Sioux Falls Public Library Bookmobile
The museum recently received several scrapbooks belonging to longtime librarians Pauline Striemer and Justine Watson. These scrapbooks have pictures and memorabilia from the Sioux Falls Public Library’s history. One scrapbook revealed details about a new service being offered through the library, the Bookmobile. Bids for the new Bookmobile were taken in 1950 and the first vehicle was bought for $7,500. The Sioux Falls Public Library’s Bookmobile service began on October 1, 1951. Pauline Striemer was hired to be the first bookmobile librarian.
The library-on-wheels ran five afternoons a week from 1 to 6 pm and visited 10 different locations with two stops per day during the week. The Bookmobile had a generator so it could be in service year-round. The first vehicle could hold up to 3,000 volumes of books. Eventually, the library system would add additional Bookmobiles to its fleet. Striemer worked as the Bookmobile librarian for 41 years, retiring in 1994. The Bookmobile service is still being offered today by the Siouxland Libraries.