Henry County Public Library

History

The first recorded public library service in Henry County started in October of 1954 with a bookmobile program for rural areas. Many of these first bookmobiles were donated by businessmen from Louisville and the surrounding areas and were often constructed using rebuilt army ambulances. The books were furnished by the Kentucky Library Extension Division, a state agency now known as the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives (KDLA). That first year the Henry County Bookmobile stopped at the schools within the county and had an addition 18 stops in various communities. At that time the bookmobile carried approximately 2000 titles.

In 1957 a temporary demonstration library was started in a store front in New Castle. The first Henry County library opened in 1958 in a store front on Main Street in Eminence. In 1960, spurred by the worry that the county library may not be a permanent fixture, county voters passed a property tax to support a more permanent library program.

By July of 1961 the library had grown so much that it could no longer remain in its original location. That year it moved into the L & N Depot building, where it would remain until November of 1966, awaiting the construction and completion of the building which is still home to the library today.