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Latest News & Announcements
Posted January 26th, 2012 in Library News
The year of 2012 will mark the City of Alton’s 175th year anniversary. Mayor Tom Hoechst, the Alton City Council and community organizations are already busy planning great activities and events to celebrate this significant milestone.
As part of the events and to foster participation of Alton citizens of all ages, The Hayner Public Library District will be sponsoring two competitions for any child attending schools in the Hayner library district (Alton, Godfrey and Foster Townships) or any child being homeschooled within the Hayner district. The two contests include an original poster design competition and an original essay competition.
There will be three levels of judging for each of the two contests (poster drawing contest/essay contest). The three levels of judging are: elementary school age, middle school age and high school age. A Grand prize winner will be picked for each judging level in both competitions. The grand prize winner will receive a Kindle Fire and their work will be featured in the Alton 175 Year Commemorative Booklet to be published by the City of Alton and the Alton Telegraph. The winners will be recognized by the Alton City Council and their work will be displayed in various sites throughout the community. Continue Reading
Posted January 21st, 2012 in Library News
Posted January 5th, 2012 in Library News
One of the most popular items for holiday shoppers this year is eReader devices. Happily, for some time now, The Hayner Public Library District has been offering patrons eBooks that they can check out, free, with a Hayner Library card.
When you download an eBook from the OverDrive® eBook collection on Hayner’s website, you will receive an electronic copy of the book on your reader that will disappear at the end of the two-week loan period. You will never have to worry about late fines. If you were not finished reading the eBook, you simply check it out again. If your book is already checked out to someone else, you can put it on your reserve list, and you will be notified when the book is available for you to download.
If you are not sure how to download a book from the library’s electronic collection, there are instructions available at the Hayner Library circulation desks or you can click on a link below for instructions for the iPad/iPhone, Kindle, Nook, or Sony. Hayner circulation and reference staff can also help you get started.
Note: For Apple products only, to access eBooks from the library collection, you will need to have previously downloaded the free OverDrive® app from the Apple app store. You will not be able to download this app within the Hayner Library Wi-Fi.
Posted January 4th, 2012 in Library News
The Hayner Public Library District offers a voter registration service at both the Downtown and Alton Square libraries; any eligible resident of Madison County may take advantage of this free service. Several members of our staff are deputy voter registrars and will be happy to help you register to vote, locate your Madison County polling location, or answer any questions you may have about voting in Madison County.
Please call the library before you visit to ensure that a deputy registrar is on duty.
To register to vote you must be a United States citizen, 18 years of age by the date of the next election, and a resident of your Madison County precinct address for at least 30 days immediately prior to an election.
Two forms of identification are required to register through a deputy registrar; at least one of the two forms must show your name and current address. It is required that you use your Social Security number (at least the last 4 digits) or your complete Illinois driver’s license number when registering to vote.
The last day to register to vote prior to the March 20, 2012, General Primary Election is February 21, 2012. Registrations cannot be taken between February 22, 2012, and March 21, 2012. Registration reopens March 22, 2012.
More information about Madison County voter registration, absentee ballots, voting by mail, early voting, polling locations, and more is available on the Madison County County Clerk’s website at www.madisonvotes.com.
Posted December 20th, 2011 in Library News
The next time you visit Hayner Library at Alton Square Mall, be sure to look to your right as you enter the facility to view the artwork of Dr. Pat Dailey. Dr. Dailey, an Alton resident, is a man of many talents.
Originally from Warren, Ohio, Pat attended Youngstown State University in Ohio and graduated with a BA in Education. He continued his education at Bowling Green State University, earning a Master’s degree in Biology and a PHd in Entomology, the branch of zoology dealing with insects. As a graduate assistant at Bowling Green University, he worked part time as a biological illustrator. In 1981 he accepted a job at the SIUE Dental School in Alton. There he was employed as an electron microscopist. Electron microscopy is a function of cellular biology requiring the study of cells through an electron microscope. While employed by SIUE, he also illustrated a chapter in the medical text Ten Cate’s Oral Histology. He illustrated the chapter on Bone Development written by Dr. Bill Witson of the SIUE School of Dental Medicine.
Continue Reading
Posted December 19th, 2011 in Library News
The large print collection at the Hayner Downtown Library has been moved from its previous location upstairs; it is now located on the main level in the former Illinois Room. Aside from allowing more space for large print materials, the new space is nice and bright and best of all, no stairs!
The space opened up by this reconfiguration will be used to shelve our teen and young adult collections, separating them out from the youth materials. This will also allow us more space for the youth materials currently occupying the old Reading Room space.
Fresh paint and other cosmetic touches provide a great lift to the display of materials, and all three collections are more accessible. Visit us soon and let us know what you think!
Recommended Reading
Our staff suggests that you check out these new hits and well-worn classics. Come back here often…you might find your new favorite book! And, for all our past recommendations, check out the archive.
by
This compilation of maps includes the 102 Illinois counties as they were in 1876. Also included are city maps for Chicago and Springfield and a detailed railroad map documenting track routes running throughout the state. The names of many landowners are listed on the maps, making this a great tool for locating families who were landowners during this time. Township and range numbers are also provided for most of the maps. These numbers are extremely important when you have a land record that lists the legal description of a particular township and range within a county. Continue Reading
by Judy Jacobson
Has an ancestor fallen out of your family tree with no explanation of where the person landed? Oftentimes in genealogy we come across an ancestor who simply vanishes, or one who abruptly moves to an area with no other family connections, leaving us to wonder, “What happened?”
This book helps us put history into our family tree with the use of chronological time lines. Adding historical events to our family stories can give us ideas about why some ancestors vanished or moved to a location far from family and friends. Continue Reading
About the Library
Since becoming a tax-supported district, we have been able to expand our facilities and services and increase our collection and programming. Our Adult and Youth services at our centralized downtown location are augmented by the convenience of our Alton Square Mall location. We also reach out to the community through our Delivery Service, making the Hayner Public Library facilities and services accessible to all District residents.
Click here for more information.
