Mid-Continent Public Library
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| Established | 1965 (1892) |
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| Location | Clay, Platte, & Jackson Counties, Missouri |
| Coordinates | 39°06′42″N 94°23′30″W / 39.11164°N 94.39154°WCoordinates: 39°06′42″N 94°23′30″W / 39.11164°N 94.39154°W |
| Branches | 31 |
| Collection | |
| Size | 3,544,072 (2009) |
| Access and use | |
| Circulation | 9,183,005 (2009) |
| Population served | 668,632 |
| Other information | |
| Budget | $46,561,545 (2009) |
| Director | Steven Potter |
| Website |
http://www.mymcpl.org/ Midwest Genealogy Center: http://www.mymcpl.org/genealogy |
Mid-Continent Public Library, officially known as Consolidated Library District #3, is a consolidated public library system serving Clay, Platte, and Jackson Counties in Missouri, with headquarters in Independence, Missouri.
Mid-Continent Public Library is the largest public library system in the U.S. state of Missouri by number of volumes and size of budget. Its collection ranks among the 100 largest libraries in America, which includes university, public, and private collections, and is among the nation's 20 largest public library systems. (Note: The Kansas City Public Library is a separate library system with facilities primarily serving Kansas City in Jackson County, Missouri.)
On May 8, 2014, the Mid-Continent Public Library received the National Medal for Museum and Library Service during a ceremony at the White House in Washington D.C. The medal is the country's highest honor awarded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
Mid-Continent Public Library's roots go back to the Independence Public Library, formed by the Independence Library Association in 1892 and the creation of the Citizens Improvement Association Library (later the Carnegie Library) in Excelsior Springs in the 1890s.
After World War II, Clay, Platte and Jackson counties formed countywide library systems. They began collaborating in the early 1960s, and on November 10, 1965 Clay and Jackson formed the Mid-Continent Public Library Service as a joint administrative body, though each library retained separate governing boards and budgets.
Even though they remained separate, their combined resources allowed them to merge administrative costs. Gaining the name Mid-Continent Public Library in 1968, the library system was well on its way to achieving its goal. Separating library services from school districts enabled them to expand library services to rural areas, which presently did not have services.
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