Central Library

Central Library Hours:
Monday - Thursday : 9am - 9pm
Friday - Saturday : 9am - 5pm
Sunday - 1pm - 5pm
(Closed Sundays Memorial Day to Labor Day)

Phone: 434.979.7151
Fax: 434.971.7035
contact Central Library

Jump to: Adult Programs | Teen Programs | Kids Programs | Volunteer!

Programs for Adults

Water Your Mind: READ!

Library staff wearing the summer reading program T-shirt "Water Your Mind: READ"

Connecting @ Your Library

The Reference staff will provide one-on-one tutorials on basic computer skills and online job searching and applications. Participants must get a JMRL Library Card. For an appointment call 979.7151 ext 4.

Brown Baggers Book Group

On the third Thursday of the month bring your lunch and discuss fiction and non-fiction books. Library staff will provide value-added content and lead the discussion. Drinks and desserts will be provided. Sign up to be added to the email list. (RSS for Events)

Want to see what we've already read? Try Searching the calendar. Wiki discussion

Brown Baggers Book Group

PROFESSOR AND THE MADMAN by Simon Winchester

September 16, 2010
12:00 pm

Describes how more than ten thousand definitions were submitted for the first Oxford English Dictionary from Dr. W. C. Minor, an American Civil War criminal whose life of genius and insanity make this true story both fascinating and unique. Check the Catalogbullet

Brown Baggers Book Group

FRANKENSTEIN by Mary Shelley

October 14, 2010
12:00 pm

A monster assembled by a scientist from parts of dead bodies develops a mind of his own as he learns to loathe himself and hate his creator.
Check the Catalogbullet

Future Readings:

Documentary Film Series

The fourth Thursday of the month, (except Dec) come view and discuss documentary films on current issues. Light refreshments will be provided. Sign up to be added to the film email list. (RSS for Events)

Documentary Film Series

MovieAMERICAN GYPSY directed by Jasmine Dellal (1999)

September 23, 2010
7:00 pm

America is home to one million Gypsies, or Rom, whose rich culture has long been mysterious to outsiders. A flamboyant Romani leader invites us into this world when it comes under threat. In a quest to defend his honor, he leads us through the history of his people to Civil Rights courts, Vegas casinos and beyond. The Olivarez Trio will be performing 5:30-7pm before the film.

Documentary Film Series

MovieTHE CHILDREN OF CHABANNES directed by Lisa Gossels & Dean Wetherell (1999)

October 28, 2010
7:00 pm

A magical World War II tale of resilience and love, this film reveals the previously untold story of how the people in a tiny village in unoccupied France chose action over indifference to save the lives of 400 Jewish refugee children. Returning to the forgotten corner of France with her father and uncle (two of the saved children), filmmaker Lisa Gossels and co-director Dean Wetherell movingly recreated the joys and fears of daily life in Chabannes during the war.

Documentary Film Series

MovieRIDING THE RAILS directed by Lexie Lovell and Michael Uys

November 18, 2010
7:00 pm

During the Great Depression, 4 million Americans took to the road, searching for food and shelter - 250,000 were children, many of them teenagers whose families could no longer provide for them. Included areinterviews with former teenage transients 60 years later. A PBS film.

JMRL Board Meeting

September 27, 2010
1:00 pm

The Board of the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library meets the 4th Monday of every month. The location is usually at the Central Library--but the agenda will show if the meeting is at a different location.

History of McIntire and Central Library

Albemarle Library Society
Albemarle Library Society

The first known library in downtown Charlottesville was created in 1823 by a group of citizens that included Thomas Jefferson. The “Albemarle Library Society” boasted an initial collection of 238 titles. This village library was located at “Number Nothing” in Court Square (a site now occupied by 224 Court Square). A public subscription library, the society was incorporated by the Virginia General Assembly and lasted at least until 1834. It was not until 1919 and the generosity of Paul Goodloe McIntire that a truly public library was formed. McIntire donated not only the land and the construction costs, but the furniture and the first 5,000 books for the new library as well. The cornerstone was laid in November, 1919, and the new “Charlottesville Public Library” opened its doors to the public on May 30, 1921.

The Regional Library Evolves

Original site of the library, now the Historical Society
Original site of the library, now the Historical Society

With the development of bookmobile service to Albemarle County in 1947, the name of the library was changed to the “Charlottesville-Albemarle Public Library”. In 1958, six years after the death of Mr. McIntire, the main library building and the system itself became known as the “McIntire Library.”

Additional branches in Scottsville, Crozet, and on Gordon Avenue in Charlottesville took some of the pressure off of the small McIntire Branch in the early 1960s, and, in 1972, with the addition of branches in Louisa and Nelson counties, the library system became the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library. Greene County joined the system in 1974.

Market St. Post Office Building
Market St. Post Office Building

In October 1977, the Market Street Post Office building was purchased by Charlottesville and Albemarle County. Under Director Christopher Devan, a 17-month renovation project took place. Total cost of the project reached $2.25 million. After moving the McIntire collection of 90,000 volumes into the building on Market Street, the new Central Library opened on February 2, 1981 to patrons eager for a larger facility. Along with administration and technical services, the third floor of the new building offered the community three meeting rooms, one of them dedicated to Mr. McIntire.

In May 1987, the Albemarle County Historical Society's Library and the Central Virginia Genealogical Association consolidated their resources with those of the Central Library and moved the newly formed Charlottesville-Albemarle Historical Collection to the mezzanine of the Central Library where it remained until 1994. That year, after extensive restoration and renovation, the Historical Collection moved out of the Central Library and into the former McIntire Library.

Beyond the Printed Page

In the late 80s, the Library Board and Director Bill Swinson had committed the library system to obtaining the benefits of emerging modern technology. By February 1989, under Director Donna Selle, the card catalogs at all branches were replaced with on-line computer catalogs for the public and J-MRL fully implemented its automated circulation system.

In order to continue to integrate technology into the library system, the Central Library was again renovated in 1995. The opening of a public computer lab for internet access and the development and implementation of a community information network, Monticello Avenue, were initiated. The public lab currently houses many internet stations and access is also available in the Central Reference Department where extensive electronic resources complement the print and microform collections.

Current Director John Halliday oversees the entire J-MRL system from his office on the third floor of the Central Library.