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Founded in 1887, the Newberry Library is one of Chicago’s most historic cultural institutions. Named after businessman and philanthropist Walter Loomis Newberry, the humanities research library is free and open to the public. Their collections, programs, and exhibitions are a portal to more than six centuries of human history, from the fifteenth century to the present.
Located downtown is the Central Library of the Kansas City Public Library. Founded in 1873, it is one of the oldest and third largest public library systems in America. Within the Central Library, the Missouri Valley Room contains a wide collection of items related to Kansas City local history, including original and published materials, news articles, postcards, photographs, maps, and directories dating from the city’s earliest history. The library’s Ramos Collection includes books, pamphlets, journal articles, and other materials relating to African American history and culture.
Alternative Field is a poetry library, reading room, resource center, and tiny press dedicated to fostering dialogue, discourse, and cooperative thinking. Located in Los Angeles, they curate a diverse collection of books by local poets, writers of color, and poets from around the world. The library offers a wide range of mainstream and experimental journals from the 1960s to the present, along with multilingual literature representing Los Angeles and beyond.
The Wick Poetry Center at Kent State University was established in 1984 by Robert and Walter Wick in memory of their sons. Since its founding, the center continues to host readings and workshops, circulate publications, and create scholarship opportunities. Within the center is the Wick Poetry Park, featuring a fifty-seat amphitheater where readings are hosted in the summer.
Founded in 1903, the Kent Free Library provides books and resources for the local community in Kent, Ohio. The library offers a range of programs tailored to a variety of age groups, from toddlers to seniors. An array of cultural events hosted at the library include musical performances, author visits, and community forums making it a vibrant space for creativity, dialogue, and connection. The library is located on Main Street and open seven days a week.
Founded in 1862, the Starr Library is located in Rhinebeck, New York, and is a part of the Mid-Hudson Library system. Formerly located in a historic building in the center of town, it remained in this area for one hundred and thirteen years until it was moved to its current location in 1975.
The library hosts monthly readings, workshops, and author talks, often in collaboration with Morton Memorial Library and the local independent bookseller Oblong Books.
The Poetry Society of America, the nation’s oldest poetry organization, was founded in 1910. Its mission is to build a larger and more diverse audience for poetry, to encourage a deeper appreciation of the vitality and breadth of poetry in the cultural conversation, to support poets through an array of programs and awards, and to place poetry at the crossroads of American life.
The Denver Zine Library is a nonprofit organization founded in 2003 whose mission is to preserve, protect, and promote the culture of zines and self-published original work through archival collection, workshops, and a variety of events. It currently houses a preserved collection of over fifteen thousand independent and alternative zines. The organization is run by volunteers, and the public can access the library and archives during open hours.
The Detroit Public Library opened for service on March 25, 1865. The five thousand book collection was located in one room of the old Capitol High School on Griswold Street. The Main Library, a white marble Italian Renaissance style building designed by Cass Gilbert and partially funded by a gift from Andrew Carnegie, opened in 1921. The building offers several spaces open to the public for meetings and events, and the library hosts an author reading series, as well as other literary events.
The Houston Public Library is a dynamic organization that serves one of the largest service areas—both in population and area—in the United States. The library system is comprised of forty-four public service units including thirty-one Neighborhood Libraries, four Regional Libraries, three Special Collection Libraries, and four Express Libraries, as well as the HPL Mobile Express and a satellite library located at the Children’s Museum of Houston. They host the Houston Public Poetry quarterly reading series and other literary events throughout the year.
