Website: www.torontopubliclibrary.ca

Phone: 416-393-7695

LIBRARY RETURNS
Please note that there are TWO drop off boxes for Library returns at Swansea Town Hall

1. To the right of the the main doors, outside the main Swansea Town Hall Lavinia entrance

2. Inside the Swansea Town Hall, in the main floor lobby, to the left of the Library entrance

The Swansea Memorial Library is located on the main floor of the Swansea Town Hall. Please check the library's opening hours below as they are different than the Swansea Town Hall opening hours.

The library is one of the smallest branches in the Toronto Public Library system. It was founded in 1919 as a memorial to the Swansea veterans (22 who died and 150 who returned) from World War I. It specializes in material for children and seniors and provides complete inter-library loan services and free internet access.

FAMILY STORYTIME currently on Thursday Mornings until February 23rd @10:30 a.m.! click here for info

Click the registration form at right and participate in the Older Adult Focus Group on October 24th!

The Swansea Memorial Library offers Free Family passes to the cultural institutions like AGO, Black Creek Pioneer Village, The Textile Museum, the Museum of Inuit Art and the City of Toronto Museums which include Fort York. These are handed out on Saturday mornings starting at 10:00 a.m. on a first-come first-serve basis. The pass provides full admission to a family of up to two adults and up to five children (depending on the Museum). For more information please call the branch.

The Swansea Memorial Library came into existence in 1919 out of funds held by the Women's Patriotic League who wanted "a memorial to our Swansea men who have-seen active service in the Great War". A Library Association was established and a Board of Directors elected, with Mrs. R.C. Smith as its first president. On November 30, 1919 Swansea Memorial Public Library was officially opened. As a result of the Public Library Act of 1920, Swansea Memorial became a Free Library under the control of the Rural School Board. When Swansea was incorporated as a village in 1926 there was another reorganization of the Library Board. The new board consisted of seven members: three appointed by Village Council and three appointed by the School Board, with the Village Reeve being an ex-officio member.

By 1930, it was decided that attendance at the Library warranted its opening five nights a week. In 1933 a long campaign was started to persuade Village Council of the necessity for a library building. This matter was not resolved until 1959, when the library moved into its present location in what was then the Village Municipal Offices Building. This same year, 1959, saw an arrangement made with the Toronto Public Library. The year 1961 saw the start of regular visits by classes from Swansea Public School (to be introduced to the atmosphere and use of the public libraries). In 1967, the Village of Swansea Memorial Library Board ceased to exist and management of the library was taken over by the Toronto Public Library Board.

The Swansea Memorial Library is still very much a neighbourhood branch where a friendly village atmosphere exists. Swansea Memorial Library, one of the smallest branches of the Toronto Public Library, may never reach the size of other Toronto Public Library branches but it has nonetheless won a secure place in the life of the community. It is a place where people of all ages turn up to work, learn and enjoy themselves.

Swansea Town Hall is an agency of the City of Toronto