The Hempstead Public Library was started by Mrs. Chauncey C. Parsons and Miss Harriet Mulford,who thought that the Village of Hempstead needed a library. They made up a Founders Committee of prominent members of different churches in the village. The Baptist, Episcopal, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist, and Swedenborgian religions were all represented, inturn, on the Library Board.
The Founders Committee called a public meeting announcing that the library was for the general public and adopted the name, The Hempstead Subscription Library. One hundred and thirty subscribers were secured at $1.00 per year. The library bookcases were installed in a grocery store kept by Miss Mary Smith. Miss Smith also agreed to act as librarian for $28.00 per year, to be paid quarterly, and in 1889, the library was opened to the public. Eighteen years later, in 1907, it was incorporated under the name Hempstead Library Association and eventually became the Hempstead Library.
On June 24, 1951, the library was reincorporated as the Hempstead Public Library and opened at its present site.

Hartwick College was founded in 1797, under the provisions of the will of John Christopher Hartwick, as the first Lutheran Seminary in America. The first Seminary building was erected in 1815 on the Hartwick Patent in upstate New York. In 1888 the Classical Department introduced the freshmen year of a collegiate course and in 1928 it expanded to a four year college and moved to Oneonta, New York. Today, Hartwick College is a private liberal arts and sciences college of 1,500 students, located in Oneonta, NY, in the northern foothills of the Catskill Mountains. The Hartwick College Archives was officially established in 1973 and exists primarily to collect and preserve materials that reflect the biography of John Christopher Hartwick and the history of the educational institutions that bear his name - Hartwick Seminary, Hartwick Academy and Hartwick College. In addition, the archives houses numerous special collections.

The Hamilton Public Library serves the Village of Hamilton, New York and surrounding areas. In its operation, it gives particular attention to the recreational, informational, and cultural needs of the community. Through its own services and programming and through its affiliation with the Mid-York Library System, the Hamilton Public Library provides access to many forms of information, including print, audio, video, and internet access.

In 1958, the Sunquam-Melville Parent Teachers Association provided the original spark for a library in the Half Hollow Hills area with a donation of $200 towards a library fund. A library committee was formed and began its work by looking for a location for the library. The Board of Education of the Half Hollow Hills School District granted permission for the use of a large room in the basement of the "old Melville School" on Sweet Hollow Road. The original volunteers recruited 30 local Boys Scouts. Together, the Boy Scouts and twenty-five adult library enthusiasts conducted a house-to-house canvas for books. Members of the community built the book shelves and decorated the new library.
The Half Hollow Hills Community Library was opened in April of 1959 with 5,000 donated books and a $12,000 budget. Tax support for the library was approved in 1960 and a provisional charter was granted later that year. In June, 1964, the New York State Board of Regents granted a permanent charter to the Half Hollow Hills Community Library.

As the library grew, the need for additional facilities became apparent. On November 18, 1964, a public information meeting was held to discuss a proposal for a new public library building in the district across from the high school on Vanderbilt Parkway. The site was chosen so that the library would be the focal point of the educational and social activities for the community. The new Dix Hills building opened on July 30, 1967.

In the mid-1980’s it was apparent that the library had to grow to keep pace with the demands of the community for high quality service. On March 3, 1987, an expansion bond for approximately $5 million was passed by a 2-to-1 margin. In 1990, gala dedication ceremonies were held to officially open the expanded library facilities.
The Library opened the first of its digital services in 1996.

The Guilderland Public Library is located on Route 20, just west of the capital city of Albany. The local history collection includes a variety of genealogical sources, maps, local newspapers in paper, microfilm and digital formats, and more than 1,500 books and periodicals. The library also provides access to several genealogical databases, including Heritage Quest Online, Jewish Data, Ancestry.com, and American Ancestors. Special collections include the Arthur B. Gregg Collection, donated by the former town historian, the Franco-American Genealogy and History collection, donated by La Fédération Franco-Américaine du New York and the library archives.

Included here are publications and photographs related to the history of the Town of Guilderland. This online collection includes material held by the library and by the Guilderland Historical Society.

Located at 79 Waterstone Road in Greenwood Lake, New York, the Greenwood Lake Public Library provides everyone a wealth of books, CDs, DVDs, and electronic resources. Greenwood Lake Public Library also offers many children, young adult, and adult programs to the community.

The Greenwich Free Library was established in 1902 by a small group of community women. Funds were raised through donations and various types of sales (including clam bakes, card parties and rummage sales) to purchase a building on Main Street and books to stock the shelves. From its early days, the library has been an important part of the Greenwich community, from its children’s programs as early as 1923 to the present–day computers with internet access, Wi–Fi, and audio and e–books available to download from home computers.

The present library building was built in 1974, and most recently renovated and expanded in 2004. It houses over 34,000 books, with an annual circulation of 34,549. There are currently 2,659 patrons with new memberships issued daily. A large community room is available to groups for a myriad of activities. Islay Van Horn Gill (1875–1964) was a community leader for many years and an early supporter of the Greenwich Free Library. He began working for the local electric company in 1898, and in the 1920s and 1930s was instrumental in bringing electricity to rural Washington County. He had a life–long interest in local history, authoring several books, including "The Greenwich Community of 1850." After his death in 1964, his voluminous collection of history books, documents and handwritten notes were donated to the Greenwich Free Library. This donation comprises the core of the Greenwich Free Library's historic holdings, known collectively as "The Gill Room." Although initially it was a single room, the collection is currently housed in two rooms in the library basement. The Gill Room Collection has continued to grow since Mr. Gill's initial donation and includes old and rare local historic items of Greenwich and other Washington County communities, as well as of those of surrounding New York State and Vermont communities. It houses a large collection of microfilms of Federal and New York State Census records, local newspapers from the mid–1800s and the Asa Fitch manuscripts. Many local genealogies have been donated and are available for research. The Gill Room is open during regular library hours.

The Greene County Libraries Association (GCLA) is a membership organization supporting public libraries located in Greene County, New York. We provide a variety of services that benefit both library patrons in the community and library staff.

GCLA has been working on digitizing archival materials that reflect Greene County's rich history. This is a collaborative project, including contributions from Cairo Public Library, Catskill Public Library, Heermance Memorial Library, and Mountain Top Library. The collections contain a variety of materials including historic photographs, postcards, maps, and genealogical records from local families. See the collections below to view materials from a specific library.

Founded in 1939, the Greater Oneonta Historical Society (formerly the Upper Susquehanna Historical Society) strives to preserve the heritage of the Greater Oneonta area and to educate the population by offering programs which familiarize area citizens with local history. As an organization, we work to enhance the future by providing a tradition on which our contemporary culture can be based and out of which it can grow.

In 1907 the Great Neck Library was moved from the home of the librarian on Middle Neck Road into a Tudor style building on Arrandale Avenue. The Main Library, designed by architects Gibbons & Heidtman, moved to a new location on Bayview Avenue, and opened in 1970.