The weather in Calgary this week has completely knocked me off my bearings and scrambled whatever clear ideas I once had. This being so I won't even try to craft this week's dispatch into any kind of coherent narrative.

It is, instead, a mixed bag—including a few letters to the editor. Here goes:

Okay, now on to the letters.

A couple weeks ago I wrote about the Crescent Heights Library, which closed in 1993—and how it wasn't just a place for books. My story elicited the following responses...

Thank you for the wonderful story about the Crescent Heights Library. I worked as a “page” in that library while attending Crescent Heights High School. A “page” put away returned books and grappled with the Dewey Decimal filing system.

On Saturdays, I worked at the Hillhurst Library, the Inglewood Library or the Carnegie-funded library in Central Park under the tutelage of inspiring librarians: Miss Rogers, Mrs. Bowman and Miss Riley.

Happy memories!

Jacqueline Donoghue, former broadcaster

I especially loved librarian Sada Kiteley talking about libraries as centres of community way back in 1943. “This community sense is an important thing, this opportunity to belong and to share" is something a 2026 librarian would say! Fantastic.

Peter Bailey, former St. Albert Public Library CEO (on Facebook)

I read your article on the Crescent Heights Library in The Sprawl. It brought back many memories.

I was the manager of the library when it closed. I remember the shock of being called to the Central Library and told that the branch was closing at the end of the day. With a frozen feeling, I went back to the branch.

On the drive back, I started a list of things that needed to be done immediately. I told the staff we were closing. After the shock wore off and the tears had dried, the main reaction was, “What do we do for our patrons, to make this easier?”

To a person, the staff put aside their own shock, worry for the future, and grief. They calmly talked to the patrons in the building, phoned people who had books on hold, packed books to go to other branches and put up signs to explain what was happening. 

At the end of the day, we locked the doors for the last time, ending a piece of Calgary history.

It took about a month to dismantle the library and reallocate or store the materials. The staff moved on to other branches and had long, good careers with CPL.
  
Having worked in the building, I understand the decision intellectually. The building was not built to hold the weight of books. It would have been expensive to remediate. The era of connectivity was fast approaching and we didn't have the room to add terminals etc.

But a library is more than materials. Your article enunciated exactly what that library meant to the community—it was a safe welcome place where there was knowledge and recreation, served with a caring smile.

Thank you for the memories,

Aruna Marathe

Okay, I'm off to Shelf Life Books. Join us there if you can swing it and have a lovely weekend. And don't forget to support The Sprawl's journalism if you value it!

Jeremy Klaszus is founder and editor of The Sprawl.