History

The Dallas Public Library was established in 1905, through the efforts of Mrs. Irene Gerlinger and other members of the Dallas Women’s Club, in a room of the old Fireman’s Hall. In 1912, a building was constructed with local funds and a Carnegie Grant. The Dallas Public Library became part of the Chemeketa Community Regional Library Service in 1974, and the library went online in 1986. The present library and Senior Center complex was dedicated to Mayor Gwen VanDenBosch in August 1990. This building was made possible through the efforts of many individuals and local organizations.

The Collection

The library has a wide variety of items, including:

Audiobooks Books Software Children’s items Compact discs Cultural Passes DVDs eResources

Large print Magazines; Adult, Teen & Child Microfilm Music CD's Newspapers Wi-Fi 4 Word Processing Computers 10 internet Access Computers

The Dallas Public Library has over 70,000 items. Library patrons have access to approximately one million items through the Chemeketa Cooperative Regional Library Service, comprised of 17 libraries located in Polk, Marion, and Yamhill counties. Our collection includes a special section dedicated to books and pamphlets about Dallas, Polk County, and Oregon. The library also has local genealogy resources such as newspapers and census information dating back to the 1860s.