General

The Garfield County Public Library was established in 1938 as a Works Progress Administration project at New Castle, Colorado. When WPA was discontinued the Garfield County Commissioners agreed to take over sponsorship and finance it from the county's general fund.

A library board of four members was appointed and served for several years. It was succeeded by a new board of six members, chosen with the approval of the commissioners from three areas of the county. Their tenure was staggered. The county superintendent of schools was an ex-officio member. Mrs. Harriett Stewart was the first librarian and was very efficient in organizing the library.

The Garfield County Public Library District is governed by a board of seven trustees appointed by the Board of County Commissioners of Garfield County. Efforts are made to have at least one trustee from each of the communities served by a Garfield County Branch Library.
Board meetings are held on the first Thursday of each month. Meeting location changes monthly; check our board meeting schedule to see where the next meeting will be held. Regular board meetings begin at 6:00 pm and are free and open to the public.