I would like to personally welcome you to The Seattle Public Library, the city's most popular resource for learning and information!

I have the honor and privilege to serve as your city librarian.

The Seattle Public Library is thriving since completing the Libraries for All building program, which resulted in the world-renowned Central Library and 26 new, or renovated branch facilities - all welcoming, spacious and wired for the modern Library user. Circulation, customer visits and attendance at our nearly 5,000 annual programs are setting records.

Library customers are taking advantage of the 2.5 million books and materials in the collection, helping Seattle achieve the ranking of "Most Literate City" for the second time. Customers are also using the more than 1,000 public computers, wi-fi at every location and a wide range of digital resources, including downloadable e-books, audio books, podcasts, music and videos. In addition, the Library now offers 73 premium databases - accessible any time of the day or night - including Standard & Poor's NetAdvantage, Press Display, Play Index, Morningstar.com and much more. (See Using the Library for an overview of Library services.)

We provide more than 400 literary, cultural and learning-based programs each month. Be sure to check the online calendar of events (see the Calendar of Events for a list of upcoming programs) to find out what's happening, or just subscribe to the online calendar or e-news from the home page: www.spl.org.

We are committed to keeping our collection fresh and introducing new services to meet your needs. We value your opinions and suggestions concerning our services and collection. I can be reached at city.librarian@spl.org.

With a dedicated staff and Library Board, together with the support of our Library Foundation, Friends and elected officials, The Seattle Public Library continues to be a national leader and local treasure for everyone to enjoy.

Susan Hildreth

City Librarian

The Seattle Public Library