Hayner Library Invites Community to Celebrate Library History at Dedication Ceremony

ALTON - The Hayner Public Library District invites the community to join them for a special dedication ceremony and party to celebrate the library.

From 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturday, May 9, 2026, library staff and members from the Illinois State Historical Society will be at the Jennie D. Hayner Park outside of the downtown library for the ceremony. The library will receive an official Illinois State Historical Society marker that will share information about the district’s history. Lacy McDonald, manager of Hayner’s Genealogy and Local History Library, emphasized that the ceremony is open to all.

“We love being in this area, and we’ve obviously been here since 1852 in some capacity. So it’s really a celebration for everybody,” McDonald said.

There will be a few remarks at 10:15 a.m. on May 9, but the garden party will mostly serve as an opportunity for community members to come together, enjoy refreshments, and connect over the library’s history.

McDonald and Executive Director Mary Cordes have spearheaded the efforts to secure an Illinois State Historical Society marker. They spoke with William P. Shannon IV, the president of the society, and William Furry, the society’s executive director, who encouraged them to submit an application and helped them through the process.

Over the past several months, McDonald, Cordes and their staff have done a ton of research into the library’s history. McDonald noted that one reason why they were so eager to showcase the history is because women are at the center, which is unique for the time period.

“There were several times when women saved the library,” she said. “Obviously, men and women were both contributing to all of this. But it was something where women got to have control over things that, in a lot of spheres, they weren’t able to.”

The library started as a subscription library in 1852. After the Civil War, the Quincy Library asked to buy the collection of books and relocate the library to Quincy. A group of women raised enough money to purchase the materials — $165 — in 1866, but the Alton mayor had to put in their winning bid; the women were not allowed to bid themselves.

The building that currently serves as the Genealogy and Local History Library was built by John E. Hayner in memory of his wife, Jennie. Hayner funded it, but it was the predominantly women-led board that designed and commissioned the construction through architect Theodore Link.

At one point, the Board of Directors even wrote a resolution that said only women could serve on the board. This rule persisted until the library became a public library in the 1950s.

In 1972, The Hayner Public Library District was officially founded. Over the years, the library district has opened two more locations and absorbed Godfrey and Foster Township. They have welcomed many influential speakers, including Frederick Douglass, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Ralph Waldo Emerson.

On May 9, the marker that shares most of this information will be unveiled at the pocket park next to the library. McDonald expressed her gratitude for the Illinois State Historical Society, Shannon and Furry for their help.

She added that the library’s history is important to preserve, and she hopes the marker and the party serve as ways to remember that history while celebrating how the library continues to evolve.

“We want people to be as excited about this place as we are. I think there’s a lot of pride in the community for the library,” she said. “What we take pride in, in the Genealogy and Local History Library, is keeping that history safe, the history of this community, and making sure that it is as comprehensive and reflective of the people that live here as we can.”

For more information about The Hayner Public Library District and their work, visit their official website.

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