Saving Providence Public Library: Financial Crises and Community Activism, 1960s to 2009

ABSTRACT Providence Public Library (PPL) in Rhode Island’s capital city was not alone among US public libraries in grappling with serious funding challenges in the second half of the twentieth century. Confronting tighter budgets, public library administrators were forced to close branches, reduce staff and hours, and undertake other cost-cutting measures. Meanwhile, patrons mobilized to retain library services. While the situation in Providence paralleled that of many other communities, the struggle in Rhode Island led to a different outcome than was the case in most other places. A group of activists took control of all nine of the neighborhood branches, resulting in the breakup of a large urban library system into two separate organizations. Through a review of internal library records, local newspaper articles, and oral histories, this article seeks to determine how and why this happened.