:: Marcy Library
3711 Central Avenue
Riverside, CA 92506
(951) 682-5524
Hours
Monday-Thursday: 9 am - 7 pm
Friday & Saturday: 9 am - 5 pm
Sunday: Closed
About Marcy Library
This charming branch, located in a small, round brick building, first opened in 1958. The Marcy Branch offers three computer workstations—all include Internet access and Office 2000.
Programs
Storytime: Mondays 10:30 a.m.
After School Activities and other events: Please check the library calendar (PDF).
Library History
I still remember my first visit to the old Marcy Branch Library on Magnolia; the library was in an old house with a front porch and a picture window. I was astonished when we simply walked up to the door and opened it without knocking. “Do we KNOW these people?” I asked my mother.—Douglas Rees, author of Vampire High, Lightning Time, Grandy Thaxter's Helper, and Smoking Mirror
Marcy started out as a children’s summer branch. The P.T.A.s of three local schools asked the City Council for a facility in the Magnolia Center area. This children’s branch, located in room 104 of Palm Elementary School, opened in June 1951. The following month, the Library Board purchased a double lot on the north side of Central Avenue, east of Magnolia Center, as the site for a permanent branch building. The Magnolia Center Branch opened in a leased building on Magnolia Avenue in December 1951. On 15 March 1958, the Marcy Branch Library (formerly the Magnolia Center Branch) on Central Avenue was dedicated. This Branch was largely funded by a bequest in the will of long-time resident Charles F. Marcy. Its circular design, by Riverside architect Herman O. Ruhnau, drew nationwide attention.
Source: Serving Through Partnership: A Centennial History of the Riverside City and County Public Library, 1888-1988, by Ronald J. Baker