Fish Hoek library is celebrating the 70th anniversary of its opening on April 1, 1954.
According to a historical summary by Joy Cobern, supplied by the Fish Hoek Valley Museum, the library can trace its roots back to 1953 when the Fish Hoek Women’s Association asked the Fish Hoek town council to establish a library.
Initially, it was housed in a room within the town engineers department building, which is now part of the Town Square on Beach Road. Ethel Gillard became the part-time librarian in 1953.
When the Fish Hoek library opened, it was only the second provincial library after Gordons Bay.
Despite starting small, with limited space and 1000 books from the provincial library service, it quickly became popular. A library committee was elected to oversee its operations, and a new library was built on Beach Road, opening in 1958. It included a reading room, a children’s area and a hall.
As Fish Hoek grew, the library faced space issues again.
Municipal properties between the Main Road and Beach Road were sold, leading to the construction of new municipal offices and a larger library at Central Circle in 1988, where the library now stands.
“Today and through the years, the library still provides value to the community. As a librarian and manager, I’ve seen how the library serves a diverse community and brings the community together,” said Fish Hoek library’s librarian, Rika Smit.
The library, one of 102 in the region, not only served Fish Hoek but also neighbouring areas, she said.
It supports smaller libraries with limited resources and offers various programmes such as storytelling, reading sessions and book clubs. With around 90 000 items including books, DVDs, and audio materials, it caters to diverse interests.
In addition to internet access and printing services, the library now provides e-services through its website and the Libby App and remains operational during load shedding.
Debi Hawkins, from the Friends of Fish Hoek Library, said they were committed to promoting and supporting reading and writing at all levels.
“It’s a marvellous feeling to give back to the library, which sustained the voracious imaginative appetites of me and my children for years,” she said.
To mark the anniversary, artist Shiloh Gericke was commissioned by the Friends of Fish Hoek Library to paint a mural in the children’s section.
“I aimed to paint a whimsical scene of a small coastal town, resembling Fish Hoek, and to capture how children’s imaginations are ignited by the books they read and the environment they call home,” she said.
Margaret Gundry, 81, a volunteer at the Fish Hoek Valley Museum, said she was 10 when she joined the library.
“Travelling to school in Rondebosch by train, I always carried a book with me,” she said. “I can’t imagine a world without books. I have my own collection at home, and I doubt I’ll ever finish reading them all in my lifetime. But I prefer real books over Kindles – there’s nothing quite like holding a physical book.“
