• 1

Woman’s Round Lake Improvement Society

Original Mission
It’s object shall be to make Round Lake more desirable as a place of residence, and to maintain a Public Library.

 

Our History
As the community grew, a group of women turned to the details of making the collection of cottages, a true home for the year-round residents.

The women expressed their concerns, about walking home in the dark in the winter with only their hand-held lanterns to light the way. About 21 of them formed what they called the Kerosene Club and set out to raise money for oil and the services of a lamplighter, who until then kept the street lights ablaze only in the summer. Within two weeks, they had collected $129.

With that accomplished, the women changed the name of their group to the Woman's Round Lake lmprovement Society (W.R.L.I.S.) and turned to other civic improvements. They drafted a constitution that stated as its mission, "to make Round Lake more desirable as a place of residence."

They turned their attention to establishing a public library for the community. With Mrs. Baker as library chair, they rented the two-story Clark House, which was owned by Caroline Garnsey, for $150 a year. The Free Library and Reading Room opened July 6, 1897 with 400 books donated by residents who had attended an earlier reception celebrating the new institution. (In her will, Mrs. Garnsey left the house to W.R.L.I.S. for a library).

GET INVOLVED

Contact us This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to join WRLIS and support the community through volunteer, fundraising, or sponsorship opportunities.