FORT DAVIS — The Jeff Davis County Library recently reopened following a brief closure in which $400,000 worth of upgrades to its interior, including new bookshelves and seating, were installed.
Library Director Erin Ray said the revamp, which has been in the works since 2022, was intended to make the space more comfortable for the library’s varied patrons and programs. The dynamic institution hosts everything from senior fitness classes and children’s storytime to private telehealth appointments and student lunchtime.
Ray said the previous furnishings — four wooden tables and some lounge furniture — were limited and not meeting the needs of the community. “There wasn’t a lot of space for people to come and work on their own devices or come and read, come and meet a friend and have a conversation,” Ray said. “It wasn’t functional for those purposes.”
The results of the library refresh are more options for seating, an expanded children’s area and an overall opening up of the space, which has allowed for a greater appreciation of its historical features. The structure was built in 1906 and served as a general store until the ‘80s, meaning many locals experienced its previous iteration. (It was then bought by Donald Judd, whose estate sold it back to the county in the ‘90s.)
“People love this building and have a lot of sense of ownership of this building, and I think that’s really positive,” Ray said. “We wanted to make sure a huge priority was maintaining the historic charm of the building.”
There is now a dedicated space for showcasing historic photographs and mementos that may serve as a rotating exhibition space for the Overland Trail Museum, Ray said. The library’s southwest collection, featuring local history and authors, is also prominently displayed.
In lively contrast now sits modern library-style furniture with geometric patterns and primary colors, as well as “passive programming” areas including a self-directed maker space and educational touch screen. Ray said because the library has few staff members, it is helpful to have activities children can explore independently.
The changes were driven by the library’s statistics on use, and staff worked with an architect and interior designer from the Tocker Foundation, an organization that supports the state’s rural public libraries, to develop a floor plan. The assistance was part of a $100,000 library transformation grant the county received from Tocker.
“It’s basically a process to help small libraries that wouldn’t otherwise have the financial capacity, but maybe also not the vision, to update the library,” Ray explained.
Other entities, including the Brown, FMH, Yarborough and Permian Basin Area foundations contributed a total of $275,000 to the project, and $25,000 was raised locally. Very minor modifications were made to the building itself –– a partition wall was put in to create a closet, and renovations were made to the director’s office.
New seating for the library’s public programs — which have seen a spike in attendance since the onset of the pandemic — was also purchased. Plywood panels with stretched canvas were installed in the back part of the library to allow for more exhibition space.
The “Library of Things,” useful items available for check out including a springform pan and steam cleaner, now have a dedicated public space which is leading to increased utilization, Ray said. A large lunchroom table and microwave are now set up to receive middle and high school students, who come to the library most days for lunch. Fort Davis schools were built without cafeterias, and the Jeff Davis County Food Pantry distributes food through the library.
During the library interior overhaul, some books that were not being checked out regularly were decommissioned, which Ray said was necessary and would allow them to expand their collection in the future. She is still working to improve the library’s selection of Spanish materials, she said.
She hopes the new additions and easier-to-browse shelves will keep all ages engaged with the library, especially local youth. “We want to try to create a through line where people use the library for their whole lives,” Ray said.
The Jeff Davis County Library will host a free reopening celebration this weekend on Saturday, May 18, from 2 to 5 p.m. with kids activities, refreshments, music by The Border Blasters and Mariachi Santa Cruz and an exhibition of historic photographs from the 1930s featuring the scenic loop, which predated the Davis Mountains State Park.