Chapel Hill Public Library comes to historical society’s aid

Bookworms and history buffs will soon hit the books together.

The Chapel Hill Historical Society will be temporarily relocating to the Chapel Hill Public Library toward the end of January due to the sale of the Society’s old home at 523 East Franklin St. by the town in July.

“It was kind of a perfect storm,” said Susan Brown, director of the Chapel Hill Public Library.

Brown said the library and the historical society had already been talking about co-hosting or co-sponsoring some programs when the opportunity arose to use a space in the library that the town manager’s office would be vacating.

The manager’s office was temporarily moved to the library during the renovation of town hall.

Brown said the move will be an opportunity to grow the variety of programs and services the library can offer with the addition of the Society’s local history collection.

The move will also create an opportunity for pursuing interesting grants or programs together.

Richard Ellington, president of the Society, said the Society is happy to occupy the library space until it can find a more permanent location.

Ellington said the new location will offer the Society increased visibility.

With its collection readily available in the library, people going there to research other topics will be more likely to utilize the local history collection.

“I really want to commend the library director and the town manager’s office,” he said. “The town has a commitment to its history, and they want to make sure the historical arm is available to the public.”

The Chapel Hill Town Council decided to sell the 523 E. Franklin St. property because it did not meet Americans with Disabilities Act standards for handicapped accessibility, and it would have cost the town around a million dollars to meet the standards.

“It didn’t make financial sense to us,” said Council member Jim Ward.

The property was sold to the UNC Arts and Sciences Foundation in July.

The Society is still located at the East Franklin Street property and will remain there until the town manager’s office vacates the space in the library.

The town manager’s office is set to move out sometime this fall and preparations for the Society to move in are to be completed by Jan. 1.

Although the building has been sold, Brown said there is no rush for the Society to vacate.

And though the Society has yet to find a permanent space, Ellington said the town is being very helpful and proactive in the search.

Ward said the temporary partnership between the library and the Society makes sense.

“I think it’s a great idea — they share a lot of commonality,” he said.

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