Chicago Public Library Curb Service Poster

"Curb service 10,000 current books - convenient, free, time saving : Chicago Public Library, Randolph St. corridor." 1930s The Chicago Public Library (CPL) is the public library system that serves the city of Chicago, Illinois. With 10,745,608 volumes it is the largest library system in the Midwestern United States and one of the largest public library systems in the United States, only behind the Library of Congress, the New York Public Library, the Boston Public Library, and the libraries of Harvard and Yale in size and scope. The Chicago Public Libraries consist of 79 branches including the central library, two regional libraries, and numerous branches distributed throughout the city. A bookmobile or mobile library is a large vehicle designed for use as a library. They are designed to hold books on shelves so that when the vehicle is parked the books can be accessed by readers. They usually have sufficient space that people can also sit and read books inside them. Mobile libraries are often used to provide library services to villages and city suburbs without library buildings. They also service those who have difficulty accessing libraries, with retirement homes being common stops. They may also carry other information or computer equipment, such as might be found in a library. Some libraries also use their bookmobiles to deliver materials, such as audio books and large print novels, to homebound patrons who don't have anyone to go to the library for them.