The mission of the Welles-Turner Memorial Library is to provide books and other media, facilities, and professional services to inform, educate, and culturally enrich the community.
Click on the link above to see a map of the area from MapQuest.com.
Directions:
VIA I-91: EXIT 25, Rt. 3 PUTNAM BRIDGE, Glastonbury. Cross the Putnam Bridge and take the exit labeled MAIN STREET. (It has no number.) At the end of the exit ramp, turn LEFT onto GLASTONBURY BLVD. At the next stop light, turn RIGHT onto MAIN STREET. Go approximately ONE MILE. The library is on the RIGHT, immediately after the time/temperature sign on the Banknorth Connecticut Building.
VIA I-84: Take EXIT 55, Rt. 2. Take Rt. 2 to EXIT 8, HEBRON AVENUE. From Rt. 2 East turn RIGHT onto HEBRON AVE.
From Rt. 2 West turn RIGHT onto OAK STREET and then LEFT onto HEBRON AVE. Follow Hebron Avenue until it ends at Main St. Turn RIGHT onto MAIN STREET. The library is immediately on the left.
Can I use my cell phone in the library? May food and beverages be consumed in the library? May we talk in the library? Answers to these questions and others can be found by following this link.
May I drop off my child in the library and leave the building? What will happen in the library closes and I am not there to pick up my child or teenager? Answers to these questions and others can be found by following this link.
Can I tutor my students in the library? Tutors may use the quiet study rooms for tutoring their students. To preserve the student's privacy and to avoid disturbing other patrons, we ask that no other area of the library be used for this purpose.
May I reserve a room in advance? Private tutors may not reserve rooms prior to the day of the appointment.
For our complete tutoring policy, please seethis document.
How do I reserve the Friends Room? The Friends Room seats up to ninety people at a time. Library patrons and other groups may reserve this room by contacting Sue Jensen at (860) 652-7730 or emailing her at sue.jensen@glastonbury-ct.gov.
How do I reserve a quiet study room? Three quiet study rooms are available. These rooms hold two or three people (four in a pinch). You may reserve these room by stopping by the Reference Desk or by calling 860) 652-7720. Rooms are usually available, so although reserving the room ahead of time is advisable, it is not always necessary. Tutors may no longer reserve rooms in advance, although they remain available for tutoring on a first-come, first-served basis.
What passes are available? We have passes to the Basketball Hall of Fame, Beardsley Zoo, Children's Museum and Roaring Brook Nature Center, Connecticut River Museum, Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, Florence Griswold Museum, Harriet Beecher Stowe House, Hill-Stead Museum, ImagiNation Museum, Lutz Children's Museum, Mark Twain House, Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center, Maritime Aquarium, Mystic Aquarium, Mystic Seaport, New Britain Museum of American Art, New England Air Museum, Norman Rockwell Museum, the Old State House, Peabody Museum of Natural History, State Parks and Forests (April-October), and the Wadsworth Atheneum. Some passes are occasionally taken out of circulation for brief periods, so please look at the museum brochure (link below) to see the current list of available passes.
How do I get a pass? Passes are now available on a first-come, first-served basis. Reservations will no longer be taken. Call the Lending Desk at (860) 652-7719 for information about passes or see our Museum Pass brochure.
What kinds of technology do you have for patrons to borrow? We currently have two mp3 players, two Sony eReaderS, two Kindles, and two Nook Colors that can be charged out on your library card. We also have two iPads, available for in-library use only.
Can anyone borrow these items? In order to borrow the eBook readers, you must be a Glastonbury resident. You must have a valid Welles-Turner library card. The card must be free of all fines. Use of the iPad (in-house only) is limited to patrons 18 or older with a valid Welles-Turner library card (no fines), and a driver's license must be presented. If you do not have a driver's license, a credit card will be accepted.
Where do I get these items? The eReaders are held at the Lending Desk. The iPads are held at the Reference Desk.
What is the lending period on these items? eBook readers now circulate for three weeks. The iPads may be used for two-hour periods per day.
What are the fines on these items? The eReaders are charged a $1.00 overdue fine/day, for a maximum of $5.00. If an iPad is taken out of the building during the two-hour loan period, you will be charged $50.00 upon its return.
Fines are not charged on any day the library is closed.
Your card will be blocked if you accrue fines of $10.00 or more. You will be unable to charge additional items or use our Internet computers until a payment bringing the total to less than $10.00 is made.
Senior citizens do not pay fines on most materials unless they are returned long overdue. See Other Lending Questions below for more complete information.
Please note that if you wish to borrow eReaders, mp3 players, and other similar electronic resources, your account must be cleared of all fines.
May I renew materials I borrowed? Yes, if no other patron is waiting for them. Items may be renewed once, either in person, by phone, or online. To renew by phone, please call (860) 652-7719. Please have your library card and book(s) in hand.
To renew online, go to our home page (www.wtmlib.com), click on Library Catalog, and then click on the RENEW MY MATERIALS/REVIEW MY ACCOUNT button. On the following screen, click on RENEW MY MATERIALS and follow the onscreen instructions. You will need your library card. Your PIN is "CHANGEME" if you haven't selected one.
What do I need to do to get a Welles-Turner Memorial Library card?
You need to go to the lending desk and show proof of residency, such as a driver's license with your Glastonbury address or a recently cancelled piece of first-class mail. Your name and address must appear on your proof of residency. Children ages 17 and under must have a parent with them in order to get a library card.
May I borrow materials when I apply for my library card?
Yes, your card is issued immediately.
For your protection, do not loan your card to anyone else, as you are responsible for any materials charged to your card.
May I use my card at other libraries?
Yes, your Welles-Turner Memorial Library card may be used at most public libraries in Connecticut. (Academic libraries usually require borrowers to be a student at that institution. However, we may be able to interlibrary loan a book for you from that institution.)
How can I find out what is on my library card?
To do this yourself, go to our home page (www.wtmlib.com), click on Library Catalog, and then click on the RENEW MY MATERIALS/REVIEW MY ACCOUNT button. On the following screen, click on REVIEW MY ACCOUNT and follow the onscreen instructions. You will need your library card. Your PIN is "CHANGEME" if you haven't selected one. You will be able to see what you have charged on your account, what items you have on hold, and whether you have any overdue or billed items.
If you do not have access to a computer, you can ask at the Lending Desk or call 652-7719 for this information. You must have the library card with you in order to get this information.
Do senior citizens have to pay overdue fines?
If you are a Glastonbury resident and sixty-five years or older, you will not pay overdue fines on most Glastonbury items. Seniors still pay fines for Rapid Readers, museum passes, eReaders, and mp3 players. If an item is long overdue and a bill is sent out to the patron, the senior will be charged the maximum overdue fine for that item upon its return. Seniors who check out materials from other Connecticut libraries must pay those library's fines for overdue materials.
How will I know when a book I'm waiting for is available?
If you have given us your email address, you will be notified about available holds by email. If you have a spam blocker on your email account, please set it to accept mail from welles.turner.library@glastonbury-ct.gov. Mail will arrive with the subject heading LIBRARY NOTICE. If you do not use email, you will receive a notice by conventional mail.
May I return materials at any other library?
Most materials may be returned at other libraries. Museum passes, Rapid Reader books, Kill-a-Watts, teacher kits, eReaders, and mp3 players must be returned to Welles-Turner library. Please be aware that items returned to libraries outside our consortium will remain on your account until they arrive back at Welles-Turner Library. Therefore, it is highly recommended that you do not return videos or DVDs outside our consortium. Please note that the South Glastonbury and East Glastonbury private libraries are neither branches of Welles-Turner Library nor in our consortium.
What are Rapid Reader books?
Rapid Reader books are fiction or non-fiction best-sellers that generally have a long waiting list (Janet Evanovich and Stephen King books are examples). Because these books are in such demand, we purchase several copies and designate one a "Rapid Reader". These books go out for seven days and may not be renewed. Fines for overdue Rapid Reader books are $2.00 a day.
What are the rules for using the book drop?
The book drop is open at all times. You are responsible for the condition of all items returned in the book drop. Please do not leave materials on top of the book drop. Please do not leave money or museum passes in the book drop. Please put CDs, DVDs, and videos in the bin marked VIDEO.
May I borrow materials without my card?
Yes. You may use a valid (not expired, address matches your library card record) CT driver's license if you do not have your card with you. However, we encourage you to bring your card with you.
What if I lose or damage library materials?
Notify the library as soon as possible. To retain your borrowing privileges, you will need to pay for the replacement of each item. If you find materials within six (6) months, you may receive a refund minus the maximum fine.
What do I do if my library card is lost or stolen?
Notify the library immediately. You are responsible for all materials borrowed on your card. Replacement cards cost $2.00.
What if the materials I want aren't in the library when I visit?
You may reserve materials unavailable at the time of your visit. You will be notified by U.S. mail or email when the item is available. (For faster service, please provide us with your email address.)
What if the item I want is at another library?
Interlibrary loans are available. Ask a librarian on the Reference Desk (second floor) for assistance.
What if I am moving?
If you are moving within town, please let us know your new address as soon as possible. If you are moving within Connecticut, you must get a library card from the library in the town in which you reside. You are then welcome to use that card here. If you are moving out of state, turn in your library card before you leave.
We have a number of Internet/word processing computers available to the public. They are available on a first-come, first-served basis. To use a computer, you will need a valid Connecticut library card. (A valid card is a non-expired card issued by the town in which you reside.) Patrons may use a library computer for a maximum of two hours a day. Time can not be extended. If you are visiting the area, you may get a visitor's pass at the Reference Desk, which is good for thirty minutes of computer use.
Time used on the computer is debited from the card holder's allotted two hours per day, regardless of who actually used the computer. Please be careful when allowing access to your library card, as you are responsible for anything charged out or accessed on it.
Computers are configured to allow printing, but individual computers may occasionally not be printing. Please look for a sign on the monitor indicating any printing issues. You can print in black and white ($0.20/copy) and in color ($0.50/copy). Instructions for printing are posted by each computer.
Two Internet/word processing computers are available in the Teen Room for the use of our patrons in grades 7-12. Three Internet computers are available in the Children's Department for the use of young children and accompanying caretakers. The same usage rules apply.
Do you have wi-fi?
Wi-fi access is available throughout the building. You do not need a password to access the network.
Where are your copy machines?
One copy machine is adjacent to the magazine room on the Main Street level. This copy machine can print in black and white ($0.20/copy) and in color ($0.50/copy). A second copier is under the clock map to the right of the door as you enter from the parking lot on the main level. This copier prints only in black and white ($0.20/copy).
Do you have a fax machine for public use?
Yes. It is located between the Reference Desk and the magazine room. You will need a debit or credit card. The cost for domestic faxes is $1.50 for the first page and $1.00 for each page thereafter. If you are receiving a fax at this machine, you must be by the fax machine when it arrives.
The library is named for Harriet Welles Turner Burnham. The daughter of Frederick Welles (second cousin of Gideon Welles) and Catherine Saltonstall Welles, she was born in 1856 and died in 1931. Harriet and her first husband, Sturgis P. Turner, lived in a house located on the present site of the Library. When she died, she left $350,000 and the homestead property in a trust, with the provision that they be used for the erection and maintenance of a public library building as a memorial to the Welles and Turner families.
Did she live in this building before it was a library?
No. The library is built on the location of Harriet Burnham's residence, but her house was demolished to make room for the library. The library was intentionally designed to look like someone's home in order to help it blend in with the rest of Glastonbury Center and to create a warmer atmosphere.
I remember the library being much smaller than this!
Welles-Turner Library has had two additions since it was first built in 1952. The first was in 1965. The second, completed in 1999, doubled the library's size.
Much more information about the library's history can be found in this document.
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