The Watauga Public Library opened its doors to the public for the first time in October 1983. The library, which was located in City Hall, was approximately 676 square feet in size and started with a collection of 1,826 books. On September 24, 1990, the library moved into a new 15,000 square foot facility located north of the City Hall.

Expansion
In 2007, the Library was expanded, which brought it to a total of 20,413 square feet. The additional shelving space allows for further growth of the collection to meet the needs of the public. There are two large and four small study rooms and a meeting room to provide quiet areas for study or meetings. A hallmark feature of the library is a woodland mural painted by nationally known local muralist and children’s book illustrator Liz Bonham.

Current Statistics
At the present time the library houses over 86,000 items and subscribes to over 140 magazines and newspapers. The number of materials circulated last year was 490,265 and 160,683 people used the library.