We’ve noticed that all important column writers have at least dabbled in the creation of a newspaper series. Following an ongoing trial, tackling a particular social issue, or working toward a grand celebration of sorts (our inspiration). We’ve never created a series (no comments, thanks), but we felt like if we were going to give it a go, we may as well go big with a 25-parter. To be fair, this seemed entirely sensible when we first idly dreamed of the idea. But it’s a topic worth buckling down for. As you may know, Thorold Public Library will be celebrating 125 years in 2020. Since we’re already in preparation mode, we figured it would be fun to commemorate the occasion with 125 fun facts about TPL or somehow linking back to TPL (fair warning: at around #67 we’ll probably start playing it pretty fast and loose with the connections and you’re going to be all like “Is this even remotely . . .?”). We’ll accomplish this mammoth task in a series of 25(!) pieces with five fun facts each. So, let’s hit the ground running!
Fun Fact #125:
Let’s start by getting the most obvious detail out of the way. The Thorold Public Library was established as a free lending library in 1895. Mathematicians in the crowd already pieced this one together based on the information we provided above, but it’s still worth acknowledging. As a reference point, Ontario’s first free public libraries were founded in 1883 in the already well-established cities of Guelph and Toronto. It’s fairly impressive, then, that a comparatively modest region was able to catch up in just a little over a decade.
Fun Fact #124:
Despite being around seven minutes or 3.4 km down the road, the Thorold Public Library is not connected to the St. Catharines Public Library’s Merritt Branch. Or either of their other two locations, for that matter. It’s sort of akin to the ongoing Springfield/Shelbyville feud on The Simpsons. Nah, just kidding. But it is true that the Thorold Public Library is its own entity in the same way that the Welland Public Library and its branches or Niagara Falls Public Library and its branches all exist as separate systems that are not directly connected. That said, some Niagara libraries are more “LiNCed” than one might think (more on that in a future Fun Fact).
Fun Fact #123:
Though we often like to refer to ourselves as “TPL,” we actually share this title with several public libraries in Ontario alone. Some of the friends we are twinning with include Tay Public Library, Temagami Public Library, Timmins Public Library, Tweed Public Library, and (perhaps most notably) Toronto Public Library (the largest library system in the country). We are, however, the only ones with the ILS policy code name of THOR. And you’ve gotta admit, that’s pretty cool.
Fun Fact #122:
We started officially advertising for our big birthday with a tweet on Nov. 23, 2017 (ah, sweet memories). It read: “We'll be turning 125 in 2020! The secret to our success? Many things. Not the least of which is a supervising style we like to call ‘debonair.’ Basically, we wear a velour jacket and blow a bubble pipe while saying important things like ‘So let's get down to brass tacks’. #TPL125.” And there’s a lot more where that came from. We’ve since added two teaser posts and already decided on a fun community project for the occasion (super top secret).
Fun Fact #121:
Ever wondered about the three sculptures on the lawn of TPL’s current location? We did, too. And in a response to a request from Venture Niagara’s Art in the Open, we had the opportunity to delve deep into their history. In a nutshell, these pieces are the work of by stainless steel artist Rod Dowling, the self-proclaimed ‘Man of Steel’stainless steel artist and self-proclaimed ‘Man of Steel’ Rod Dowling and have been there since 2003. Arguably the most popular of the group (which we have been guilty of referring to as simply ‘the red one’, ‘the yellow one’ and ‘the tall one’) is actually called ‘Locked Prosperity’ and has been said to stand as guard of the Welland Canals, its strength and resilience of both matter and material reflecting that of its inspiration and Canada itself. The three largest rings are said to represent the canal’s three locks.
And there you have it. Only 120 to go!
