Cook Memorial Library at 100. The 1950s.

The Cook Memorial Library entered the 1950s stuffed to the gills in a repurposed house in need of repairs. Discussion of a possible addition in the early 1940s led nowhere and the funds available for improvements to the building were low. Despite these challenges, the library continued to move forward to serve patrons of all…

Cook Memorial Library at 100. The 1940s.

As the 1930s came to a close, Libertyville looked forward to the possibility of an expanded Cook Memorial Library. The library’s collection of 15,000 books was crammed in the first floor of the former Cook home and the structure was in need of external repairs. In 1939, the Libertyville Lions Club formed a Cook Memorial…

Women of Cook Library

We celebrate Women’s History Month and Cook Library’s Centennial by looking at the women who were key to the founding of the library and its early days. Local History Librarian Jenny Barry shares the stories of Emily Barrows Cook, Mabel MacGuffin, Norma Lee Peck, Clara Colby, Laura Taylor, August Lovell, and more. Keep checking the…