Northern Waters Library Service

Northern Waters Library Service is a federated library system which provides services to 27 public libraries across eight Wisconsin counties (Ashland, Bayfield, Burnett, Douglas, Iron, Sawyer, Vilas, and Washburn).^[1]

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The system began in 1959 as an agreement between Ashland, Bayfield, Iron, and Price counties to share a bookmobile service. By 1969, the Multi-County Library System had reached its current membership of eight counties.^[2] The current form of the organization was established on January 1, 1973, as the Northwest Wisconsin Library System, one of the first created under a state law which provided funding to public library systems.^[3] The name was changed to Northern Waters Library Service in 1989.^[2]

The system is responsible for Merlin ("My Electronic Resource Library Information Network"), a centralized online catalog for all member libraries which was created in 2000.^[2]^[4]

Member libraries

Ashland County
- Legion Memorial Library, Mellen
- Madeline Island Public Library, La Pointe
- Vaughn Public Library, Ashland
Bayfield County
- Bayfield Carnegie Public Library, Bayfield
- Drummond Public Library, Drummond
- Evelyn Goldberg Briggs Memorial Library, Iron River
- Forest Lodge Library, Cable
- Washburn Public Library, Washburn
Burnett County
- Grantsburg Public Library, Grantsburg
- Larsen Family Public Library, Webster
Douglas County
- Superior Public Library, Superior
  - Imogene McGrath Memorial Library Branch, Lake Nebagamon
  - Solon Springs Joan Salmen Memorial Library Branch, Solon Springs
Iron County
- Hurley Public Library, Hurley
- Mercer Public Library, Mercer
Sawyer County
- Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe University Community Library, Hayward
- Sherman & Ruth Weiss Community Library, Hayward
- Winter Public Library, Winter
Vilas County
- Ben Guthrie–Lac du Flambeau Public Library, Lac du Flambeau
- Boulder Junction Public Library, Boulder Junction
- Eleanor Ellis Public Library, Phelps
- Frank B. Koller Memorial Library, Manitowish Waters
- Land O' Lakes Public Library, Land O' Lakes
- Plum Lake Public Library, Sayner
- Presque Isle Community Library, Presque Isle
- Walter E. Olson Memorial Library, Eagle River
- Winchester Public Library, Winchester
Washburn County
- Shell Lake Public Library, Shell Lake
- Spooner Memorial Library, Spooner
  - Spooner Memorial Library Books & Bread Bookmobile

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Northern Waters Library Service

Member libraries

References

External links

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