My grandma - the librarian - A Sesquicentennial Feature

The town library used to  be housed in the basement of the old City Hall next to where the Ogden Telephone Company is now. Most people will agree with me when I say there was some sort of magic in that basement. The City Council room, with the big chairs and tables, was on the opposite side of the hall from the library. Was there a holding cell? The scary bathrooms were at the end of the dark hallway. Of course, looking through the window at the very end of the hall and seeing the fire trucks was a lot of fun.

There were many reasons it seemed magical in that basement, but the biggest reason to me would be the librarian, Jeanne Phipps. She made people feel wanted, valued, and needed. Okay, I am a little biased because she was my grandma, but I think the general consensus would be the same: Jeanne Phipps made the library a great place to be!

Jeanne was the town librarian from 1957 to 1984. I asked her once how she decided to be a librarian. I thought she would say her love of books or something equally as noble, but here was her actual response, “I didn’t want to have to babysit for you and your brother!” 

That was kind of deflating, but I’m still glad she made the choice to be the librarian. Her leadership in the library turned many kids and adults on to the wonders of stories and learning.

Kids coming to the library never knew what she would bring in next. Would it be some buckeyes? Would it be a new puzzle made by a local man named Scott Dillman? Would it be shells brought in by Erma Claussen just home from vacation? Would it be moss Jeanne found in her timber? One never knew, but kids were interested in finding out what new treasures were waiting for them. She knew this would spark new learning so she would pair up her interesting finds with a book about that subject.

Read more in the July 27 issue of The Ogden Reporter.