Long Weekend

For five days, Wednesday, July 1 - Sunday, July 5, Hartford becomes a living stage.

LONG WEEKEND is a city-wide festival celebrating history through the lenses of film, art, music, culture, and technology. It's a modern gathering rooted in the place where America first learned to write itself into existence.

Whether you’re a lifelong Hartford resident or visiting for LONG WEEKEND, please join in on this community experience.

Some events require pre-registration and tickets must be purchased.

Upcoming Highlights

Wednesday, July 1

Join us for Civics Trivia to celebrate America’s 250th birthday and prepare for a naturalization test with a chance to win prizes. Next session on Tuesday, August 4.

Dwight Library | 7 New Park Avenue | 2:30 – 3:30 p.m.

Thursday, July 2

Come meet the Library on Wheels at a Resource Fair. Connect with local partners, check out books, and more.

75 Charter Oak Avenue, Building #1 | 1:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Monday, July 6

Help us create a community masterpiece celebrating America's 250th anniversary! Stop by and decorate a square canvas representing your story, heritage, future hopes, or what community means to you.

Albany Library | 1250 Albany Avenue | 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Wednesday, July 8

Celebrate America’s 250th anniversary with a 250th craft, bingo, a scavenger hunt, and a special snack.

Camp Field Library | 30 Campfield Avenue | 1:30 - 3:30 p.m.

For more fun and engaging programs and events, click the buttons below!

Celebrate America

Music moves, voices rise, and history comes alive as HPL celebrates America’s 250th with song and dance.

Featured events include:

Indigenous Stomp

Wednesday, July 1 | Burr Mall | 12:00 - 1:00 p.m.

Dance America - 250 Years of Rhythm

Starting Thursday, July 2 - Tuesday, September 22, 2026, at all HPL locations.

Concert lineup

The summer concert series is presented with support from the Evelyn A. Preston Memorial Fund, administered by Bank of America Philanthropic Solutions.

Book Recommendations

The Rediscovery of America

Ned Blackhawk



National Bestseller & National Book Award Winner

"In accounts of American history, Indigenous peoples are often treated as largely incidental-either obstacles to be overcome or part of a narrative separate from the arc of nation-building. Native communities have, instead, been inseparable from the American story all along."

—Washington Post Book World

Find it HERE in our catalog

Black in Blues

Imani Perry

"In direct and intimate prose, Perry synthesizes an impressive range of research into a sinewy, pulsing narrative that positions the past as an active, living force in the present. Readers will be swept up."

—Publishers Weekly

Find it HERE in our catalog. Also available as an eBook.

"We haunt the past to refuse to let it lie comfortably as it was."

—Imani Perry, Black in Blues

Jump, Jump!

Kick off the season with Jump Into Summer, a high-energy double dutch workshop led by the legendary Lady Carrie from the Juvenile & Adult Diabetes Health Awareness Families Foundation.

All sessions will run from 2:00 - 3:00 p.m.

Registration is encouraged.



Monday, July 6

Camp Field Library | 30 Campfield Avenue

Tuesday, July 7

Dwight Library | 7 New Park Avenue

Wednesday, July 8

Albany Library | 1250 Albany Avenue

Tuesday, July 14

Park Street Library @ the Lyric | 603 Park Street

Thursday, July 16

Barbour Library | 261 Barbour Street

Summer Spark

The kids can't have all the fun. Adults, join us for our annual Summer Spark, an adult summer reading challenge, happening now through August 15, 2026.

Pick up a card from any HPL location, complete nine activities, collect your stamps, and be entered to win one of four grand prizes.

1ST PLACE: $250 Visa gift card

2ND PLACE: $100 Visa gift card

3RD PLACE: $50 Visa gift card

4TH PLACE: HPL signature tote bag

Sundays, Soccer & Stories

Missed the first Sunday? Meet us at the second! Enjoy a book on the turf and participate in activities. Pizza and giveaways are included. For ages 5-17, in partnership with Hartford Athletic.

Upcoming dates: August 2 and August 23

Registration is encouraged for each session.

Sunday, July 19 | 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Trinity Health Stadium

250 Huyshope Avenue

Digital & Financial Training

ReConnect CT is a 6-week program helping members of the reentry community build the digital and financial skill. All materials and devices are included. Sessions will take place at HPL's Downtown, Albany and Park Street Library @ the Lyric from 4:00 - 6:00 p.m.

Graduates receive $250 in Visa gift cards and a ReConnect CT certificate of achievement.

Registration is encouraged. Register HERE.



Starting Tuesday, July 7 | 4:00 - 6:00 p.m.

Downtown Library

Classroom 140, Main Floor

500 Main Street

Call for Artists

HPL is now accepting submissions from musicians interested in performing in its highly popular Baby Grand Jazz Series. 

The free concerts are held on Sundays from January through April and have been an HPL staple for the past 20-plus years.

Musicians of all Jazz genres are encouraged to apply, but the ensembles must include a pianist who will play the Library’s baby grand piano.

Submissions are now open until Saturday, August 1, 2026.

Special Notice

All Hartford Public Library locations will be closed on Friday, July 3, and Saturday, July 4, in observance of Independence Day.

All locations will reopen with regular operating hours on Monday, July 6.

Freegal Update

HPL will no longer provide access to Freegal after June 30, 2026. Please be aware that any saved playlists, etc., will no longer be available. 

Resources & Services

Fight Hunger: 

Facing food insecurity? Here's help:

• Text "211Food" to 898211
• Enter your zip code when prompted
• Identify an open food pantry near you
• For more information, click HERE.

Free Medical Rides: 

HPL + Bus or Car Rides = FREE rides to medical appointments for Hartford residents 18+. Contact us or have your provider contact us to schedule transportation to your next verified medical appointment. This service is for those who do not have a transportation benefit through their insurance provider. Please call: (860) 840-1264 for more information.

Your support makes a difference.