Vernon Area Public Library

The Vernon Area Public Library began in 1974 in a classroom in Stevenson High School and later moved to a temporary building in the high school parking lot. The first permanent library building was constructed at 4 Indian Creek Road in Lincolnshire. On March 20, 1990, voters approved a referendum for the sale of $6.9 million in bonds to support the construction of a new library to be built adjacent to the existing library building. On September 15, 1993, the Vernon Area Public Library opened to the public at 300 Olde Half Day Road in Lincolnshire. The 50,000 sq ft (4,600 m²) building was designed to meet the needs of a growing library district. The library has a 16,000 sq ft (1,500 m²) Adult Services department and 12,000 sq ft (1,100 m²) Youth Services department. The library shelved nearly 200,000 items at its peak before the COVID-19 pandemic, but as of 2025 has around 170,000 items.^[1][4] Public spaces include a meeting room, a cafe with beverage and snack vending machines, a quiet reading room, study rooms, computers (PCs and Macs), a media lab, and a computer classroom.^[4] A plan to expand the library will be voted on by the public in November 2026. This plan would include renovations, a new main entrance, and would create more meeting spaces within the library.^[8][9]