About the Library

Art Gallery

The Step Up Gallery at Mesa Public Library features artists of northern New Mexico, traveling museum exhibits, and regional cultural exhibits. This gallery is located on the upper level at Mesa Public Library. The library contracts with Los Alamos Arts Council to provide monthly art shows.

Youth Art Gallery

This gallery is located in the Youth Services area of Mesa Public Library and shows work exclusively by and for people 18 and under. Local schools and classes, young artists and groups with work directly related to youth themes are welcome to contact Youth Services staff at 505.662.8258 or ysweb@lacnm.us for more information about current exhibitions and opportunities.

The library was founded in 1943, just one year after Los Alamos was selected as the site for the Manhattan Project. It was started as a subscription library by 70 couples, each of whom donated $5.00 for the purchase of books, and was located in a small room in the Big House, one of the original buildings of the Boys Ranch School. In 1945 it became a free library when the Army Post Recreational Council handed over financial responsibility to Army Post Special Services. In 1946, the library became the Mesa Library, guided by a Library Committee of five, and in 1951 it became the Mesa Public Library, an independent corporation under contract with the Atomic Energy Commission. At that moment the library had 30,000 volumes and 7,000 registered volumes.

Mesa Public Library

Located at 2400 Central Avenue, Mesa Public Library opened its doors at the current location on October 5, 1994. The point on the building, part of architect Antoine Predock’s artistic vision, is, in his own words in an interview with the Los Alamos Monitor, “the prow. It’s an absolutely necessary element, and it becomes an icon.”

White Rock Branch Library

The White Rock Branch Library is a full service branch that opened in 1985 in a 1400 square foot storefront building. The library moved to its current location at 10 Sherwood Boulevard in 2015. The unique architectural design of this building uses surrounding natural colors as well as stone facing that is used both inside and outside of the building. By combining the use of these same materials, as well as a floating ceiling, an atmosphere of the outdoors is brought into the building. The new building is also LEED Silver certified. The library is adjacent to Piñon Park and the Youth Activity Center.

The Friends of Los Alamos County Libraries (FLACL OR Friends) is a non-profit, 501c3 corporation that supports the services and staff of the Los Alamos County Library System, including both Mesa Public Library and White Rock Branch Library, and the Lora Belle Cole Library at the LA County Detention Center. The Friends’ Board has a contract with LA County to operate the Friends Bookstore and give the Bookstore profits to the libraries in a block grant that they may spend as they see fit. Friends’ other source of moneys is donations, some of which are given in honor or memory of friends and family. Such funds can be designated additionally by the donor(s) to fund a plaque placed on the Catalog of Giving on the third floor of Mesa Public Library. For more details on the Catalog of Giving or to make a donation online, check out our website at www.FLACL.org. For more current Friends’ Bookstore information such as to see if there are sales in the Bookstore, you can visit our Friends of Los Alamos County Libraries Facebook page. Bookstore Volunteers are always welcome. Friends of the Library Bookstore Hours are:

When Mesa Public Library is closed the bookstore is as well.

The Los Alamos County Human Resources division is responsible for all recruiting and hiring for the Library. Applications and job postings can be found online and at Human Resources 1000 Central #230.

The library board's primary purposes are to:

Receive input from the public and, based on that input, make recommendations to council that support the fulfillment of the library's mission in the community.

Provide information and advice on items requested by the council, and review and recommend public policies.

Gather and provide public input on the development of library service objectives and the library's long range plan.

Interact with other boards and commissions on items that affect the libraries.

Library Board Agendas and Minutes

Approximately every four years the library undergoes strategic planning. The most recent plan outlines library activities from 2020 through 2027.

The Los Alamos County Library System Policies, passed by the Los Alamos County Council in 2019, govern library operations and include sections on funding, operational principles, public involvement, and services.
The following guidelines and procedures support the Library's policies:Collection Development Guidelines

Microfilm

A microfilm/fiche reader/printer is available for use at Mesa Public Library near the Questions and Answers desk. Black and white printing is free and color printing costs $0.15 per page. The library has the Los Alamos Monitor and the Albuquerque Journal on microfilm. Microfilm can also sometimes be borrowed from other libraries.

Southwest Collection

The Southwest Collection contains over 3400 fiction and nonfiction books about New Mexico and Arizona. Topics include philosophy, religion, social issues, transportation, geology, biology, cooking, gardening, art, recreation, history, Native Americans, pueblos, biographies, bibliographies, poetry and literature, mystery novels, westerns and New Mexico cities and counties. The collection includes a special emphasis on Los Alamos historical and archival materials, the Los Alamos Ranch School, the Manhattan Project, the Los Alamos National Laboratory, Bandelier National Monument, the Valles Caldera, the Northern New Mexico region and selected New Mexico state documents.

Vertical File

The library also maintains a file of newspaper clippings and other ephemera on New Mexico and Los Alamos news and events, suitable for research interests.

The New Mexico vertical file collection comes from a variety of sources, and contains many different types of materials covering, historically relevant facts about the regions places or people, news about significant art and culture contributions from the region, small print booklet publications about historical people, places, events, etc., information about the state including agriculture, census, cooking, religion, folk traditions, etc., and maps.

Most items in the Los Alamos History vertical file are taken from the Los Alamos Monitor and the Los Alamos Daily Post. Occasionally staff may find pamphlets or brochures to add. Items are selected for the Los Alamos Vertical file if they are news stories about County departments, County boards and commissions, County officials, County issues, Library, Los Alamos Schools, Medical Center, Art in Public Places articles, Living Treasures articles, news stories about controversial LANL issues, such as the contract to manage LANL, radiation exposure, contamination of wells, spies, celebrations, news stories about Bandelier, Valle Grande, etc. Generally only local coverage of issues unless major impact or interest to the community.

Locked Case

The library does not have a designated rare materials collection, but there is a small collection of titles held in locked bookcases. The purpose of the locked case is to insure that the library will always have a copy of these important items on the premises. An item is placed in the locked case if the item is by a local author and deals with the Los Alamos area or it is of lasting local or historical interest and difficult to replace or too fragile to be housed in open stacks.

Maps

The Mesa Public Library has New Mexico topographic maps, and some topo maps for Texas, Arizona and Colorado. We also have National Forest maps, primarily for New Mexico, and topographic maps for many of the western National Parks. We have some hiking trail maps and historical maps of the Los Alamos area. Ask a librarian for assistance at the Questions & Answers desk at Mesa Public Library.

Bryan Johnson Memorial Chamber Music Collection

This collection was assembled and donated to the Mesa Public Library by Bryan Johnson’s family. The collection gathers several hundred works for small musical ensembles, the core of which was from Bryan Johnson’s personal library. The collection is housed at the Questions and Answers Desk at Mesa Public Library and is available for checkout by library patrons.

Circulating Art

The library maintains a collection of framed art for checkout. The collectionis located at Mesa Public Library and consists largely of prints, but also includes original art.

Current and prospective volunteers, please follow this link for relevant information.