Please note that filming will take place nearby on the following dates.
May 18 – Filming Preparation (All Day)
May 19 – Filming (7am – 4pm), Concession Street (between Upper Wentworth and East 21st)
The accessible washroom at Greensville Branch is not working. We aim to get it fixed quickly.
All HPL Branches are closed on Sunday, May 17. Bookmobile is off the road. Extended Access service is not available.
Regular service hours resume on Tuesday, May 19. Visit hpl.ca for our Virtual Branch.
All HPL Branches are closed on Monday, May 18. Bookmobile is off the road. Extended Access and Study Hall services are not available. Regular service hours resume on Tuesday, May 19.
Due to Driver availability, Bookmobile has the following schedule modifications for the month of May. We apologize for the inconvenience.
Wednesday, May 13:
Thursday, May 14:
Monday, May 18: All Bookmobile sites closed
Due to software maintenance, HPL library's catalogue, online services and library accounts will not be available between 8am and 7pm on Monday, May 18. Thank you for your patience.
Renovations are currently underway for the 2nd floor Central Children's Area. Programs are still being offered as scheduled and there is a temporary pop-up Children’s Area on the northeast side of the 2nd floor (near the Piano Room), including access to collections and train tables. Construction is expected to be completed by late Spring. Thank you for your patience during this time.
As of Monday, March 2, Sherwood Branch's 2nd floor is closed due to renovations. Makerspace, Children and Teen's collection are temporarily available on the 1st floor. All programs will be held in the basement program room. Renovations are expected to be completed in late Spring. Thank you for your patience.
The Parks Board couldn't transfer the parks police directly to the city force because the men couldn't meet the qualifications. Rather than just abandon the force completely, it was decided to make them park custodians with a slight pay increase. By making them park custodians, it was possible to assign them to full time positions in one park instead of having them there for only 10 minutes at a time. If they needed help, they had to call on the city police, as custodians did in other cities.
A permanent police patrol of Hamilton's parkland began May 15, 1967. The patrol was the first to be carried out on a regular basis since the six-man parks police force had been disbanded in June of 1963. Experienced men carried out the parks work and extra men filled in on regular duty. For eight hours each day, one motorcycle policeman inspected the parks in his area. Special attention was given to known trouble spots. The motorcycle policeman was in radio contact with dispatchers at Central Police Station in case trouble developed. At other hours, the parks were watched by regular patrols.
Up until 1979, the parks were patrolled by policemen in uniform. It was found that it didn't work because the people could see the policemen coming a mile away. It was decided to allow the officers to dress casually but wearing shorts was thought to be too casual. Every now and then they were called away to do something else where shorts would be inappropriate.
References:
1. Clipping Files. Hamilton - Parks - Parks Police. Local History & Archives, HPL.
2. Hamilton Police Department Scrapbook. vol. 9. p. 37. Local History & Archives, HPL (352.2 H189)
3. Steel Shots. August 23, 1963. p. 5. (Periodical)
