50 years on, Salt Lake County’s Whitmore library endures as a community staple

When the Whitmore Library opened in Salt Lake County in 1974, it sought to be the library of the future. Whitmore boasted all the state-of-the-art technology — a UPI teletype machine, calculators, cassette player-recorders and pianos rooms with recording capabilities.
Most of this tech eventually collected dust and moved over for modern needs, like computers. But in the 50 years since Whitmore’s grand opening, it endures as a part of Salt Lake County’s thriving library system.
Whitmore Library was constructed in Cottonwood Heights in 1974 as a response to increased demand for library space in a growing Salt Lake County. There are now 18 full-service library branches in the Salt Lake County library system, and they make up one of the highest-circulating library systems in North America.
On Friday morning, the county library celebrated 50 years of the Whitmore branch.
“I am amazed to be a part of an institution that has meant so much to so many community members over the decades,” Salt Lake County Library Director Joey McNamee said at the anniversary celebration. “Whitmore … is one of our highest circulation branches and it is beloved by community members, who live here now and have lived here before.”
Whitmore Manager Maggie Mills credits the library’s ongoing success with “a very supportive community that likes to use the library,” she told the Deseret News. More than 12 million items were checked out from the county library in 2023 and over 2.5 million patrons visited a county branch. “We have a lot of readers in Cottonwood Heights,” Mills said.
Dan Berube, a longtime librarian at Whitmore Library, grew up in New York and worked at the Washington, D.C., Public Library before moving to Salt Lake County.
“I was really amazed when I came out here, because of how well supported the libraries are, how well used they are and how well funded they are compared to where I have lived before,” Berube told the Deseret News.
“If we didn’t have people coming in and using the library and supporting it, we wouldn’t be as robust as we are.”
Berube has worked at Whitmore Library since 2003. He’s seen kids who regularly come into the library grow into adults. He’s also seen the library transform in subtle ways to meet the evolving needs of patrons. When Berube started at Whitmore, cassette tapes were still getting checked out, now young kids ask what VHS tapes are and CD check-outs are fading, he said.
Since its opening day, Whitmore has prioritized staying “on top of technology,” Mills said, and continues to provide patrons with access to modern gadgets and programs, like e-books, streamable audiobooks and even 3-D printers. But library staples — such as a quiet study space, hard copies of books, story time and a sense of community — are what make the library an enduring need.
“I think that our usual business of people reading, getting information, reading for fun, kids coming to story time, that’s all going to continue just as it has the last 50 years,” Mills said. “We are a very busy library, there’s a foot traffic.”
In honor of 50 years of Whitmore, the library turned back the clock and celebrated with ‘70 fads and other activities. Popular music and movies from 1974 were put on display, library employees donned ‘70s-inspired looks, mini disco balls were handed out and so were treat bags with popular candy from the era.
There was also a station to make a pet rock, storytime in Whitmore’s rainbow room, a scavenger hunt and a magic show.
“I love what libraries are about,” Mills said. “We’re about access for everyone, and if it’s pleasure reading, or it’s to learn something, or if it’s to start a business or grow a business, or kids learning how to read, learning how to appreciate books and literature, having those early literacy activities for the kids that support homework, support. That’s all part of what we do, and I am proud to be part of that.”