When it comes to libraries, Layton City might very well rank as Utah's most fickle town. Layton had the state's first free public library in 1900, though it soon had to close, not from a lack of funds or books, but from a lack of patrons. The city also had at least three other libraries before the current county-operated facility that opened in 1988.
Layton's original library was heralded as the "first free-circulating library in Utah and as an event that was being watched throughout the state with great interest." It opened on Feb. 28, 1900. Some writings by LDS Church historian Andrew Jensen described it as the first ward library of its kind ever started in Utah. (The only other libraries in Davis County at the time were "unit libraries," created by the Davis School District for students in 1899.)That's about all the history books say on the premiere library. However, Oma Wilcox, Layton City Council member in the 1960s and longtime library supporter, said she understands the first city library was located on Main Street, just north of Gentile Street in the old Hyde Building. E.M. Whiteside served as the first librarian.
No one seems to know how long the original library lasted. It closed temporarily within two months for lack of business. Although it is believed to have reopened in the fall of 1900, it didn't last long after that.
Layton's next library didn't come until 1927 when a public library was made at Layton Elementary School. Elva Winn Brown served as both a schoolteacher and librarian, and a door was cut through a wall so she could do both jobs at the same time. This library received little financial support in the years that followed during the Great Depression, with $575 being donated from the city and only $35 coming from the community.
Next, a small county library branch was established in a remote section of the Verdeland Park Administration Building in the mid-1940s. Verdeland Park was a temporary government housing project initiated during World War II. This library had room for only 5,367 volumes and no reading space.
Layton City purchased Verdeland Park in 1957 and decided to demolish it. (Today, Layton High and the nearby city offices and park stand where Verdeland Park was.) A city library committee, with Wilcox as chairwoman was then established.
In the spring of 1958, Layton City donated the old city office building at the intersection of Main and Gentile Streets to the county library system. However, extensive remodeling was necessary.
Layton Mayor Wayne Winegar donated his first city pay check ($63) to the library fund and other projects soon raised $2,500. A door-to-door campaign raised $1,287 more, and the Ellison family donated $1,000 to furbish a children's room in honor of Katie A. Ellison, Wilcox's mother. Many well-known artists also donated paintings and prints.
When this library opened at 37 E. Gentile Street on January 20, 1960, it had become a symbol of community spirit with more than $4,000 raised and 3,000 hours of work donated. The new library contained more than 5,000 volumes, and Alta Roundy was named as the first librarian.
The General Federation of Women's Clubs Committee rated the new library and concluded:
"You have accomplished the impossible. A truly remarkable and commendable effort, begun by a few, done against great odds, but eventually winning full community cooperation and establishing a permanent service that will have great implications for the future."
Permanent was not an accurate description, though. The library was closed on April 25, 1975 because of the large expense of operating a small library.
That same year, the North Branch County Library in Clearfield was opened and all of Layton's books were transferred there. Once again, the city with Utah's first free library had no public library at all.
Wilcox believes Layton would have been a more central location for a north branch and stressed that the city had also proved itself to be one of the fastest-growing in the county. She said it was a big hassle to get back all the artwork that had been donated to the defunct library.
She and other citizens worked for many years to get a public library back in Layton. She said the county ignored all such requests and even efforts to get a city-operated library didn't materialize.
Finally, on September 10, 1988, a $1.1 million central branch library opened at 155 N. Wasatch Drive in Layton.