Brownsville Free Public Library, 100 Seneca St., will celebrate its 90-year history of continuous operation with an Anniversary Gala Sept. 1, featuring a daytime birthday party for young patrons and a wine and spirits tasting in the evening for the 21-and-older crowd.

The birthday party will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. There will be games, crafts and a birthday cake. The childrens party is free.

The adults-only gala will be held from 6 to 10 p.m., with Seneca Street being closed to vehicular traffic and decked out for the affair. The gala will include hors doeuvres, a silent auction and tastings from Red Pump Distilleries and Winslow Winery.

Advance tickets for the 90th Anniversary Gala are $20 per person. Admission at the door will be $25. Ticket price includes hors doeuvres and tastings. Call the library at 724-785-7272 for tickets and additional information.

Brownsville Free Public Library was built in 1927 by prominent businessman Charles L. Snowdon, a banker by profession, community leader and benefactor. Three chapters, including details about its ornate facade, are dedicated to the library in Volume Two of the Looking Back: The Best of Glenn Tunney series.

Snowdon picked up the tab to build the library and subsequently leased it to Brownsville Borough for $1 per year. It was his way of thanking the citizenry for its many years of supporting his businesses, Tunney wrote.

The librarys open house was Sept. 1, 1927. The first librarian, Anna Shutterly, served from Oct. 1, 1927, until Feb. 11, 1943, when she died at age 79. Within the first year, she had stocked the shelves with 4,800 books, and 50,450 books were circulated among 2,550 cardholders.

Shutterly, who spent 40 years building and overseeing the California State Normal School library, was known for her resourcefulness and determination in keeping Brownsvilles library going strong even during the Great Depression.

Although many small towns are facing the loss of their local libraries, Brownsvilles continues to flourish. Library cards remain free to the public, and the collection now tops 17,000 items, including more than 600 DVDs, free computer time for cardholders and access to a vast online library network, classes and research materials.

In addition to the borough, the library services residents of Newell Borough and Brownsville, Franklin, Jefferson and Luzerne townships.

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Brownsville library celebrating 90th year - Observer-Reporter