Bachelor Girl's Library Club

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say, and this one is a story worth savoring. Fifteen young single women gathered in Rusk, Texas, in 1902, and they had a plan. They had fewer than fifty books between them, and they called themselves the Bachelor Girl's Library Club.

Now, you might hear that and smile a little, and that's fair. But don't let the name fool you, because what those fifteen women started would one day grow into something the whole city of Rusk could be proud of. Their club is believed to be the first public library established in Cherokee County, and they set up shop right in the heart of downtown Rusk, at the Acme Hotel.

Fifty books. That's where it all began. By 1904, something had changed among the membership, and the club took stock of the situation.

Several of its original founders had since married, and the rules of the Bachelor Girl's Library Club said married women couldn't belong. Well, the members weren't about to lose their founders over a technicality. So in 1904 they changed the name to the Maids and Matrons Library Club and rescinded the rule prohibiting married members.

Problem solved. The founders stayed. The books kept coming.

Then in 1916 the name changed again, this time to the Library Study Club, a name that carried a little more weight, a little more permanence. And permanence was starting to suit them. In 1936 the Library Study Club formed a club for younger women called the Thalian Study Club, planting a second seed alongside the first.

The books, all that time, never stopped accumulating. By 1966 the collection had grown so large that for some years the club had required the services of a paid librarian. That year, 1966, the Library Study Club donated all of its books and furnishings to the City of Rusk.

Every last volume. Every last chair. Then in 1969 those books became part of the permanent collection at the newly constructed Singletary Memorial Library building.

That donation, taken together with what the club had contributed over the years, helped push the library's inventory to well in excess of twenty-three thousand books. Fifteen women. Fewer than fifty books.

And a rule they eventually had the good sense to change. The Library Study Club and its offspring the Thalian Club went right on supporting the Rusk Community Library after all of it was said and done. That's not a small thing.

That's a legacy.

What the marker says

Formed by 15 young single women in 1902 with fewer than 50 books, this library club would later donate to the City of Rusk a volume of books that greatly contributed to an inventory in excess of 23,000 books. The Book Club, originally housed in downtown Rusk at the Acme Hotel, is believed to be the first public library established in Cherokee County. In 1904 the club changed its name to "The Maids and Matrons Library Club" and rescinded its rule prohibiting married members in order that several of its original founders who had since married could continue in the organization. The name of the club was changed once more in 1916 to the "Library Study Club." In 1936 the members formed a club for younger women called "The Thalian Study Club." The size of the library's holdings continued to grow so that by 1966 the club had for some years required the services of a paid librarian. That year the club donated all of its books and furnishings to the City of Rusk. In 1969 they became part of the permanent collection at the newly constructed Singletary Memorial Library building. The Library Study Club and its offspring the Thalian Club continued to support the Rusk Community Library.