Birmingham Public Library Blog

Count Jan Roper of Birmingham among the many patrons thankful that the Central Library has reopened. A few weeks after the Central Library began offering in-person services on October 1 , Roper visited to use one of the public computers.  Roper acknowledges she is not computer savvy and called BPL’s Education Training Coordinator Maurice Harley “my life saver.” Harley was among employees featured when The Atlantic magazine did a national spotlight on BPL's  free computer workshops.  “Maurice was my knight in shining armor,” Roper said. “He helped me download a form I needed and sent it to a government agency for me. I wouldn’t have been able to do it without him, and am forever grateful.” Roper, 71, says she is a longtime user of BPL. While living in Roebuck several years ago, Roper used to take her children regularly to the East Lake Branch Library . In recent years, she has been a regular patron of the Avondale Regional Branch Library . “In the middle of a pande...

  Central Library Youth Librarian Caitlyn Jackson dressed up during Halloween 2019. Caitlin Jackson has been a professional librarian for two years at the Central Library in downtown Birmingham.  She obtained her Master’s in Library & Information Studies from the University of Alabama  in 2017. In a short Q & A with BPL Public Relations Director Roy L. Williams, Jackson described what a typical day is like serving as a librarian in the Central Library’s youth department.  BPL: What inspired you to become a librarian?  Jackson: I have worked in a library on and off as a volunteer since high school. I also enjoy sharing knowledge, which fits perfectly in providing youth and teen programming. Being a librarian allows me to provide programs on a diversity of topics!  BPL: What do you do on a typical day?  Jackson: On a typical day: I pull the holds list in the morning, so that we can send out books to any branches. I also shelve incoming books. I...

  Historic mural on 1st floor of the BPL Research Library's Southern History Department.  Good news for researchers, genealogists and archivists in metro Birmingham: The Birmingham Public Library's Southern History Department and Archives Department are now both open by appointment only.  Call Mary Beth Newbill at 205-226-3665 to schedule an appointment to the Southern History Department.  During appointments, a librarian is available to assist with genealogy and local history research. City directories, local newspapers on microfilm, and state and local histories are the Southern History Department’s most used items. Patrons can also take advantage of BPL database subscriptions like Ancestry.com, Fold3.com, and Newspapers.com.  For more information about the Southern History Department, click here  http://www.bplonline.org/locations/central/southern/ Call Jim Baggett at 205-226-3630 to schedule an appointment in the Archives Department.  Students, sc...

The Birmingham Public Library will be closed for the presidential Election Day on Tuesday, November 3, 2020.  The Birmingham City Council this week unanimously approved making the first Tuesday of November during a presidential election year, Election Day, a city holiday to make it easier for citizens to vote.  Although the Central Library will not be open and no curbside pickup will be available at  Central and BPL’s Avondale, Five Points West and Springville Road regional libraries , patrons can still check out items online on BPL’s website and via its mobile app 24/7.  The aim of Election Day becoming a holiday is to allow city workers a day off work to vote, Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin said in a release.   "Instead of a day worrying about trying to carve out time to go vote, we’re turning Election Day into a celebration of our democracy," he said. The newly declared holiday means Birmingham City Hall will also be closed on November 3, cancelling t...

Mary Beth Newbill, head of BPL's Southern History Department. Mary Beth Newbill has been an employee at the Birmingham Public Library for 24 years, including 21 years as a professional librarian. In a Q & A with BPL Public Relations Director Roy L. Williams, she described what a typical day is like heading BPL’s Southern History Department in this post Covid-19 environment. BPL: What inspired you to become a librarian and what year/where did you get your librarian degree? Newbill: I loved the idea of helping people with their research. I got my MLIS ( Masters in Library Information Studies ) from the University of Alabama in 1999. BPL: What do you do on a typical day? Newbill: Most days, I start by answering emails. Patrons can email us with reference questions and requests for lookups in books and city directories. This is especially important now, since our hours are limited, and many people are still not traveling. I also respond to requests for obituaries in the local ne...

BPL is helping answer questions from patrons during the 2021 ACA Open Enrollment period.       By Lynn Hutchins | Central Library  Looking for the right health care plan as 2021 Affordable Care Act (ACA) enrollment begins in November? The Birmingham Public Library can help patrons visiting its  Central Library  downtown by providing information and assisting with enrollment.  If you don’t have health insurance coverage, we can help you enroll in the Health Insurance Marketplace during the open enrollment period. The ACA Open Enrollment period is November 1 through December 15, 2020, for plans that go into effect starting January 1, 2021.  This fall, BPL received a $2,000 “Libraries Connecting you to Coverage” award from the Public Library Association.  As a participant in this 2020-21 initiative, BPL will use the funds to support health insurance enrollment activities.  Here are four insider tips for choosing the right ACA health...

The Birmingham Public Library is hosting a fall girls computer coding camp in partnership with Holy Family Cristo Rey Catholic High School ,  thanks to a grant funded by NCWIT (National Center for Women & Information Technology) . Code 205: Intro to Game Design will be led by a team consisting of Katelyn Miller, Caitlin Jackson, and Mohsine Taarji. Caitlin Jackson, a BPL teen librarian, has worked closely with Taarji on past projects, such as Teen Engineers BHM, which included STEM education such as coding, soldering, and 3D printing. Taarji has worked with the library for about five years as an UAB Engineering student mentor and is currently working on his PhD. Teens Engineer BHM is a program BPL began that partners teens interested in engineering careers with mentors from the UAB School of Engineering.  The Birmingham Public Library hopes that Code 205 will serve as a novel program that inspires future sessions in the spring and beyond. When discussing the switch from...

  The Birmingham Public Library Local Authors Committee is hosting author Kimberla Lawson Roby on Tuesday, October 27, 2020, at 6:00 p.m. on the Birmingham Public Library’s Facebook page.    Roy L. Williams, BPL’s public relations director, recently conducted a Q & A with the New York Times best-selling author of 28 books.  In the interview, Roby gave insight into what viewers can expect during next week’s virtual talk, entitled “The Woman God Created You to Be.” Click here for more information on the event https://bplolinenews.blogspot.com/2020/10/bpl-local-author-spotlight-meet-author.html  BPL: Tell me about “The Woman God Created You to Be,” your virtual discussion taking place on the BPL Facebook Page at 6 p.m. next Tuesday, October 27? Roby: On the night of the event, I’ll be speaking about my overall writing and publishing journey, along with personal experiences, reading a short excerpt, and then answering any questions the audience might hav...

J. Mark Lowe The Birmingham Public Library’s 2020 Family History Month programs conclude on Friday, October 30, featuring a Q&A with professional genealogist and author J. Mark Lowe.  The public is invited to join Lowe at 10:00 a.m. for the discussion by Lowe, who specializes in original records and manuscripts throughout the South.  Lowe is hosting the program via his Zoom account. To participate, patrons need to register by clicking here  https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZctcu2rqDIqHtHVUem07hVpdCzSgwYJCnIB A Tennessee native with family roots in Kentucky, Lowe has been researching families for more than 55 years. He has traveled extensively in both states and enjoys sharing his love of genealogy and the joy of research with others.  In addition to his October 30 talk, during the entire month up until October 31, BPL patrons can stream four different workshops Lowe is offering. The webinars are accessible via a password protected link. The link/passwor...

Update: View the recorded program here:  https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=345699906736231 Birmingham, Ala. - In celebration of 2020 Family History Month , the Birmingham Public Library is hosting "The Last Slave Ship Survivor" beginning at noon on Thursday, October 22, on BPL Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/BirminghamPublicLibrary/  Descendants of Matilda McCrear, a survivor of the last slave ship who lived until 1940, will tell the story of one African American family dating back to slavery. Johnny Crear of Selma, the 83-year-old grandson of the last known survivor of the transatlantic slave trade, learned of his Grandmother Matilda's story, including her fight for reparation compensation, thanks to research by Newcastle University UK expert Dr. Hannah Durkin.  Read more about Dr. Durkin's research that discovered "the last slave ship survivor" at this link https://www.ncl.ac.uk/press/articles/latest/2020/03/matildamccrear/ You can also learn mo...

Looking for a safe family friendly spot to get free candy and goodie bags for your kids this Halloween? The Birmingham Public Library is partnering with several other organizations to host a Drive-Thru Trunk or Treat on Saturday, October 31, from noon to 2:00 p.m. at the Central Library , 2100 Park Place in downtown Birmingham.  The public is invited to drop by with their kids to get free candy and goodies bags. Make sure you wear your masks. Like and share this post, and spread the word. Among the BPL partners is  Leaders of Excellence is a non-profit that provides a variety of free services for school children in Birmingham including job training, college prep, anger management, life skills training, anti-bullying and violence prevention. For more information click here https://www.leadersofexcellence.org/ Other organizations partnering with BPL in this Drive-Thru Trunk or Treat include the Birmingham Police Department , Miles College , Determined 2 Be Mentoring &...

  By Jim Murray | Business, Science, and Technology Department | Central Library   On Tuesday, October 13, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an order upholding the Trump administration’s plan to put an immediate halt to counting residents for the 2020 Census. Today, Thursday, October 15 is now designated as the final day to respond to the Census . This action reverses earlier lower court decisions that had extended the Census response date to October 31, 2020. Plaintiffs in the case had argued that an early ending to the Census would make for an incomplete and inaccurate count of the population. Justice Sonia Sotomayor echoed similar sentiments in her dissent that accompanied the court’s order.  The administration’s argument for ceasing the counting process rested on the premise that decennial Census population data must be collected and processed in time to be delivered to the President by December 31 for the purpose of determining Congressional reapportionment....

The Birmingham Public Library Local Authors Committee is hosting author Kimberla Lawson Roby on Tuesday, October 27th at 6:00 p.m. on the Birmingham Public Library's Facebook page .  A New York Times best-selling author of 28 books, Roby will discuss her nonfiction publication "The Woman God Created You to Be: Finding Success Through Faith- Spiritually, Personally and Professionally" (Available at  https://kimroby.com/books/ ) A resident of Illinois, Lawson Roby has sold nearly 3 million copies of her books.      Anyone is welcome to tune in, but the BPL Local Authors Committee is especially encouraging women (book clubs, women's ministries, social groups/organizations) to join us for a "Virtual Women's Night" and to be prepared to pose questions to the author. The event will be hosted by the BPL Local Authors Expo committee and BPL librarians Candice Hardy, Programming & Outreach, and Loretta Jones, Branch Manager.  Lawson Roby is a recipien...

Mary Beth Newbill | Central Library  The Birmingham Public Library's annual observance of Family History Month is under way- this time virtual in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.  The highlights are two online programs - a presentation on home DNA testing by author Libby Copeland on the BPL Facebook page at 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, October 7, and an October 30 Q & A via Zoom by genealogy expert J. Mark Lowe. Here is a look at all of our virtual BPL Family History Month programs: October 7, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. - Author Libby Copeland Presents Home DNA Testing Is Redefining Family History.  Streaming live on the BPL Facebook page    https://www.facebook.com/BirminghamPublicLibrary . No registration required.   The presentation will illuminate the many ways in which home DNA testing is redefining family history. It will draw on Libby Copeland’s years of research for her new book, The Lost Family: How DNA Testing is Upending Who We Are (Abrams, 2020), wh...

With the Central Library now reopened for in-person services as of October 1, 2020, the Birmingham Public Library website has added a link with all the information you need to know before coming in. Click here for details or read below: http://www.cobpl.org/locations/central/COVID-19.aspx    Central In-Person Service Hours Monday through Friday – 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.  The Central Library will open all public service floors (one through three) in the East Building for limited in-person service initially beginning October 1, 2020.  The BPL Research Library adjacent to the East Building will remain closed except by appointment only to the Southern History Department (205-226-3665) and the BPL Archives Department. (205-226-3630)  In-Person Services Offered at Central Library Include: • Ability to browse (all public service floors in East Building) and check out materials • Special browsing collection of popular new library materials (books & DVDs) will be ava...

The Birmingham Public Library's put the art of spoken word poetry in Alabama on the map 10 years ago by creating Bards & Brews, a monthly event that combines spoken word and craft beer. This Friday, October 9, BPL will host Bards & Brews Virtual, its first event since Brandon Leake provided worldwide attention to the entertainment genre by becoming the first spoken word artist to win America's Got Talent, NBC's popular reality show . Bards & Brews will air beginning at 6:00 p.m. on the Bards Facebook page, www.Facebook.com/BardsandBrews . Candice Hardy, Bards & Brews Creative Director and Outreach Librarian for BPL, says Leake's victory in "AGT" was a "triumphant moment for poets and artists nationwide." Poets who desire to share their gift by participating can still register for a few slots open by emailing Bards.Brews@cobpl.org. "If they can't find an outlet, Bards & Brews has a special place just for you!," Hardy ...

What:  Author Libby Copeland Presents Home DNA Testing is Redefining Family History When: Wednesday, October 7, 10:00-11:00 a.m. Where: Birmingham Public Library Facebook page- www.Facebook.com/BirminghamPublicLibrary   About the book The Lost Family: Home DNA Testing is Redefining Family History  – The book explores the rapidly evolving phenomenon of home DNA testing, its implications for how we think about family and ourselves, and its ramifications for American culture broadly.  Click below to buy the book https://www.amazon.com/Lost-Family-How-Testing-Upending/dp/1419743007  Birmingham, Ala. - Over the past seven years, the number of people across the globe who have researched their family history through home DNA testing has soared from 1 million in 2013 to 35 million, according to an author who is kicking off the Birmingham Public Library’s Family History Month celebration.  That was one of the revelations from journalist/author Libby Copel...