By Chris Samson

In 1976, Petaluma joined with the rest of the country to celebrate America’s bicentennial. The town was awash in American flags and red-white-and-blue decorations, while a July 4 parade and other patriotic festivities were held throughout the year.

But the most eagerly anticipated event of 1976 was the opening of Petaluma’s new library, a 25,000-square-foot facility located at East Washington Street and Fairgrounds Drive in the center of town.

As a young reporter who had recently been hired away from a Lake Tahoe newspaper by the Argus-Courier, I was assigned to cover the opening celebration. This Saturday, July 11, I will attend another celebration at the library: The commemoration of its 50^th anniversary.

The event will be held almost 50 years to the day after the library opened on July 10, 1976, and 11 months after the library reopened last August after undergoing a year-long renovation.

Fifty years ago, residents were thrilled to finally have a library serving the needs of the rapidly-growing city. The 1906 Carnegie Library on the corner of Fourth and B streets, now the home of the Petaluma Historical Museum, had become undersized and outdated. The new facility was three times larger and could accommodate almost twice as many books.

The new library was packed for its opening celebration on that sunny Saturday afternoon. A former mayor, local mortician Art Parent, assumed the duties of master of ceremonies and described the occasion as “a great day in our city’s history.” 

All seven members of the City Council were in attendance, including Mayor Helen Putnam, a charismatic and stylish woman who always wore about a dozen silver bracelets on each arm. Putnam said, “It is with affection for the old library and an awareness of the growing needs of the community that we dedicate this handsome new building.”

Also on hand was Dorothy Bertucci, a devoted supporter of libraries and Petaluma’s representative on the Sonoma County Library Commission. She thanked the “hundreds of people who worked to make this new library a reality.” The library’s Dorothy Bertucci Room, used for events, meetings and educational programs, is named in her memory.

Little did I know that, 50 years later, the population of Petaluma would more than double and the library would eventually be modernized to adapt to the new digital world. Nor did I imagine that I would be around to attend the 50^th anniversary celebration of the library. But, in fact, I will be there to play music with my band, Los Gu’achis. While I am there, I look forward to listening to presentations by local historians, and checking out the other anniversary activities. 

The day-long celebration will include a scavenger hunt, time capsule creation, Petaluma History Room displays, and refreshments. Visitors are encouraged to “dress like it’s 1976.” (See schedule of events.)

Because of advances in technology and a recent renovation project, the library today is much different than it was in 1976. The facility was closed between the summers of 2024 and 2025 for a major upgrade – a $6.5 million project that modernized the interior and added several new elements. (The cost of building the library was $1.4 million, equivalent to $8.2 million in today’s currency.)

In 1976, the library offered books, magazines, newspapers, cassette tapes, and microfilm readers. The digital world was still decades in the future. Today, the library is impressively modernized. Patrons can check out e-books from home with one of three vendors: Libby, Hoopla, and the Palace Project. Movies are available through the Kanopy app. CDs and DVDs can be checked out as well. The library continues to provide a bank of computers for members to use, as well as printers (free document printing up to a maximum of $5.00 a day). A recent addition is a laptop kiosk where people can check out a computer to use while they’re in the library.

Diana Spaulding, branch manager, said the response to the recent renovation has been overwhelmingly positive. “We have so many people coming in here to study, work on their computers, enjoy the openness, and to be in a place with other people without necessarily having to socialize. It’s the best ‘third space,’ and it’s free.” (A “third space” describes a social environment apart from home and work).

Spaulding said some of the noteworthy additions are five stand-alone study rooms, also known as pods. These are spaces that can be reserved at no charge for up to two hours a day for tutoring, studying, meetings, or interviews. They can accommodate one to five people and are available by same-day reservation or walk-in.

“The other big change is that we brought our history room downstairs,” Spaulding said. “Accessibility was the biggest factor. It was cost-prohibitive to add an elevator or a second stairway.”

Some former Petaluma librarians will attend the July 11 celebration, including Kiyo Okazaki, Joe Cochrane, and Kate Keaton. The late Library Commissioner Paul Heavenridge and volunteer Gerry Groves will be recognized.

For this retired journalist, attending the celebration and writing about the anniversary feels like “coming full circle,” or maybe “going back to the future.” I am pleased to still be in Petaluma to witness the renovation and improvements to the library. While most of the people who brought the library to life 50 years ago are no longer with us, I feel grateful to them when I walk into the newly modern space.

(Chris Samson worked for the Petaluma Argus-Courier as a reporter and managing editor from 1975 to 2012.)