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 displayed in various sites throughout the community.

Contest Number 1: Original Poster Design
Three levels of judging: elementary school age, middle school age and high school. There will be three first prize winners, one from each school age group. Entrants must submit an 8 ½ x 11 poster design in a medium of their choice.

Submissions due at any Hayner library location by February 29, 2012. Winners will be notified in March 2012. Winners must be able to attend a City Council Meeting to receive their award. The subject of the poster must depict some aspect of Alton’s history. Posters will be judged on subject originality and artistic skill, commensurate with age.

Contest Number 2: Original Essay
Three levels of judging: elementary school age, middle school age and high school. There will be three first prize winners, one from each school age group. Entrants must submit an essay, not to exceed 300 words. Submissions due at any Hayner library location by February 29, 2012. Winners will be notified in March 2012. Winners must be able to attend a City Council Meeting to receive their award.

The subject of the essay for elementary school composition must be “What does Alton Mean to you.” Middle and high school level essays must include an historical component highlighting the importance or consequence of a point in Alton’s history to life today.

Essays will be judged on subject originality and creativity, grammar and composition and historical accuracy.

Employees of The Hayner Public Library District and their families are not eligible to participate in these contests.

Author Michael Ringering will sign copies of his book Six Bits at Hayner Alton Square Library on Saturday, January 28, 2012, from 1-3 p.m.

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 displayed in various sites throughout the community.

Contest Number 1: Original Poster Design
Three levels of judging: elementary school age, middle school age and high school. There will be three first prize winners, one from each school age group. Entrants must submit an 8 ½ x 11 poster design in a medium of their choice.

Submissions due at any Hayner library location by February 29, 2012. Winners will be notified in March 2012. Winners must be able to attend a City Council Meeting to receive their award. The subject of the poster must depict some aspect of Alton’s history. Posters will be judged on subject originality and artistic skill, commensurate with age.

Contest Number 2: Original Essay
Three levels of judging: elementary school age, middle school age and high school. There will be three first prize winners, one from each school age group. Entrants must submit an essay, not to exceed 300 words. Submissions due at any Hayner library location by February 29, 2012. Winners will be notified in March 2012. Winners must be able to attend a City Council Meeting to receive their award.

The subject of the essay for elementary school composition must be “What does Alton Mean to you.” Middle and high school level essays must include an historical component highlighting the importance or consequence of a point in Alton’s history to life today.

Essays will be judged on subject originality and creativity, grammar and composition and historical accuracy.

Employees of The Hayner Public Library District and their families are not eligible to participate in these contests.

To Start

• Press on App Store icon, and search for OverDrive Media Console.
• On the App page, press “Free” button and “Install App” for OverDrive Media Console.
• Enter your Apple ID (same one you used to activate your Apple device).
• At some point an Adobe Authorization page may appear. Enter your Adobe ID. If you don’t have one, press “Get an Adobe ID.” An Adobe ID is required to download eBooks.

Search and Download eBooks to iPad/iPhone

• Press on the OverDrive icon. 
• In OverDrive, press on Get Books in the upper right corner.
• Press “Settings” at the bottom of the screen, and enter Adobe ID in Adobe Authorization box. Then press “Get Books” at the bottom of the screen.
• To find Hayner Public Library, press the + icon, and enter library name or zip code.
• Browse or Search the Lewis & Clark Digital Consortium eBook collection. Look for Adobe EPUB eBooks.
• Select a title, and press “add to cart.” If title is not available, press “place a hold” to reserve it.
• Once a title is added to cart, press Proceed to Checkout. At the Sign In screen, choose Hayner Library, and enter your library card number and PIN.
• Press Confirm Checkout. Then press Download.
• eBook title will show up on your OverDrive screen.

To Return an eBook Early

• On the OverDrive screen, press “Edit” in the upper right corner.
• Press the minus sign in the red circle to the left of the book title. Then press Delete.
• Press Return then Delete.

All locations of The Hayner Public Library District will be closed Monday, February 20, 2012, in observance of Presidents’ Day.

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. War took people to foreign lands for years at a time; epidemics took their lives, or forced families to move away out of fear for their safety. The California Gold Rush sent many pioneers rushing toward the west seeking their fortunes. Not only does this book explain the importance of time lines in genealogical research, it also includes many various time lines for state historical events, immigration, wars, and epidemic outbreaks. Some of these time lines date back to the early 1300s.

This book is located in the Illinois Room of The Hayner Public Library District Genealogy & Local History Library at 401 State Street, Alton, Illinois. (IR 929.1 JAC) 

The Grand Opening of The Hayner Public Library District Genealogy & Local History Library is behind us. If you haven’t visited the building yet, we encourage you to come take a tour and see our newly renovated historic building. Our library holds nine grand display cases full of historic artifacts, such as a saucer and teacup of Mary Todd Lincoln’s and a Western Military Academy cadet uniform. The items inside these display cases show and tell stories of our local history. Local historian Don Huber will speak on the items inside the cases and tell how they connect with Alton’s history. Consider it a story time for adults!

Please note: This program will be held in the Genealogy & Local History Library at 401 State Street.

Register at 1-800-613-3163.