Ruby E. Dare Library

Library Staff:

• General Questions and Circulation Desk
  • Phone = 618-664-6603
  • Email = libgen@greenville.edu
• Senior Library Specialist
  • Michelle Thole
    • Phone = 618-664-6599
    • Email = libgen@greenville.edu
• Part-Time Archivist
  • Sharon Grimes
    • Phone = 618-664-6612
    • Email = archive@greenville.edu 

Address
  301 N. Elm Street
  Greenville, IL  62246
 (one block north of College Ave.)

Check-out Periods for all physical items

LIBRARY HISTORY AND LIBRARIANS

Library facilities at Greenville College have expanded greatly since the earliest days of shelving for 700 volumes located in one room in Hogue Hall in 1892.

The first separate Library building was erected in 1950, during the administration of President H. J. Long.  The building was planned by Librarian Ruby E. Dare, who began serving as librarian shortly after she joined the faculty as a professor in classics in 1929.  The Library collection totaled 25,000 volumes when the Memorial Library was dedicated November 4, 1950.  This building was widely renowned for its open shelving plan which allowed students to browse and get their own books, and for its inviting interior decoration.

In the late 1960's, under the administration of President Glenn A. Richardson, Miss Dare planned an expansion and renovation of the Library building.  Following her unexpected death in August 1968, the expansion was completed, and dedicated on November 14, 1970, in her honor as the Ruby E. Dare Library.  The collection totaled 68,000 volumes, and the expanded facility had a book capacity of 113,000 and seating for 229, with 18,182 square feet.

In 1968, Miss Cornelia May became the Director of the Library, having previously served as Assistant Librarian from 1954-1965.  Under her leadership, the College Library added an Audio-Visual Center and joined OCLC, the Online Computer Library Center based in Dublin, Ohio, a library automation consortium which provided assistance with cataloging and interlibrary loan, having over 3,000 libraries participating.  The College Library also continued traditional library services and increased the collection to 96,000 volumes.  Miss May retired in 1981 due to declining health and died in October 1982.

Mrs. Judy Cox served as Director of the Library from 1982-1985.  During that time, tentative planning began for an eventual addition to the Library facility due to the growth of the collection and the Audio-Visual services. Ms. Jane Hopkins was appointed Library Director in 1985 and retired in 2017.  In 1986, the Library Building Planning Committee, composed of Librarians and faculty members, began the planning which led to the Library Tower addition being dedicated in May 1991. In May 1988, President W. Richard Stephens announced the planned construction of the building and the formation of the Centennial Capital Campaign to seek funding for its construction, along with other projects.  Actual construction began in the Spring of 1990.

     The Irvin L. Young Memorial Library Tower is a 24,000 square foot, four-story addition to the original building.  The project also included the renovation of the existing facility, providing a total of 42,182 square feet of resource space. The major features of the expanded facility included one floor of the addition for the Audio-Visual Center, an increase in space for collections and study areas, the addition of a small computer laboratory and a computer classroom for the teaching of English Composition, and the relocation into the building of the Academic Enrichment Center (now Student Success Center).  As of May, 1991, the collection totaled approximately 115,000 volumes, over 540 periodical subscriptions, more than 5,000 audio-visual items, and more than 8,000 microfilm reels and fiche.

In Fall 2006, due to the evacuation of Hogue Hall, the first floor of the library was remodeled to provide office spaces for 26 faculty and staff people, as well as space for the College’s Data Center and Information Technology Department storage.  This project resulted in the reconfiguration of the space and duties of the Media Center and Listening/Viewing Area, and the reallocation of several group study rooms and general student study space to other purposes.