Forsyth County Public Library
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The Forsyth County Public Library (FCPL) is a consortium of five public libraries in Forsyth County, Georgia, United States. Four branches are located in the county seat of Cumming and one branch is located in Alpharetta.
Contents
• History
• Branches
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History
Early years: Gwinnett–Forsyth Regional Library
The first library in Forsyth County was run out of the home of Laura Hockenhull, who at the time owned a private library and decided to open it up to the public. By 1938 the Works Progress Administration (WPA) of Forsyth opened the first formal county library with a collection of just over 600 volumes. With funding from the WPA, this collection of books was housed throughout the county, largely on a bookmobile that covered 20 routes through the county.cite-ref-history-1-1[1]
In 1956, in an effort to consolidate resources, Forsyth and Gwinnett County created a joint library system named the Gwinnett–Forsyth Regional Library System. Their partnership drastically increased the number of volumes available in the system as Gwinnett County housed a half-dozen library locations while the Forsyth library collections were spread out among various buildings.cite-ref-history-1-2[1]
Finally, in 1966 a formal location for library use was constructed in Forsyth County. Funding came from the federal Library Services and Construction Act, allowing for a centralized location for most of the county's books. By this time, due to the county's proximity to Atlanta, the population in Forsyth and nearby counties was booming. A bond referendum, passed in 1988, allocated $2.1 million for the improvement of the county libraries, and the state of Georgia matched this with a $2 million grant for construction of a new building which opened in 1992.cite-ref-history-1-3[1]
In 1995, Gwinnett County decided to dissolve the Gwinnett–Forsyth Regional Library System as their population and accommodations had grown to a point of independence.cite-ref-5[5]
Forsyth County Public Library
The following year, 1996, as a response to the split from Gwinnett county, Forsyth county passed a special-purpose local-option sales tax (SPLOST) in order to raise funds to build a new library branch. This was repeated in 1998 to open the Sharon Forks Branch in 2000.cite-ref-history-1-4[1]
In 2010 a third location, the Hampton Park Library was opened.cite-ref-history-1-5[1]cite-ref-6[6] In 2013 the Post Road Library opened, marking FCPL's fourth location.cite-ref-history-1-6[1]cite-ref-7[7] In 2017, SPLOST funds were used to renovate the Sharon Forks Library.cite-ref-history-1-7[1]cite-ref-8[8] In 2025 a fifth location, the Denmark Library, was opened.cite-ref-history-1-8[1]cite-ref-9[9]
Branches
| Name | Address | Opened |
|---|---|---|
| Cumming Library | 585 Dahlonega Street, Cumming, GA 30040 | 1990 |
| Denmark Library | 530 Fowler Road, Alpharetta, GA 30005 | 2025 |
| Hampton Park Library | 5345 Settingdown Road, Cumming, GA 30041 | 2010 |
| Post Road Library | 5010 Post Road, Cumming, GA 30040 | 2013 |
| Sharon Forks Library | 2820 Old Atlanta Road, Cumming, GA 30041 | 2000 |
Library systems in neighboring counties
• Chestatee Regional Library System to the north
• Sequoyah Regional Library System to the west
• Fulton County Library System to the southwest
• Gwinnett County Public Library to the south
• Hall County Library System to the east
References
cite-note-history-11. "History - Forsyth County Public Library". www.forsythpl.org. Retrieved July 23, 2021.
cite-note-currentlook2020-21. "A Current Look at Georgia Public Libraries and GPLS 2020" (PDF). Georgia Public Library Service. June 2021. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
cite-note-galib2015-33. ↑ "Current Look at Georgia Libraries 2015" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 24, 2016. Retrieved March 6, 2017.
cite-note-44. ↑ citerefrobins2016Robins, Kayla (August 21, 2016). "Forsyth County library system celebrating 20 years". Forsyth County News. Retrieved March 6, 2017.
cite-note-55. ↑ "Gwinnett LIBRARY HISTORY". Retrieved March 6, 2017.
cite-note-66. ↑ citereflarenzie2010LaRenzie, Alyssa (March 3, 2010). "Library to open March 15". Forsyth County News. Retrieved April 21, 2025.
cite-note-77. ↑ citerefnahed2013Nahed, Aldo (February 12, 2013). "Post Road Library set to open in summer". Appen Media. Retrieved April 21, 2025.
cite-note-88. ↑ citerefpopp2018Popp, Alexander (February 14, 2018). "Sharon Forks library announces month-long closing". Forsyth County News. Retrieved April 21, 2025.
cite-note-99. ↑ citerefjaudon2025Jaudon, Travis (March 26, 2025). "Denmark Library is ready to open". Forsyth County News. Retrieved April 21, 2025.
External links