Newport Beach Library
Home MenuNBPL History
History of the Newport Beach Public Library
The Newport Beach Public Library has served the community for over 100 years. The current library customers can be grateful to the many groups of dedicated people who worked over the past century to make the library a reality in Newport Beach.
1909-1939
In 1909, people in Newport Beach wanted a library. The Ebell Club got a small book collection from the State Library. Club members let the public use these books a few hours each week. By 1911 the club had 300 books people could use in the afternoons.
In the 1920s the city made a municipal library. The city set up a Board of Library Trustees and gave $75 each month for the library. The library used different small buildings until 1929. In 1929 the city opened a permanent building of 2,200 square feet. It cost $7,000.
1940-1949
During the 1940s many people came to work nearby. The library became busier. People used it to meet and to read. The library got its first telephone in 1944. Toward the end of the 1940s the city started offering services beyond the peninsula. A small station library opened in Corona del Mar.
1950-1970
The city grew in the 1950s. The Balboa Branch was expanded in 1952 to about 5,000 square feet. The Corona del Mar station moved to other small buildings and then to a 2,000 sq ft building on Marigold Street. People raised money to pay most of the cost. The Friends of the Newport Beach Public Library helped with fundraising.
Plans for a branch across the bay led to the Mariners Branch. The Friends raised $15,000 to help build it. The Mariners Branch opened in 1963.
1970-1995
In the 1970s the library trustees and the city studied library needs. They said the city needed a central library. In 1980 the Newport Center Branch opened with 10,000 sq ft. Later, a new plan for a true Central Library grew with help from community groups. The Friends, the Booster Club, and the Library Foundation raised money. They helped pay for a new Central Library at 1000 Avocado Avenue. The new building opened in July 1994. It was 54,000 square feet. Architects Simon Martin-Vegue Winkelstein Moris of San Francisco, in Association with James L. Pirdy of Newport Beach, designed the building.
1995–present
In 2002 the city raised $1 million to get a state grant for a shared library near Mariners Elementary School. The state gave $3.2 million. With donations, the Donna and John Crean Mariners Branch opened in April 2006. It is 15,000 square feet and sits next to Mariners Elementary School.
In May 2013 the Central Library got a 17,000 sq ft expansion. The expansion added a digital media lab, more areas for adults and children, and restrooms upstairs. The expansion sits near City Hall and Civic Center Park. The design gives a public space for people to meet and gather.
The Central Library has a Local History Collection. This collection is for use inside the library only. For more local history, you can contact the Newport Beach Historical Society or Sherman Library & Gardens.
For additional information on Newport Beach History, contact Newport Beach Historical Society or Sherman Library & Gardens.