Ribbon Cutting at the Old Worthington Library Reopening Celebration

The color photograph shows the ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Old Worthington Library's grand reopening celebration on August 23, 1997. Over a dozen people are shown at the left of the photo, holding or cutting the pink ribbon in front of the south entrance to the library. Then-director Meribah Mansfield is pictured second from left. To the right of the photo, a crowd of people captures the moment on camera and videorecorder.

The reopening celebration followed over a year of renovations on the building, which began in April, 1996. The library, then located at 805 Hartford Street, closed the building for roof repairs and renovations; operations for the library, including staff and materials, were moved next door to the former NBD Bank building at 820 High Street, which the library had purchased in 1993.

Renovations took place between July 16, 1996 and August 25, 1997, during which time workers also built a connector between the library and bank building.

The library building reopened to the public on August 11, 1996, and renovations to the bank building began, converting it into the library’s administrative and technical services offices and adding a large meeting room space.

An article by Tiffany Volpe in the August 13, 1997 “Worthington Suburbia News” describes the newly reopened library: “People milled around, looking at the new carpet, two murals on loan from the Worthington Historical Society and the children’s area, called Bookingham Forest.”

The grand reopening celebration on August 23, 1997, which includes the ribbon cutting shown here, also featured a parade, live music, hourly tours of the building, a scavenger hunt, and cake and fruit refreshments.