Due to day-long IT maintenance (7am-5pm), the following branches are closed on Sunday, June 22: Central Library, Dundas, Red Hill, Terryberry, Turner Park, Valley Park and Waterdown. Sunday service hours resume on Sunday, June 29.
Please note that the HPL catalogue, Library accounts, and online resources will not be available during this time frame. We apologize for the inconvenience.
Due to Staff training, the Westdale Branch will open at 10am on Monday, June 16. You may visit Central Library and the Dundas Branch as your next nearest locations for your library needs. Thank you for your patience.
The accessible washroom at Red Hill Branch is not working. We aim to get it fixed quickly.
The parking lot elevator at Terryberry Branch is not working. Members will need to use the accessible ramp at the Mohawk entrance and the inner elevator. We're working to get it fixed quickly.
Please note that the audio volume levels on our public computers are having issues. The estimated time of disruption is unknown at this time. Thank you for your patience.
As the 1st floor renovation wraps up, the Sherwood Branch will be closed on Thursday, June 5, to reset the spaces. Service hours will resume on Friday, June 6. Thank you for your patience.
The accessibility ramp at Mount Hope Branch is damaged. The handrail is not available. The ramp will not be available while being repaired. We aim to fix it quickly.
Due to the ongoing roof repair project, noise and parking disruptions are expected to continue until the end of June. Thank you for your patience.
The digital microfilm machines at Central Library are not working. A single analog machine is available, but it doesn't print. We aim to have the digital devices repaired as soon as possible. We apologize for the inconvenience.
Please be aware of online phishing attempts impersonating Hamilton Public Library and Library Staff. HPL does not solicit paid freelance opportunities through social media or other messaging applications. HPL does not request personal or banking information through social media or require financial compensation when reviewing job applications. Please report phishing schemes to communications@hpl.ca. If you think you are a victim of fraud, please call the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501.
With the site fixed and design chosen, the next subject arose: Cherokee white marble versus Queenston limestone. The architects recommended the marble, which led to a weekend trip to New York City for the city hall committee to view some samples of buildings covered with this material. This visit was called "a preposterous waste of taxpayer's money" by Alderman John Munro. "It is absurd, as far as I am concerned...to appoint professional men, to hear their advice, to discuss that advice, and then to spend taxpayer's money in a wasteful journey to view the very stone that these same professional men say we should use in our new city hall," said Munro (62). Shortly after, it was proposed that they should be using Queenston limestone instead. "This is a city hall for Canadians, to be paid for by Canadians, and we can have stone mined by Canadians, and cut by Canadians, and then put in place by Canadians," said Controller McCoy. "My mind is made up - it's too bad about the colour" (63). Board of Control then voted 3-2 for limestone (63) and took their recommendation to City Council, which voted 13-6 for marble (64).
Some councillors thought affairs were getting out of hand. Alderman Ramsey Evans stated that "[t]he whole thing is a squalid nuisance" (65), and Alderman Cline reminded them of another potential area of controversy: "[d]espite the abundance of trees in this country ... we have been told that the hardwood required for interior panelling can only come from the United States" (63). Other recommendations were somewhat less controversial. It was suggested that the pictures of past mayors be hung in the main lobby, that there should be a shower provided in the mayor's bathroom and that there should be a separate room near the City Clerk’s department for the issuing of marriage licenses. "Marriage is a personal thing," murmured Mrs. Pritchard. Alderman Morison agreed that it was disturbing to be handed a dog license by mistake (63). Hopes were high for the new building: "[o]h, the new city hall is going to be gorgeous - there is no doubt about that! It's probably going to be the finest municipal edifice in the British Commonwealth of Nations" (66).
