ABOUT OUR LIBRARIES

  The Williamsburg Regional Library consists of two libraries: the Williamsburg Library at 515 Scotland Street in the city of Williamsburg and the James City County Library at 7770 Croaker Road in James City County. The same library card is good at both locations. Click here for Driving Directions

  The Williamsburg Regional Library also provides personalized Mobile Library Services to those in the community who have difficulty getting to the library or those with special needs.

The Williamsburg Library
515 Scotland Street, Williamsburg, VA

  opened 1973
  expanded/renovated 1997/1998

The Williamsburg Library houses approximately 150,000 volumes and covers 40,000 square feet. This library offers a theatre, art gallery, and meeting rooms. The library is located at the new Williamsburg Municipal Center with abundant free parking.
 

For further information, phone:
 (area code 757)
Library Director 259-7777
Program Services - Meeting Rooms, Theatre 259-4070
Mobile Library Services 259-7748
Check Out / Renewal / Fines 259-4060
Reference 259-4050
Youth Services 259-4055

The James City County Library
7770 Croaker Road, Williamsburg (exit 231A from 64)

  opened 1996

The James City County Library covers 35,000 square feet and houses about 100,000 volumes and many behind-the-scenes work areas. There are meeting rooms, a family computer literacy center, and a wide array of electronic information resources. Ample parking is available. This library was funded through a James City County bond referendum in March 1994 and was opened in July 1996.


For further information, phone:
(area code 757)

Library Director  259-7777
Mobile Library Services 259-7748
Check Out / Renewal / Fines  259-7753
Meeting Rooms 259-4070
Reference 259-7720
Youth Services 259-7733

             library hours & closing dates         departmental pages and e-mail addresses

History: Founded in 1909 in the front hall of the historic Saint George Tucker House with 50 volumes, the library grew and relocated many times. It began serving James City County residents in 1926. The Williamsburg Library moved to its present location in 1973 with about 12,000 volumes and was first expanded there in 1981. The Williamsburg Regional Library was created by contract between the City of Williamsburg and James City County as an independent agency in 1977. The James City County Library was opened in the Norge/Toano area in July 1996.  View photos of our libraries and read more about our libraries' history. (coming soon)

        PUBLIC ART AT THE WILLIAMSBURG AND JAMES CITY COUNTY LIBRARIES

WL Book image
 The Williamsburg Library Book Sculpture

At the corner of Armistead Avenue and Scotland Street, this piece of art is a classic image, snatched out of time, of three books held together and hanging from an old belt – a time when children would have done this to carry books to and from the library. Artist Willy Ferguson crafted the entire piece out of hot rolled steel, with the exception of the stainless steel belt buckle. The sculpture was created in Staunton, Virginia.

WL Armillary The Williamsburg Library Armillary Sundial

The armillary (means hoops) sundial at the Williamsburg Library was crafted in 2002 by Willy Ferguson, Ferguson Metal Fabrication in Staunton, Va. It resembles a miniature Earth made from bands of welded carbon steel. This sundial’s gnomon (shadow arm) is the rod that bisects the sphere. The gnomon represents the earth’s axis and the other bands include representation of the equator and celestial horizon.

The sculptor of the two Williamsburg pieces, Willy Ferguson, was born in 1949, to a Sicilian mother and staunch Scot father. A native of Edinburgh, Scotland, the family moved to the United States when he was four. As a young man, Mr. Ferguson felt a desire to create. He found his outlet in metal sculpture. His work has been included in Time-Life publications and received numerous awards.
How to Tell Time with this Sundial
Time on the sundial is read by looking at where the gnomon shadow is cast. This shadow will be the middle, thicker shadow of the three shadow-lines, which can be seen on the largest hoop (referred to as the gnomon shadow hoop). The shadow will only be cast on this hoop.

12 noon is at the intersection of the gnomon shadow hoop and the hoop that crosses it at the bottom of the sundial. On the gnomon shadow hoop, to one side of the intersection is a.m. To the other side of the intersecting hoops is p.m. Although hours are not marked off on this sundial, you can estimate the time of day by thinking of the gnomon shadow hoop as the clock face and the shadow as the hour hand of that clock.

The two Williamsburg Library pieces were funded through private support from Louisa France and commissioned by the Williamsburg Regional Library Foundation.
Hidden in the Pages
Hidden In The Pages

Dedicated September 23, 2009 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the founding of Williamsburg Regional Library, this work was created by York County, Va.-artist Ms. Cyd Chambers Player.  The 3,000 pound, 26 foot-long outdoor sculpture is located in front of the James City County Library, 7770 Croaker Road in Norge.

Cyd Player is also the artist who produced the life-sized statues of General George Washington and the Admiral Comte De Grasse that have been on the Yorktown waterfront since 2005.

Engineer: Bill Johnson, P.E., Senior Project Manager, TAM Consultants
Book height: 6 feet, 6 inches
Page size: 6 feet x 4 feet
Finish: Galvanized and painted
Components: Disassembles into 15 to 20 parts for transport and installation
Installation: James City County Parks/Grounds Maintenance
Funding: A bequest received from the Estate of Lawrence J. Bour and commissioned by the Williamsburg Regional Library Foundation.



 

 
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