History of the Robert L Williams Public Library

       In 1921 the Durant City Council passed an ordinance for a public library.  They appointed a library board, rented a house at the corner of 4th and Beech, and hired Mrs. Lester O'Riley as Durant's first librarian.  The library was open to the citizens of Durant and to the students and professors of Southeastern Oklahoma State Teachers College, now Southeastern Oklahoma State University.  
     Judge Robert L. Williams purchased the present property in 1925 and donated the site to the city to be used for a library.  In 1935 the voters passed a bond issue for funds to be used for the construction of a library building.  Judge Williams paid the interest on $10,000 of the $10,500 approved.  A federal grant from the WPA allowed construction to start in 1936.
       In 1939 the library had 6,500 volumes plus other items the community donated from their private collections to help supplement the book budget.
      In 1955 an extension was added to the existing building, and new shelving, tables, a circulation desk, and air-conditioning were added.  A trust was set up by Judge Williams to pay for the library addition.
     In 1987 the library moved to the old Durant Bank & Trust building for a year while the library was again being expanded.  Funds for this addition came from the Judge Williams Trust and a grant from the Oklahoma Department of Libraries.
      In 1991 the first computers were added to the equipment list, and the staff began the task of putting the book records in the electronic database.  The card catalog was made available on the computer at that time.  Presently the library has a total of twenty computers with ten of those for patron use.
     In 1997 a grant from the Oklahoma State Commerce specifically for accessing the Internet allowed the library to offer its patrons access to the World Wide Web.  
     Today the library holds over 70,000 volumes and, with the benefit of the Oklahoma Department of Libraries statewide Interlibrary Loan system the library circulation is over 90,000 items annually.
     In 2003 the library board acquired more than five acres of land and hired an architectural firm to draw up plans for a new library building.  In June 2008 a grant was approved with the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation for the construction of a Community Center and Library on the West Main location with a projected completion date of March 2011.
     The City Council and the current library board remain committed to helping the patrons of the Robert L Williams Public Library function in the present and prepare for the future.  New technology is being offered at an ever-faster rate, and the library is eager to serve as a support system for the citizens of Durant so that they can learn to cope with the demands of an increasingly technical world.   The library now has ten computers for patron use, WiFi wireless Internet access, and a library webpage with links to the ODL state sponsored databases and ten library paid databases.