Multnomah County Library

After Leland H. Wakefield began collecting funds door-to-door in 1863, the Mercantile Library Association was started on January 12, 1864, with subscriptions by Portland's merchant elite. Judge Matthew Deady was one of the early founders, with financial support coming from those such as Henry Corbett, William S. Ladd, and Erasmus D. Shattuck among others. The founders proclaimed "the library should forever be kept free of politics." At that time it featured more than 38,000 volumes and 215 periodicals. ==Branches==

The Multnomah County Library operates 19 branches including the Central Library in downtown Portland. Central Library The Central Library in downtown Portland was designed by architect A. E. Doyle, and opened on September 6, 1913. It was one of the first libraries in the United States to feature an open-plan. The three-story Central Library was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Central Building, Public Library in 1979. It contains of bookshelf space and has more than 130 computers for the public. The branch contains of space. From 1994 to 1997, the interior of the Central Library was partially gutted and extensively renovated. Other branches Midland is the largest of the branch locations with a total of followed by the Gresham location with . ==Details==

As of FY2010, the system has a total of 486 FTE employees, including 91 librarian FTE. ==See also==