Lower Merion Library System

Lower Merion Library System
Lower Merion Library System
	Ludington Library in Bryn Mawr.
Location	Lower Merion Township, PA
Established	1899
Branches	6
Collection
Size	447,368 items
Access and use
Circulation	969,559 items
Population served	60,000
Members	41,392
Other information
Budget	$ 4,963,517
Director	David L. Belanger
Website	www.lmls.org

Last updated March 11, 2024

The Lower Merion Library System (LMLS) is the public library system of the township of Lower Merion, in Pennsylvania. It is among the largest public library systems in Pennsylvania.^[1] While Lower Merion accounts for 7% of the population of Montgomery County, it accounts for 20% of its library circulation.^[2]^[3] The library is ranked in the top 2% of public libraries for circulation per capita.^[2]

History

There are six neighborhood branches throughout the township. The first branch to open was the Ardmore Free Library in 1899,^[3] and Belmont Hills being the newest, opening in 1935. The largest branch is the Ludington Library with almost 168,000 items in circulation. The smallest branch is Belmont Hills, with almost 17,000 items available.^[3] Lower Merion Library System's governing board is the Board of Directors, consisting of 14 members, some of whom serve ex-officio due to being commissioners on the Lower Merion Board of Commissioners.^[3]

The Lower Merion Library is one of the independent public library systems in Montgomery County. All cardholders can borrow and utilize library systems from any other library in the Montgomery County library system. In addition, cardholders can request access to Access Pennsylvania which allows for privileges at many other library systems throughout the Commonwealth, including the Free Library of Philadelphia in neighboring Philadelphia. Lower Merion Library System cardholders can also utilize Overdrive, Zinio and Hoopla for e-books, magazines and video-recordings.^[4] Approximately 85% of LMLS' funding comes from Lower Merion, with the remainder coming from the State and individual branch libraries funding efforts.^[3]

No.	Name	Address	Zip Code	Website	Established
1	Ardmore	108 Ardmore Ave	19003	http://www.lmls.org/locations-hours/ardmore-library/	1899
2	Bala Cynwyd	131 Old Lancaster Road	19004	http://www.lmls.org/locations-hours/bala-cynwyd-library/	1915
3	Belmont Hills	120 Mary Watersford Road	19004	http://www.lmls.org/locations-hours/belmont-hills-library/	1935
4	Gladwyne	362 Righters Mill Road	19035	http://www.lmls.org/locations-hours/gladwyne-library/	1931
5	Ludington	5. S. Bryn Mawr Avenue	19010	http://www.lmls.org/locations-hours/ludington-library/	1916
6	Penn Wynne	130 Overbrook Parkway	19096	http://www.lmls.org/locations-hours/penn-wynne-library/	1929

Gallery

Ardmore Library
Bala Cynwyd Library
Belmont Hills Library
Gladwyne Library
Penn Wynne Library

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Merion Cricket Club</span> United States historic place

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References

↑ "2013 Public Library Statistics". State Library of Pennsylvania.
1 2 "Library Statistics – Lower Merion Library System". Lmls.org. 2016-04-07. Archived from the original on 2016-03-28. Retrieved 2016-04-20.
1 2 3 4 5 "2015 LMLS Annual Report - Final". Lower Merion Library System. Retrieved July 10, 2022.
↑ "OneClick Digital". Lower Merion Library System. 2008.

External links

Official website

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[1] "2013 Public Library Statistics". State Library of Pennsylvania.

[stats-2] 1 2 "Library Statistics – Lower Merion Library System". Lmls.org. 2016-04-07. Archived from the original on 2016-03-28. Retrieved 2016-04-20.

[lmls.org-3] 1 2 3 4 5 "2015 LMLS Annual Report - Final". Lower Merion Library System. Retrieved July 10, 2022.

[4] "OneClick Digital". Lower Merion Library System. 2008.

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