Celebrate Birthday of Dr. Seuss
Dwight, Wednesday, March 1, 11-11:45
Goodwin, Wednesday, March 1, 2-3 pm
 Camp Field, Thursday, March 2, 3:30-4:30 pm
Albany , Thursday, March 2, 4:30-5:30 pm
Blue Hills, Thursday, March 2, 4:30-5:30 pm
Downtown, Saturday, March 11, 2:30-3:30 pm

Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, was born in Springfield Mass., on March 2, 1904. His wonderful legacy of rhyming children's books is the inspiration for this year's Help Celebrate Read Across America Day (which we are expanding to more than a day). Join us to hear The Cat In the Hat and other Seuss favorites, and to play games based on his books.


Where Are  You From?
Launch Of Maps For All
  Hartford History Center
Thursday, March 1
Noon to 1 pm

Geographic literacy is an important skill for all ages. Hartford Public Library is working with the Maps for All Initiative and the World Affairs Council of Connecticut to foster awareness of global issues through public display of world maps. 
Join us for the launch. You'll be able to mark your birthplace on a world map.
Speakers include CEO Bridget Quinn-Carey, Hartford Public Library ; Louise Loomis, ThinkWell Center founder; Meghan Clark Torrey, Executive Director of  World Affairs Council Connecticut; and Michael Howser, Hartford Campus Library Director, University of Connecticut.
Tabletop Gaming
Put On Your Game Face

Ropkins Branch
Tuesdays, 4:45 to 5:45 pm

The popularity of tabletop games is trending. There are thousands of versions, such as Forbidden Desert, where players crash land in a barren space and search for a lost civilization, or Flash Point, where you must rescue people from a burning building.
Bring your friends and your favorite games and set up a match.
Baby Grand Jazz Series:
Greg Abate
Sunday, Feb. 26, 3 pm
Center for Contemporary Culture

Greg Abate is a veteran jazz musician who plays saxophone and flute, composes, and leads a band. He is a Rhode Islander who graduated from the Berklee College of Music, played lead alto sax in the Ray Charles Orchestra, and tenor sax in the Artie Shaw Orchestra conducted by Dick Johnson.
His most recent recording is Kindred Spirits: Live at Chan’s, with Phil Woods and the Tim Ray Trio.
Joining Greg is Matt DeChamplain on piano, Lou Bocciarelli on bass, and Ben Bilello on drums.

Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. Doors open at 1 pm. 

Information about Baby Grand Jazz.

We're Looking For Bands
For 2018 Baby Grand Jazz

Hartford Public Library has opened submissions for the 2018 season of Baby Grand Jazz, which runs 16 Sundays from January through April. These popular free concerts have been a staple of Hartford Public Library since 2004, thanks to support from the Charles H. Kaman Charitable Foundation. Concerts run from 3 to 4 pm. The Library live streams all performances on its website. Ensembles must include a pianist who will play the Library’s grand piano. Applications should include music samples (video encouraged), a list of ensemble members and their instruments, and high resolution images for publicity. Submit here

Black History 
Draw a Hartford History-Maker:
A Black History Community Project

On Display Through March 31
Hartford History Center

The Draw a Hartford History Maker exhibition kicked off Feb. 2 with a reception honoring the artists who created portraits from photos and biograp hies featured online in 2016's More than A Month series honoring African Americans who made significant contributions to Hartford.  
Read the biographies illustrated with new portraits on the Hartford History Center's Facebook page

Lucy Cooper Summers portrait by D. Racine
African-American History Bee
Saturday, February. 25, Noon to 3 pm
Center for Contemporary Culture

The 2nd Annual African & African American History Bee is presented by Calling All Brothers. Leslie Mayes of NBC Connecticut returns as host. Participating schools include: Thirman Milner School, Dr. Frank T. Simpson-Waverly School, Fred D. Wish School, and Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School.
Poets On Poetry:
Lucille Clifton
Presented by Jennifer Jean
Saturday, February 25th, 10:15 am
Hartford History Center

Lucille Clifton, Poet Laureate of Maryland, had her poems published by Langston Hughes in the anthology, The Poetry of the Negro in 1957, and was a visiting writer at Columbia University School of the Arts. Jennifer Jean, a poet, is co-director of the Morning Garden Arts Retreats and teaches at Boston area universities.

Join Us For a Butch Lewis
Community Conversation
Film Screening of 13th with Jamal Joseph
Wednesday, March 1, 5:30 pm
Center for Contemporary Culture

Join author, activist, and Columbia film professor Jamal Joseph, right,  for a screening and discussion of 13th, a Netflix original documentary by Ava Duvernay, director of Selma. The film explores the history of mass incarceration in the United States and its relationship to the 13th Amendment. 

Charles "Butch" Lewis was the co-founder of the  Hartford chapter of the Black Panther Party and longtime community organizer. This program is presented in his memory, and was planned in collaboration with his family and friends from the community. The Butch Lewis video collection is accessible for public viewing in Hartford History Center’s digital repository.

We Love Your Help
The Hartford Public Library needs your support throughout the year. Please consider making a pledge or donation to help us continue to offer a place that cultivates opportunities, empowers and inspires individuals, and fuels a more prosperous future.

Encounters: Bill of Rights
Saturday, March 4, Noon-2 pm
Hartford History Center

Join the conversation as we discuss the Bill of Rights, the first 10 amendments to the United States Constitution. The amendments include the right of free speech, protections against unreasonable search and seizure, and a speedy and public jury trial.  Read the Bill of Rights

Lunch will be served; participants must register in advance. RSVP:860-695-6367 or by email to [email protected].

Author's Table
Geoffrey Craig:
Scudder's Gorge
Tuesday, February 28, 1 to 4 pm
Main Floor, Downtown Library

Set largely in a small farming community in northern Vermont, Scudder's Gorge is a family saga that extends over several generations. 
Meet author Geoffrey Craig. He will have books for sale.
Book of the Week
Big Bear, Small Mouse by Karma Wilson and Jane Chapman
Even the smallest readers can have big fun with Bear in this sweet introduction to opposites from the New York Times bestselling creators of Bear’s New Friend.

Bear is big, big, big, and mouse is small, small, small, but these friends stick together through all the highs and lows.

Join Bear and Mouse as they spot all the opposites in their little glen. Karma Wilson and Jane Chapman team up again to bring the youngest Bear fans a delightful concept book that begs to be read out loud.

Click here to see where you can check out a copy today.

Last Chance To  Apply To School Lottery
The Greater Hartford Regional Open Choice Lottery Application Season ends Tuesday,  Feb. 28. If you are interested in having your child attend an Open Choice or Magnet School please come in for information and/or application assistance. 
Downtown: Sunday, Feb. 26, 1 to 5 pm; Monday, Feb. 27, 10 am to 7:30 pm; Tuesday, Feb. 28, 10 am to 7:30 pm.
Blue Hills: Monday, Feb. 27, 11 am to 2 pm and 4 to 5:30 pm.
Albany: Monday, Feb. 27, 11 am to 2 pm and 4 to 5:30 pm.
Tuesday, Feb. 28,  11 am to 2 pm and 4 to 5:30 pm.

Mark Twain Branch Moves
The Mark Twain Branch of Hartford Public Library opens March 1 in its new location in the West Middle Community School in Asylum Hill.
Library hours are Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, 1 to 6 pm.  Enter the Library through the door at 927 Asylum Ave.

Clip Those Coupons
Couponing 101
Goodwin Branch/Sucursal Goodwin
2 de marzo a las 1 pm
Thursday, March 1, 1 pm

Learn how to maximize your savings and use coupons to shop for FREE
Aprenda a maximizar sus ahorros y el uso de cupones para comprar GRATIS 

  This program will be presented in Spanish. For more information, please call 860-695-7480.


Writing Workshops At Barbour
Thursdays, 3 to 6 pm
Barbour Branch
Learn the basics of expressing yourself through the written word. .
Our intern, Tinasia, will run the workshops.
Graphic Novel Studio
Barbour Branch
Tuesday, Feb. 28, 5 to 6 pm
Learn the techniques to create your own graphic novel. You must choose a drawing style, come up with ideas for the story, do rough sketches, choose the weight of the paper, and then begin to draw your characters.

Makerspace Mayhem

Tuesdays and Thursdays, 4 pm
Downtown Library, 2nd floor

Come to YOUmedia for the twice-weekly Makerspace challenge.

Anime Character Creation

Wednesdays 3-5 pm
Downtown Library, 2nd floor

Animefy yourself and your friends at YOUmedia - or create a new unique character of your own.

 



Learn Debate Basics
Great Debates
Thursdays, 6-8 PM
Downtown Library, 2nd Floor

Share your opinions on topics that matter while learning about another perspective from the other debater. 









3D Sculpting and Design

Thursdays, 6-8 pm
Downtown Library, 2nd Floor 

Learn how to design cool characters and objects to use in animations, video games, graphic design, and more.

Drawing With Kahairi
Mondays and Wednesdays, 1 to 6 pm
Downtown Library, 3rd Floor

Let's talk about anime, pop culture and video games while we draw.
 
Know Your Rights
Hartford Public Library Serves Everyone

All community members of  every religion and ethnicity, whether citizens or immigrants, are welcome at the Library.
Stay informed and connected.

U.S. Citizenship Classes

Class cycles  range from 12-to-14 weeks and repeat. Legal assistance with application completion and submission included.

Passport Services
You can apply for a passport at Hartford Public Library. Hours are Monday though Thursday, 3:30 to 7 pm; Saturday, 10 am to 3 pm.  No appointment is needed and photos can be taken on site.

The Passport office is now located on the second floor.

Online Learning

Accessible through the library website in the Online Education & Research Section. All free with your library card. Log in with your card number and create a user name and password.

  • Learn a New Language: Learn or practice more than 100+ languages using the online learning program Transparent Language.
  • LearningExpress Library™: Build your academic skills in reading, writing, math, and science; prepare for standardized tests, college admissions tests, and professional licensing and certification.
  • Universal Class: Select from over 500 courses in a wide variety of subjects through a program called Universal Class. Learn a new hobby, improve your computer skills, or expand your job or career options. 
  • Career Online High School (COHS)Earn your high school diploma online, must be 24 or older.

American Job Center

Monday-Thursday, 10 am-6 pm
Fridays, 10 am-5 pm  (Not Feb. 24)

Looking for a job? Feeling a bit rusty on your interview skills or bewildered by all the new technology a successful job search demands? We can help! CTWorks Capital Workforce Partners and HPL Library have partnered to bring a CTWorks "American Job Center" to the Downtown Library.

The Job Center will be relocating to the Learning Lab on the 2nd floor to accomodate UConn construction staring on Feb. 27.

Catalog Options
Have you checked out our
mobile-friendly catalog?
Hartford Public Library | 860.695.6300 | hplct.org