Now with 23 locations serving Franklin County, CML has been “Open to All” since 1873, continually evolving to meet the changing needs of the communities it serves.

To show its gratitude, CML is sharing a special video from its staff, approved for media use.

Highlights from 2023:

• 21,752 people visited CML locations on its 150th birthday on Saturday, March 4
• 4,335 people attended the grand opening of the new Gahanna Branch that same day
• 48,098 people registered for CML’s 2023 Summer Reading Challenge
• 34,000 people attended the inaugural two-day Columbus Book Festival
• $3.1 million was given by Battelle to the CML Foundation, its largest gift ever received
• 12,871 egg prizes were purchased this summer from CML’s Egg Prize kiosk at the Columbus Commons
• 24 Columbus-based artists celebrated CML’s birthday with a special summer exhibit at Main Library
• 5,063 people attended CML’s Holiday Open House at Main Library in November
• 16 community organizations partnered with CML to offer library cardholders free and discounted deals or performances.
• 11 bestselling authors spoke during CML’s 2023 Sesquicentennial Author Series

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CML cardholders who show their library cards at the Gateway Film Center box office get free admission. One admission per card.

CML is celebrating its 150th birthday with help from community partners offering free or discounted admission or programs. Click here for more information about CML’s sesquicentennial celebrations taking place throughout 2023.

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Saeed Jones
Sunday, Oct. 8 | 2 p.m. (seating opens at 1:30 p.m.)
Main Library | 96 S. Grant Ave. (Reading Room – Second Floor)

Malcolm Jenkins
Monday, Oct. 9 | 6:30 p.m. (seating opens at 5:30 p.m.)
Main Library | 96 S. Grant Ave. (Reading Room – Second Floor)
In partnership with The Ohio State University Sports and Society Initiative.

Both events are free, but registration is required. Parking in Main Library’s attached garage will be free.

To mark its 150th birthday in 2023, CML has temporarily renamed its Carnegie Author Series the Sesquicentennial Author Series. The lineup features engaging national authors for programs that are free and open to all.

The Sesquicentennial Author Series is sponsored by NBC4.

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Sunday, Sept. 24 | 2 p.m.
Main Library | 96 S. Grant Ave. (Reading Room – Second Floor)

The event is free, but registration is required. Seating begins at 1:30 p.m. Parking in Main Library’s attached garage will be free.

To mark its 150th birthday in 2023, CML has temporarily renamed its Carnegie Author Series the Sesquicentennial Author Series. The lineup features engaging national authors for programs that are free and open to all.

The Sesquicentennial Author Series is sponsored by NBC4.

The post Library continues its 2023 Sesquicentennial Author Series with Silvia Moreno-Garcia on Sept. 24 appeared first on Columbus Metropolitan Library.

CML cardholders who show their library cards at Ohio History Center get free admission. One admission per card. Visitors can enjoy interactive exhibits exploring everything from life in the 1950s to extinct and endangered Ohio species to OHC’s collection of restored Civil War battle flags. Visitors who present their CML library cards on Friday, Sept. 1 can also enjoy free access to the adjacent Ohio Village.

CML is celebrating its 150th birthday with help from community partners offering free or discounted admission or programs. Click here for more information about CML’s sesquicentennial celebrations taking place throughout 2023.

The post Library partners with the Ohio History Connection to offer free admission for cardholders every Friday in September appeared first on Columbus Metropolitan Library.

The hardbound book, compiled by CML’s Local History & Genealogy team, chronicles the 150-year history of Columbus’ public library – from its humble beginnings in a single room within the old City Hall building and spanning two world wars and two global pandemics into the 23-location system it is today.

“Today, we stand on the shoulders of dedicated staff and community members who have come before us – trailblazers who have forged pathways for us to become the library we are today, and the library we aspire to be in the future.”
~CML CEO Patrick Losinski, excerpted from the book’s foreword

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CML cardholders who show their library cards at the Museum get free admission. One admission per card. Visitors can enjoy a collection that spans work from Columbus-born artists like Aminah Brenda Lynn Robinson, George Bellows and Elijah Pierce to the luminaries of 19th and 20th-century art.

CML is celebrating its 150th birthday with help from community partners offering free or discounted admission or programs. Click here for more information about CML’s sesquicentennial celebrations taking place throughout 2023.

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• Ali Hazelwood, author of Love, Theoretically 
• Fonda Lee, author of Untethered Sky
• Prince Shakur, author of When They Tell You To Be Good
• Maggie Smith, author of You Could Make This Place Beautiful
• Matthew Quirk, author of The Night Agent

The free two-day festival represents the cornerstone of CML’s Sesquicentennial celebrations, commemorating its 150 years serving central Ohio. Click here to view the festival schedule.

In addition to the five headliners, the festival will feature more than 130 national and local authors from a variety of genres who will participate in panel discussions and sign books sold through the Official Festival Bookstore. The Book Loft, Gramercy Books and Prologue Bookshop will manage the book sales. Additionally, nearly 100 independent creators, small press writers and self-published authors will exhibit under the Indie Author Alley tent.

The festival will also feature:

• Local food and drink vendors
• Family-friendly programs and activities, including live farm animals
• Retail and nonprofit exhibitors featuring all things literary

Visit columbusbookfestival.org to learn more. 

The Friends of the Library will also hold their Big Book Sale during the festival, selling books and other library materials that are no longer suitable for CML’s collection. Children’s books start at $1. Proceeds support Columbus Metropolitan Library’s programs and services. Visit columbuslibrary.org/friends for more information.

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The Friends of the Library invited 24 Columbus-based artists to create works commemorating CML’s 150th birthday by showcasing public libraries and their community impact.

Featured artists:
Bee’s Knees Clintonville Yarn-bomber
Catherine Bell Smith
Nicki Crock
Fae Drewes
Katie Golonka
Gabriel Guyer
Dorian Ham
Carlisa Hayes
Jason Johnston
Rob W Jones
Mary Klie
Tiffany Lawson
Amy Leibrand
Celeste Malvar-Stewart
Francesca Miller
Esther Myong Hall
Elle Rachell
Thomas Rainy
Stephanie Rond
Yani Sheng
Tera Stockdale
Hemalatha Venkataraman
Weiting Wei
Emily Westenhouser

An opening reception will be held from 2-4 p.m. on Saturday, June 24.

CML was founded on March 4, 1873 as a single reading room in the original Columbus City Hall. Its sesquicentennial celebrations continue throughout the remainder of 2023 with a variety of programs and partnerships. Click here to learn more.

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CML cardholders who show their library cards at any of Columbus Recreation and Parks Department outdoor pools will receive a free Leisure Card good for five free entries.

CML is celebrating its 150th birthday with help from community partners offering free or discounted admission or programs. Click here for more information about CML’s sesquicentennial celebrations taking place throughout 2023.

The post Library partners with Columbus Recreation and Parks Department to offer free pool admission for cardholders appeared first on Columbus Metropolitan Library.