Before Amazon, We Had Bookmobiles: 75 Rare Photos Of Libraries-On-Wheels
Long before Amazon, Audible, and other digital book distributors, bookmobiles were bringing literature to peoples' doorsteps. Their mission was to provide the written word to remote villages and city suburbs that had no libraries. We invite you to remember these almost forgotten four-wheelers of the past.
The first bookmobile is believed to have appeared in Warrington, England in the late 1850s. It was a horse-drawn cart, and lent about 12,000 books during its first year of service. Later, mobile libraries were installed inside vehicles and reached the height of their popularity in the mid-20th century when they had become a part of Americal life.
Although bookmobiles are still operated in some parts of the world by libraries, schools, activists, and other organizations, they are widely thought to be an outdated service due to high costs, advanced technology and impracticality.
(h/t: vintageeveryday, messynessychic)
An Opened Bookmobile, 1925
jeeeze.. what a great way to spend your life... driving around with this exactly car, bringing books to the people.
The First Bookmobile Of The Public Library Of Cincinnati, 1927
Inside A Bookmobile, 1960s
Although my grade school had plenty of books (that you could borrow) in every classroom, our grade school didn't have its own library, so a county library bookmobile came by. Looked a lot like this one. Got exposed to Asimov, Bradbury, Clarke, Heinlein, and many other SF authors whose books they carried. Probably the only thing about school I looked forward to. Sincere thanks and cheers for the people of the Ohio Lucas County Library and their bookmobiles.
A Bookmobile In Indonesia, Early 20th Century.
Multnomah County Library, 1926
An Impatient Queue For A Dutch Bookmobile
Craig Medvigny (left) And David Sutton Enjoying A Book; Eleanor Mann Substitute Traveling Branch Librarian, C. 1920s
A Horse-drawn Cart In Washington In The 1900s. It Was One Of The First American Bookmobiles, Built In 1905, But Was Hit And Destroyed By A Train In 1910
A Mobile Library In Canterbury
A Boston Public Library Bookmobile, 1963
Utah State Library Bookmobile On The Road Circa 1970
Children Gathering At The Bookmobile, C. 1912
Children Gathering At The Kern County Free Library Bookmobile At Aztec School, 1947
Summer Rural Service, 1936
Bookmobile, Southgate District, C. 1920s
This is definitely not in the 1920s. The girl on the steps is wearing a 1940s style head wrap and cut off denim shorts, which would NEVER have been worn in the 20s, nor did little boys go shirtless or wear jeans. The styles indicate the 1940s.
Onboard The Connecticut State Library’s Bookmobile With Margaret Sullivan And Marcella Finan, 1967
Patrons Visit The Bookmobile In 1962. Mrs James B. Wilson, Librarian, Performs Readers' Advisory Service At Far Right
Presentation Of The New Bookmobile At The Paris Colonial Exposition Held In Paris France, 1931
Paul Buttars, Former Manager Of The Utah State Library Bookmobile Program, In One Of The “older” Bookmobiles. Taken In Chesterfield, Ut, C.1975
Patrons Visiting The Bookmobile In 1962, Assisted By Mrs. James B. Wilson And Mrs. William H. Gary
Notice how the women were not identified by their own first names, but by their husbands'.
Patrons Visit The Bookmobile
We still have mobile libraries in Ireland. Town libraries are accessible for most, but for people in rural areas, the book bus is invaluable
Many places in the U.S. still have book mobiles, too.
We still have one where I live (Switzerland), it's called the bibliobus and a lot of people frequent it (including me). If you want to see what a modern mobile library looks like: www.bibliobus.ch
As I've mentioned in the text, some do still exist. Other countries include Australia, Indonesia, and even camel-powered ones in Kenya:)
We still have mobile libraries in Ireland. Town libraries are accessible for most, but for people in rural areas, the book bus is invaluable
Many places in the U.S. still have book mobiles, too.
We still have one where I live (Switzerland), it's called the bibliobus and a lot of people frequent it (including me). If you want to see what a modern mobile library looks like: www.bibliobus.ch
As I've mentioned in the text, some do still exist. Other countries include Australia, Indonesia, and even camel-powered ones in Kenya:)