The Ladies Improvement Club of St. Cloud was organized in 1910. Its purpose is for "the betterment of the community through civic projects and the advocacy of literacy". The club established a tiny area in the Sugar Belt Railway. This was used for a depot of books and magazines for public use. The club relocated this collection to a small building on Pennsylvania Avenue, then later moved it to the second floor of city hall on Florida Avenue and 10th Street. This library became the focus of the club and the growing community. In 1915, the club president named Mary George worked with Judge W.G. Peckham to secure lots on Massachusetts Avenue for the construction of a new library building.
Within a year, the club had raised $700 to pay for the lots. Contributions from Union Army veterans in the Grand Army of the Republic helped fund the construction of the library in 1922. It was designed by Orlando architects Ida Annah Ryan (the first woman to earn a master's degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)), and Isabel Roberts, who studied under Frank Lloyd Wright. Ryan and Roberts insisted on a motto. Thomas Carlyle’s “The true university is a collection of books.” was selected.
This Grecian-style building was constructed by P.E. Morgan. It is composed of hollow clay tile with a stained stucco exterior finish. The dedication of the Veterans Memorial Library in February 1923, was presided over by the president of the Ladies Improvement Club. The ceremony consisted of Sixty members of the Grand Army of the Republic, and forty members of its auxiliary-the Woman’s Relief Corps. Together they marched to the library for flag-raising ceremonies. The Ladies Improvement Club was renamed the Woman’s Club of St. Cloud in 1941. They maintained and operated the library until it became part of the Osceola County library system in 1968. The building had served as the city’s library for over 50 years until the library moved in 1974. Veterans Memorial Library-St. Cloud moved in 1995 to a 15,000-square-foot space in the old Sunbank building on Indiana Avenue and 13th Street in St. Cloud. Where it still operates today.
Business Review
This library throws incredible children's parties. My personal favorite is the Harry Potter-themed one that takes place in October. They also have literacy classes and after-school stem activities for kids.
