Grundy County-Jewett Norris Library Observes 130th Birthday

When Jewett Norris provided the initial funds to establish a free public library in Grundy County it’s doubtful he could have imagined that 130 years later one could research his name on a database on the library’s website. But thanks to his generosity and that of other area residents over the years, the Grundy County-Jewett Norris Library remains as relevant today as it was when it was dedicated in 1891.

The library is celebrating its 130th birthday this month and there’s a lot to celebrate. While the exterior of the building looks much the same as it did at its dedication ceremony on Oct. 13, 1891, the interior contains the technology necessary to reach library users in 2021.
Early efforts to construct a library in Grundy County failed, but in 1890, Jewett Norris offered the Trenton school district $50,000 ($15,000 of which would be reserved for maintenance) for a trust fund to construct and equip a library that was to be “free to the people of Trenton and Grundy County forever.” Norris, described in newspaper accounts as an early pioneer resident of the community, had moved away from Grundy County 20 years before making the offer. The Trenton Weekly Republican said the gift was “the greatest bequest to education ever made in the state of Missouri.”
“Norris gave the money for the library because he figured he had earned that amount in Grundy County and, by wise investment of this capital, was able to enlarge the amount,” read a Trenton Republican-Times story written in observance of the library’s 50th anniversary. “He felt he should return the original amount to the county in some substantial, lasting manner.”
Construction began in May 1890 and by dedication day, Mr. Norris had been dead for about five months. His grandson made the trip to Trenton to read a speech Mr. Norris had prepared for the occasion.
No one in Grundy County remembers the day the library was dedicated (if someone does, please contact the Republican-Times so we can interview YOU!) but many remember the day in Oct. 1992 when the community came together to celebrate the renovation of the building, spurred by a donation from Rose Hoover. She initially donated $25,000 to help with the cost of a new slate roof, but went on to match up to $75,000 in donations and grants received for the project, which included window replacement, a heating system, elevator and the renovation of what is now the Hoover Community Theater. In all, more than $800,000 was raised for the project.
Since that time, the library, which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in Sept. 1984, has seen a different kind of transformation – a digital one. For instance, patrons can go on the library website to conduct research and books can be downloaded to tablets and computers. A bank of computers are available for public use.
These are ways Mr. Norris could not have fathomed his generosity would be used, but the vision of today’s modern GC-JN Library, which is “to become a hub for learning while also enriching lives, building community and fostering success,” fits well with what Mr. Norris hoped the library would be for Grundy County residents, as he wrote in his dedication address.
“It should, and I trust it will, be the resort of all lovers of learning,” his grandson read. “And of all literary and scientific societies and philanthropic individuals and charitable associations who hope to make the world better by discouraging idle habits and encouraging the employment of all leisure hours in the acquisition of useful knowledge.” 
Today’s modern library provides unlimited ways to acquire useful knowledge and would certainly have made Mr. Norris proud of the legacy he left at the corner of Main Street and Crowder Road.
In honor of the library’s 130th birthday, library staff and Friends of the Library are celebrating with refreshments each day this week beginning at 11 a.m.