Canal Fulton Public Library is a two-story frame building,
which was constructed about 1880 by Timothy Sullivan. It
soon became the showplace home of E.R. Held, a local banker.
Mr. Held left town around 1900, but kept the property for
years, during a part of which time it housed C.R. Daily's
undertaking establishment.
During the
twenties the house was sold to W.L. Keller, whose family were
the last owners.
The structure
became a public library in 1949 after it had been purchased and
remodeled through the generosity of Mr. & Mrs. George Muhlhauser.
A new addition in 1958 made more space for more books and a
lower level social room, which subsequently became the
children's department. Designs were by Massillon architect Harry
Mallalieu and Barberton landscaper John Paolano.
Another addition
as well as renovation of the existing building was completed in
1992, designed by Gerald L. Cody.
In response to
patron requests for increased accessibility and a pressing need
for additional staff workspace to accommodate increased
interlibrary circulation, a new renovation/expansion project was
started in July 2003. CBLH Design of Cleveland, formerly known
as Spice Costantino Architects, was retained to renovate and
paint the library yellow with multi-color trims to historically
reflect the period when the original house was built, circa
1879. (The library had previously been housed, since its
inception in 1937, in the local school). A new entrance
with handicap-assisted doors has been added off the newly
expanded parking lot.
Today, the building now houses more than
50,000 books, over 200 magazines, and 3,000 items in multimedia
formats like DVDs, CD-ROMs, and CDs, in addition to public
computers with free Internet access and common applications such
as MS Word and Excel, a local history collection, and a tool
collection. Since the Canal Fulton Library is a member of SEO, a
statewide consortium of libraries, our online catalog offers the
resources of 67+ library systems across Ohio. Libraries
are both physical locations and virtual destinations.