Library History

 

History of the Odebolt Field-Carnegie Public Library

 

In 1897, fifteen women of the Women's Reading Circle started a fund for a public library, and by 1898, the Odebolt Literary Society was organized and a library opened on the second floor of the hardware store. In 1904, Andrew Carnegie, although rarely offering money to towns of under 5,000, set forth conditions for a grant. This grant, along with the purchase of a lot by the Hon. W.W. Field, enabled the building of a new library, named the Field-Carnegie Library in honor of these men. The library has since flourished, with an addition being added to the original building in 1998.