St. Mary's County Library had a fantastic 2018!
Our new Leonardtown Library is under construction, we launched our new website and introduced our updated logo, we collaborated with many new partners to produce fantastic events and programs for all ages, our digital content usage grew by 13%, we added new Little Free Libraries around our community, and we started lending hotspots.
Over 1,400,000 items checked out - that's more than 12 items per person in St. Mary's County!
Items checked out include children's, teen, and adult books, audiobooks, DVDs, digital content and so much more. Did you know the St. Mary's County Library even has hotspots and ukuleles to check out?
“That library is important to me because it helps me access information and is really friendly to be there.” - Justin, Leonardtown Library
Curious what our most popular titles were in 2018? Check out our most 'checked out' books.
- Bloodsworth: The True Story of the First Death Row Inmate Exonerated by DNA Evidence by Tim Junkin
- Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Hard Luck by Jeff Kinney
- The Rooster Bar by John Grisham
- The Pigeon Needs a Bath! by Mo Willems
- Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems
96,478 digital items were checked out in 2018.
Hoopla, Overdrive and RBdigital provide thousands of eBooks, eAudiobooks, eMagazines, movies, music and more all available to stream or download onto your device.
Did you know the library has Lynda.com and Rosetta Stone? We have access to over 60 online resources including Mango Languages, test preparation and homework help services, and a variety of resources on topics such as genealogy (we even have Ancestry.com!), hobbies, crafts, consumer reports, finance, and auto repair.
1,444 hours of Lynda.com training, 977 hours of language learning on Rosetta Stone and Mango Languages, and 5,869 searches on Ancestry.com
"I love my library because it ... offers free access to Rosetta Stone. I've been teaching myself Swedish! [The Library] helps me utilize software programs I've never used to finish a project I'm working on." - Hillary, Charlotte Hall Library
559,852 people visited us!
Nearly 33,000 people attended over 1,200 events.
We provide free events for all ages including 531 storytimes, 98 teen events, 293 adult events, and many all-ages or kids events. Professional performances, classes on topics such as crafting, finance, education and more, STEM, and two ethical hacking competitions!
“We never miss a storytime you know! We love it! We always sing the songs even if it's not storytime!” - Mackenzie, Leonardtown Library
“I love the library so much. I love all the books. I also like all the toys and games.” - Maddie, Lexington Park Library
Over 100 public computers were used 85,371 times in 2018.
Our free-to-use public computers have internet access and Microsoft Office, and we have a workstation at each location that provides assistive technology to citizens of Maryland protected by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Our free WiFi was accessed 41,069 times.
In addition to computers and WiFi, we have printers at each location that can print full color, scanners, faxing capability, and laptops that can be checked out to use in the Library.
Our friendly and professional staff will help you with your technology questions! Schedule a one-on-one with one of our Public Technology Assistants to learn how to use your device, get computer help, or learn how to use Microsoft Office.
“Anytime I can’t figure something out on the computer, I go to the library. Need information on something, go to the library. You guys are the only ones I can rely on.” - Veteran, while visiting the Charlotte Hall Library
St. Mary's County Library has 33,160 card users
Library cards are free and you can apply online or in one of our three locations. We have a full library card which allows you to check out 75 items, and we also have a Kids' Cards option.
Kids' Cards are special cards available for our youngest residents under the age of 18, to help get library cards in the hands of children and encourage reading. Kids' Cards limit the user to five books at one time and have no fees or fines.
“I love libraries. They are my favorite place in the whole U.S.” - Shajira, Lexington Park Library
26 volunteers donated over 1,900 work hours to help us accomplish so much more!
We could not be nearly as amazing without all the dedicated support we receive from our wonderful volunteers.
“I don’t know what I would do without the library. I couldn’t afford to read.” - Thomas, Lexington Park Library
The New Leonardtown Library is Officially Under Construction!
The new Leonardtown Library is under construction at the new location off of Leonard’s Grant Parkway in Leonardtown, right next to Duke Elementary School. The building will contain both the new 29,730 square foot Leonardtown Library and the Garvey Senior Activity Center.
Through a competitive grant process, St. Mary’s County Library has received $1,591,000 in funds from the Maryland County Library Grant Program to add to the County allocated funds for the new library.
Grimm and Parker (G&P) has been chosen as the architecture firm for the project, and Tuckman-Barbee has been chosen to fulfill the $16.9 million construction contract. Construction should be completed within 540 days of the start.