Bloomberg CityLab calls Ariel Aberg-Riger their visual storyteller. In this clever scroll, she traces the history of how America’s public libraries came to be.

It won’t surprise you to learn that the first libraries were for white men only—and that their eventual spread and democratization was driven largely by the tireless efforts of women.

"70% of voters visited their library in the past year, with millennials being the most frequent patrons, and 8 in 10 Americans believe public libraries can help them find 'reliable' and 'trustworthy' information."

"Women’s clubs brought books to communities—and to kids—who couldn’t access major-city libraries. They did it any way they could. With grassroots funding, bake sales, and a new invention: the bookmobile; cars and carts that lugged books into rural areas—on a regular schedule."

"Black clubs—like the Phoenix Society of New York—sprung up in the early 1800s to 'establish mental feasts,' 'endeavor to promote the happiness of people of color,' and 'establish circulating libraries...for the use of people of color, on very moderate pay.'"

ARTICLE: A History of the American Public Library