Services
Library cards can be issued free of charge to residents of Gillespie County. Proof of residency — such as a driver’s license — is required upon application.
Children, ages six and over, can be issued a card, with a parent or legal guardian’s signature.
Residents of the immediately surrounding counties (Kimble, Mason, Llano, Blanco, Kendall and Kerr) are also eligible to use the library’s resources for a $5 fee.
Books may be checked out for two weeks, and if not requested by another library user, may be renewed for another two weeks.
Youth
Young readers can find their own exclusive area on the first f loor. Picture books, stories for children and fiction and non-fiction reads for older kids are featured.
A schedule for events — such as story time — can be found at the library’s central desk.
Adults
Adult fiction and non-fiction books, reference materials, the Texas collection, magazines and periodicals are located on the second f loor, accessible by stairs or elevator.
Library ‘Friends’
In addition to being a department of the County of Gillespie, Pioneer Memorial Library is supported by the Friends of Pioneer Memorial Library.
Annual membership in the Friends of Pioneer Memorial Library is open to all at a nominal cost.
Library history
Pioneer Memorial Library is housed in a former Gillespie County Courthouse, which was designed by Alfred Giles.
The historic building served as the courthouse from 1882 until 1939 when the courthouse transitioned into a newly erected building next door.
Various governmental organizations occupied the building until it was closed in 1963.
Two years later, Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Mc-Dermott of Dallas funded the preservation of the building so that it could be used as a public library. It was dedicated in May 1967.
In 1983, Mrs. McDermott provided a challenge for a matching grant so that renovations and expansion to the second floor could be accomplished. The community responded, and the renovated library was dedicated in December of 1984.
Comment
Comments