Lake Forest Library


The Lake Forest Library is the public library serving Lake Forest, Illinois, United States. It is located at 360 E. Deerpath, Lake Forest, Illinois.

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The Lake Forest Library was chartered on July 4, 1898 by Mayor Edward F. Gorton, and opened on the second floor of the new city hall as part of that building's opening on June 24, 1899. The first library board members, appointed by Mayor Gorton soon after granting the charter, were J. J. Halsey, D. W. Hartman, Calvin Durand, George S. Holt, Charles S. Frost, John Kemp, David B. Jones, Richard G. Watson, and David Fales.
The library moved to its current location in 1931. The present building, designed as a library by architect Edwin H. Clark, was given to the city by Mrs. Charles H. Schweppe and Mrs. Stanley Keith in memory of Mrs. Keith's first husband, Kersey Coates Reed, and was dedicated on June 7, 1931. The library's name was changed from Lake Forest Public Library to Lake Forest Library in 1935 after Board President Alfred E. Hamill petitioned the City Council for the change as a gesture of courtesy to the donors of the library. Library service milestones, significant changes to the building, and Directors' names and years are listed below: