Library

Current Activities being held at the Library

Amelia County has two libraries located in the Court House vicinity. The James L. Hamner Public Library was established in 1972. The Amelia County Historical Society maintains a genealogical library and a small museum open on Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The James L. Hamner Public Library offers free library service to all residents of Amelia 48 hours each week - Monday thru Thursday 9-6; Friday 9-5; and Saturday 9-1. In 1995, County residents made over 14,000 visits to check out almost 23,000 items. The library is housed in the Jackson Building with the Amelia Historical Society at the corner of Virginia and Church Streets near the Courthouse and provides a wide variety of library services to everyone in the community: 45 magazine subscriptions, large print books, audio and video cassettes, a reference room, best-sellers, paperbacks, public photocopier and fax machines, limited access to the Internet, and inter-library loans from across Virginia. Story Hour for pre-schoolers is every Wednesday at 10:00 am, and the Summer Reading Program for K-5th grade runs from the last week of June to the first week of August.

Contact the Librarian at (804) 561-4559 with any questions you have regarding their many services.

Library Policies:

How to get a Library card
Library cards are free to residents of Amelia County and contiguous areas. Just present a valid form of identification showing a current mailing address. Children accompanied by a parent or guardian may get their own card.

Circulation Periods
Books and audio-cassettes are checked our for 4 weeks; older issues of magazines for 1 week, and video-cassettes for 3 days.

Renewals
Books, magazines and audio cassettes may be renewed in person or by telephone. Reserved books and video-cassettes may not be renewed.

Overdues
The Librarian does not charge fines for overdue items, but when items become more than 2 months overdue, they will be considered lost and the borrower will be billed for replacing the item.

Book Drop
Library materials except audio and video cassettes may be returned to the Library after hours in the drive-up book drop in the parking lot.

Resources available to you at the Library:

Staff
The Library employs a full-time certified professional librarian and three part-time library assistants to help you locate the information and books you need

Copier
15 cents per copy; 10 free copies for school students.

Fax
$2.00 for first page
$1.00 for each additional page

Telephone Directories
Are available for most cities in Virginia(thanks to the generosity of a Library supporter)

Are available in fiction and non-fiction titles

Books-on-Tape
Fiction, non-fiction and foreign language tapes are available.

Newspapers
The Library subscribes to 5 local papers, and keeps all issues of The Amelia Bulletin Monitor

At the Library:

Magazines
The Library subscribes to 45 adult titles and 8 children's titles; magazines are kept for 4 years.

Reference Collection
Contains a wide variety of standard works on many topics. 4 sets of encyclopedias with 1 set always current and 3 other sets available to be checked out.

Facts-on-File
A weekly summary of news stories from the nation's leading newspapers.

Reader's Guide to Periodic Literature
A subject index to articles in over 200 magazines

Southside Virginia Union List of Serials
List of magazines subscribed by 34 nearby libraries; the Library can obtain copies or articles by mail or FAX.

Children's Room
Contains books from pre-school through young adult reading levels as well as book-and-cassette sets and 8 children's magazines. A summer reading program, story hours, and class programs are offered.

Inter-Library Loans
The Library participates in OCLC to locate and borrow books from most libraries in Virginia and the southeastern United States.

Vertical File
Pamphlets on a wide variety of subjects for use in the Library.

Tax Forms
Reproducible copies of many IRS tax forms are available for the current tax year. Free tax forms are provided during the tax season.

American Genealogical Lending Library
The Library is a member of AGLL, which allows patrons to borrow at modest fees microfilm copies of passenger lists, census, military, and county records.

Amelia County Historical Library
The Historical Society is located across the hall from the Library in the Jackson Building, and has many local history and genealogical materials. The society is open from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, telephone , 804-561-3180.

Virginia Job Bank
Microfiche of all jobs listed with Virginia Employment Commission; updated weekly.

Friends of the Library
The Friends hold a weekly book sale and other activities to support the summer reading program, to purchase children's books, and to help with other library needs. Membership information is available at the Library.

The Library Board
The Library is governed by a 22-member board appointed by the County Supervisors to oversee Library services and operations.

Library History
Organized in 1970 by a group of interested citizens, the Library was dedicated on 29 April 1973 in honor of Dr. James L. Hammer. First housed in the Court House and then a trailer, the Library moved to the Jackson Building in 1982. Since 1978, the Library has received appropriations from the County Supervisors which qualifies the Library for funding from the Virginia State Library and Archives.

Librarian: Marshall Bullock
Library Assistants:
Susan Gianniny
Arthureen Kidd
Annie Reyna