As long as I’m commending things about Peoria, I have to mention how great the library is here, especially for historical and genealogical research. I usually go to the downtown branch of the Peoria Public Library and check out their microfilm — they have all the Peoria newspapers dating back to the mid 1800s. I use these to look up obituaries of my ancestors, and they have provided me a plethora of great information. They also have many indices in their genealogical area, such as the Social Security Death Index, and indices of gravestone names for Springdale and Parkview cemeteries (among others). There are lots of books on the history of Peoria and the history of specific Peoria places, too. For instance, I found quite a bit of historical info on my church, Grace Prebyterian, which started in the mid-1800s after the Civil War.
A lot of my family came from Winchester, Illinois, in Scott County, so I went down there once to look up some information on my family. I stopped at the library there. It actually was very good, considering how small the town is and all. But it really didn’t hold a candle to Peoria’s library.
They also have a good selection of movies and documentaries on VHS and DVD. I got hooked after I checked out and watched Ken Burns’ Civil War documentary. They also have a couple of good videos on Peoria history that were produced by WTVP. And their reference area has every reference book you can imagine. When I’m doing a word study, I love to look up the Oxford English Dictionary — they have the full, multi-volume set. Oh, and they have an incredible children’s section. I’ve only begun to explore this since my oldest daughter is just starting to learn to read. So far, I’m really impressed.
My only disappointment was that they got rid of their card catalog — everything is on computer now. I understand the advantages of computer databases and all, and I like being able to look up things over the internet from home before heading down to the library. But I wish there were a way for the two systems to coexist. For one thing, a lot of people could use the card catalog at the same time, whereas only two or three people (depending on how many computers they have out there) can use it at once now. Also, I’ve gone in on the weekend before when the computers were down — thus, no way to look up anything in the library. But, before all the librarians start writing me about how silly it would be to have a dual system, I know, I know. I’m not fighting it — I just miss the old card catalogs, that’s all. I was able to find things faster and easier using them, so I miss them. The computers are okay… when they’re available and working.
Of course, there are lots of other resources, and I haven’t even begun to touch the amount of stuff that’s available in the library. But I have to mention one last great resource, and that’s the people that work there. I’ve always gotten great help from the library staff when I was looking for specific information. They really know their stuff.
If you haven’t been there in a while, check it out. They have a great display down there now that shows a lot of historical pictures of the library — they’re celebrating their 125th anniversary.