Cold Weather Alert for the City of Hamilton

The Medical Officer of Health for the City of Hamilton is issuing a Cold Weather Alert effective overnight tonight, Tuesday, February 3. A Cold Weather Alert is issued when current or anticipated weather conditions are at or below -15C or -20C with wind chill. Please visit www.hamilton.ca/cold for locations and resources to stay warm and safe. 

All HPL Branches are Warm Places during our service hours. www.hpl.ca/hours

Published:
Tuesday, February 3, 2026 - 5:00pm
Central Library - Fourth Floor Closure

The Fourth Floor will be closed on Friday, February 6, starting at 2 pm for Seedy Saturday event setup. Makerspace and Newcomer Learning Centre will remain open. Floors 1-3 are available with study and work spaces. www.hpl.ca/central

Published:
Tuesday, February 3, 2026 - 3:00pm
Red Hill Branch Accessible Door Out of Order

The accessibility door at Red Hill Branch is not working. We aim to fix it quickly.

Published:
Tuesday, February 3, 2026 - 1:30pm
Bookmobile Service Modification

Please note the following Bookmobile visit updates.

Tuesday, February 3
Greencedar (4-5 pm) - Cancelled

Thursday, February 5
Rockton (10:30-11:30 am) - Cancelled
Bennetto Visit will be 5-5:30 pm (instead of 4-5:30 pm)

Tuesday, February 10
McMaster University will be 3:30-4 pm (instead of 3:30-4:30 pm
Greencedar will be 5-5:30 pm (instead of 4-5 pm)
Mountview will be 6-6:30 pm (instead of 5:30-6:30 pm)

Published:
Monday, February 2, 2026 - 3:15pm
Mount Hope - Filming 

On Monday, February 9, Homestead Drive will be closed from 7:30am-1:30pm (local traffic only) due to filming. From 1:30-7:30pm, there will be intermittent traffic control by Hamilton Police. The Branch will remain open. Thank you for your patience.

Published:
Friday, January 30, 2026 - 1:45pm
Carlisle Branch Accessible Washroom Out of Order

The accessible washroom at Carlisle Branch is not working. We aim to get it fixed quickly.

Published:
Tuesday, January 27, 2026 - 12:30pm
Central Library - Daily Hours Update

Starting Monday, February 2, Central Library's daily hours will move back to a 9 am opening instead of 8 am, Monday through Saturday. Please make note of this new service change for your next visit. www.hpl.ca/hours 

Published:
Wednesday, January 21, 2026 - 11:00am
Central Library - Sunday Hours Paused

Effective Sunday, February 1, Sunday service hours at Central Library will be paused. 

Sunday Hours will continue at Dundas, Red Hill, Terryberry, Turner Park, Valley Park and Waterdown Branches from 1-5pm.

www.hpl.ca/hours 

Published:
Wednesday, January 21, 2026 - 11:00am
Online Resources - Update

The following eResources have been recently discontinued in our HPL collections: Novelist, Summa, Summa Kids, and Northstar Digital Literacy. Please visit www.hpl.ca/articles/read-watch-listen for our full listing of online resources for your next read, watch, listen and/or learn.

Published:
Wednesday, January 7, 2026 - 11:00am
Printing Updates

Daily print balances for black and white and colour printing change January 2, 2026. The new daily print balance is 40 cents. Members receive four free black and white copies or two free colour copies. 

Large format and vinyl printing pricing also change on January 2. Visit https://www.hpl.ca/makerspaces for updates.

Published:
Monday, December 22, 2025 - 2:00pm
Replacement and Damage Fees

Bring back your borrowed library items within 28 days to avoid a replacement or lost fee. We'll remove the fee when you bring back your overdue items. 

Published:
Thursday, September 11, 2025 - 3:00pm

Tom Bochsler Collection

Downtown Hamilton from the Niagara Escarpment, 1963
Downtown Hamilton from the Niagara Escarpment, 1963

Tom Bochsler is a well-known industrial photographer who has spent more than five decades as a professional photographer. He was the official photographer for McMaster University, CHCH-TV, CHML radio and other local businesses. He also was a portrait photographer. His specialty, however, is industrial photography, and he has won many awards for his work in this field. He recently donated more than 500,000 negatives and images, spanning the length of his career, to Hamilton Public Library. This now stands as the largest Canadian collection of images from an individual photographer in Local History & Archives.

His book, The Art of Industry, is a 50-year photo-biography that includes events, personalities and the many industries which were part of his everyday photographic experience.