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Washington County Cooperative Library Services Home

Our History

In 1976 voters passed the first countywide tax measure to fund library services, and the cooperative was created, with WCCLS as a department of Washington County providing the central services and allocating funds. Our cooperative expanded services to all county residents – more than half of whom did not previously have access to a public library.

A few people sorting books in the WCCLS Warehouse.
  • 1974-1975: Study about countywide library service initiated. Beaverton initiated a federal grant to study/implement countywide service.
  • May 1976: Library services for all residents established by voters. Beaverton, Cornelius, Forest Grove, Hillsboro, Sherwood and Tigard city libraries joined by community libraries in Banks, Cedar Mill, Town Center (Tanasbourne) and West Slope to create the cooperative.
  • 1977: Tualatin Public Library joins the cooperative.
  • June 1979: Checkouts exceed 1 million annually.
  • May 1986: Countywide computer system replaces the card catalog.
  • September 1996: Garden Home Community Library joins the cooperative.
  • September 1998: Countywide computer catalog converts to web-based system that is accessible outside the library buildings, using internet technology.
  • June 2007: North Plains Public Library joins the cooperative.
  • July 2007: Bethany Library (branch of Cedar Mill Library) opens. 
  • June 2009: Checkouts exceed 10 million annually.
  • 2010: Free wi-fi available to the public through WCCLS libraries.
  • 2010: Beaverton City Library, Murray Scholls branch opens.
  • June 2012: Checkouts exceed 13 million annually.
  • September 2015: Website redesign makes site more mobile-friendly.
  • December 2016: Aloha Community Library joins the cooperative.
  • May 2017: Adventure Pass moves to online reservations, expanding access and reaching more patrons. 
  • March 2018: Centralized automated material handling system installed, using RFID technology, and eliminating the need to sort library items by hand, saving more than 24 hours of staff time each day across the cooperative.
  • November 2019: WCCLS partners with Beaverton School District to issue 29,871 Student Library Cards, enhancing access to and awareness of the public library and its resources.
  • Fiscal year 18-19: 5.8 million visits to wccls.org and 8.8 million catalog searches.
  • March 2021: WCCLS partners with Hillsboro School District to issue 14,140 Student Library Cards.
  • May 2020: 5-year levy passes by 69 percent of voters during the coronavirus pandemic.
  • June 2020: Countywide Book Distribution program provides 9,766 children’s books to 70 sites during the pandemic when library access was limited. 
  • December 2021: WCCLS partners with Tigard-Tualatin School District to issue 8,223 Student Library Cards.
  • January 2021: Late fees eliminated, restoring library access for tens of thousands of county residents and increasing equity of library service.
  • August 2021: Auto-renewal launches, making it easier to use the library.
  • May 2022: Automated material handling system expanded to create more efficiencies for libraries.
  • Fiscal year 21-22: Patrons use 246,071 wi-fi sessions and save $224 million by borrowing items from the library instead of buying them.
  • August 2022: Digital newspapers and magazines join the collection.
  • December 2022: WCCLS Courier team processes 15,829 items in a single day, setting a new record.
  • June 2023: Wallace the Book Bug, WCCLS mascot, makes his debut.
  • Fiscal year 22-23: Courier trucks deliver 2,646,678 items.