room at 819 Congress Avenue with 500 donated volumes and Grace Delano Clark as volunteer librarian. By December 23 of that same year, it moved into its first permanent home at West 9th and Guadalupe Streets, an 1,800-square-foot frame building that cost $4,190 to build. A century later, the system has grown to 20 neighborhood branches plus the award-winning Central Library at 710 W. César Chávez St. Director of Libraries Hannah Terrell put it plainly: "For 100 years, Austin Public Library has grown alongside this city, supporting readers, learners, creators, and families in every generation."

For families, the immediate calendar is the place to look. Tomorrow, July 29, the St. John Branch hosts mini piñatas for tweens ages 9 to 12 from 3:30 to 5:00. In early August, the Central Library runs two Kids Crafternoons making paper flowers — one on August 1 and another on August 6, both from 1:00 to 2:30 for kids ages 6 to 10, with the second session open to tweens as well. That same afternoon, the Ruiz Branch throws its own 100th Birthday Bash for kids ages 6 to 10 from 2:00 to 3:00. Later in the fall, the Old Quarry Branch holds a swing dance workshop on September 16, and the Austin History Center hosts "In Circulation: A Century of the Austin Public Library" on September 20. The whole thing builds toward a six-floor party at Central Library on October 17, open to all ages from 10:00 to 5:00.

There are two ways to get involved without a set date. The APL Adventure Book is a free, passport-style booklet you can pick up in English or Spanish at any open branch, guiding you through activities at multiple locations with prizes waiting at the APL Shop on the main floor of Central Library — the mascot Page B. Turner pops up at four of the stops. A digital version lives on Beanstack at austinpubliclibrary.beanstack.org/reader365. And if you like to keep an eye on the calendar, the library's events page lets you browse by branch, which is handy when the celebrations are spread across the city.

It is worth knowing what you are actually walking into. In fiscal year 2025 alone, the system added 100,000 new cardholders, averaged 346,000 active cardholders a month, and saw 3 million visitors across all locations. That year it ran 6,475 programs, checked out 3.7 million physical items and 4 million digital ones, and handed out 11,000 hotspots and laptops. The Austin History Center, part of the system and housed in the John Henry Faulk building at 800 Guadalupe, rounds things out by preserving records of Austin from before its 1839 founding to the present, with in-person reference and duplication services if you want to dig into the city's past yourself.