Note: This piece was written and shot for the Murrow Rural Reporting Plunge. For more info, please see https://rural.murrowbpj.com/
Though every town has government established buildings, the Rosalia library has endured many hardships, setting it apart from other libraries in Whitman County.
When Rosalia was founded in 1894, the library was inside the town hall, making accessibility difficult due to the small space. Now, the library has its own building with multiple rooms for separate activities.
“When [Alice Porter] died, who ran the Ladybug Drive-in, her family donated the building to the town if they would turn it into a library,” Marcy Campbell, Whitman County general manager for Rosalia and longtime resident, said. “So, they kept all the ladybug decor and they put in hours of volunteer work to turn it into a library. It was the cutest, beautiful little building.”
Though the town’s library had upgraded and held strong for many years as residents and visitors used the space, last year, the library took a turn for the worse, said Campbell.
“The basement of the library flooded so badly and they couldn’t find the leak,” Campbell said. “By the end of seven weeks, we had to just call it. We knew we had to get out of that building. It was not safe to stay.”
The library was relocated once again to the Rosalia Community Center until the city found a newer, safer space.
“Pat Voge owned [some] buildings and she donated to the town, if again, they would be used as a library,” Campbell said.
New to the building since August, the library is still settling in but can now be found in the heart of the town, near local businesses and the visitors center. Inside the library, there are computers, visitor information, seed swapping, DVDs, access to information regarding the town and more.
“Libraries are actually designed to answer questions. If you call here and I can’t answer the question, then I have resource people in Colfax, where our main library is, that will work on the problem. We’ve done that lots of times,” Campbell said. “If you have questions, call your library.”
