Gardening is a fun and engaging hobby for children and adults, with many benefits!
The benefits of gardening include:
- Doing good for the planet.
- Reducing stress and anxiety.
- Bonding with family, friends, and members of your community.
You can get into gardening with a little help from QPL’s Seed Library!
You might ask…
What is a seed library?
Just like books, you can check out packets of seeds from QPL. You can plant, grow, and harvest the seeds. Any leftover seeds, or new seeds harvested at the end of the growing season, may be brought back to the library.
How does it work?
Check out seed packets—this is the same process used for taking home other library materials like books and DVDs.
Where can I check out seeds?
Seeds are available at the following QPL locations:
Seed packets are available while supplies last, with a limit of 3 packets per person.
Pictures from a QPL Seed Library, courtesy of Basil E. Frankweiler.
What kind of seeds are available?
- Pollinators for Bees
- Pollinators for Butterflies
- Easy to Grow/Hard to Kill
- Seeds for Advanced Gardeners
- Threatened Species
* all seeds are native and/or non-invasive to New York.
For a helpful guide to begin your gardening journey, read our Growing Guide.
The Seed Library is made possible by the Queens Public Library Foundation's Innovation Fund, and through a partnership with the Queens Botanical Garden.
Queens Public Library To Celebrate Hip Hop’s 50th Anniversary With a Star-Studded, Two-Day Summit August 3-4 at LaGuardia Performing Arts Center
Lineup Features Conversations With Hip Hop Greats, Hands-On Workshops, Interactive Exhibits, Augmented Reality Experiences, DJ and Open Mic Sessions, and More
Guest Speakers Include Rappers KRS-One and Darryl McDaniels of Run-DMC, the Singer Lumidee, VIBE Magazine Editor-in-Chief Datwon Thomas and Universal Hip Hop Museum Founder and Executive Director Rocky Bucano
QUEENS, NY_Queens Public Library will celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip hop with its Hip Hop 50 Summit, featuring two days of panel discussions, interactive workshops, exhibits, augmented reality experiences, open mic sessions and DJ sets, and including appearances by hip hop legends Darryl McDaniels of Run-DMC and KRS-One, the singer Lumidee, Universal Hip Hop Museum Founder and Executive Director Rocky Bucano, and VIBE Editor-in-Chief Datwon Thomas, and many others on Thursday, August 3 (from 9:30 AM to 5 PM), and Friday, August 4 (from 9:30 AM to 4PM), at LaGuardia Performing Arts Center, at 45-50 Van Dam Street in Long Island City.
“Recognizing, celebrating and preserving hip hop, as well as exploring its roots, influence and impact, are critical to understanding the history of New York City, our nation, and entire generations that connect and express themselves through this cultural phenomenon,” said Queens Public Library President and CEO Dennis M. Walcott. “We are thrilled to host the Hip Hop 50 Summit in the borough of Queens, which has played a significant role in hip hop's rise from a local art form to a global movement.”
QPL Hip Hop Coordinator and Video Music Box Founder Ralph McDaniels, along with co-host DJ G$Money, will emcee the summit, which is designed to explore the origins of hip hop and its transformation into a global phenomenon that endures to this day.
“I am very excited about the Hip Hop 50 Summit,” said QPL Hip Hop Coordinator Ralph McDaniels, also known as “Uncle Ralph.” “The conversation and agenda will cover all five decades of hip hop culture and its core elements - DJing, MCing, breakdancing, graffiti art and knowledge. The summit will celebrate hip hop legacy, but more importantly, it will create a space to exchange ideas, while also becoming a lasting resource on the subject for the future.”
The summit’s interactive workshops will be led by DJs, break dancers, and graffiti artists. Hip hop pioneers, performers, and scholars will headline panel discussions about the history of hip hop and its cultural, social and economic impact.
Hip hop fans will also get to explore digital hip hop archives and have the opportunity to digitize their own hip hop memorabilia.
In addition, attendees will be able to sign up for a QPL Special Edition Hip Hop Card, featuring artwork by the legendary streetwear trailblazers the Shirt Kings. The New York Public Library and Brooklyn Public Library will also be distributing their special edition hip hop cards.
The summit will kick off with a series of programs tailored to young people. One of them will be “Hip Hop History, Science, Technology & Innovations” (Thursday, Aug. 3, 10:30 - 11:15 AM), an immersive workshop, moderated by young entrepreneur Aaliyah Duah, that combines education and entertainment. Rappers Phresher and Young B as well as American data scientist and CEO of DataedX Group Dr. Brandeis Marshall will provide insights into various aspects of the entertainment industry. Youth from across New York City are invited to learn about hip hop culture and engage in various hands-on activities.
The following panel, “The Business of Hip Hop, Careers and Activism,” (Thursday, Aug. 3, 11:30 AM - 12:15 PM) will feature rapper Darryl McDaniels of Run-DMC, singer Lumidee, and media personality AV Perkins who will explore the power of hip hop, from opportunities to making money to changing minds, how it raises awareness about important issues and its impact on the economy, social issues, culture, and politics. While it wasn't the intention at the inception of the genre, hip hop artists have led the way in building business empires based on their music and style.
Other highlights include “Paving the Way: Pioneers of Hip Hop” (Thursday, Aug. 3, 2-3 PM), a program featuring pioneer rappers KRS-One and Darryl McDaniels, as well as MC Sha-Rock, one of the first female MCs in hip hop history, and DJ Hurricane, best known for his work with the Beastie Boys. They will focus on the past generations who have paved the way, while also encouraging cross-generational dialogue between various artists.
“Switch the Style Up: Fashion in Hip Hop” (Thursday, Aug. 4, 3:30-4:30 PM), a discussion hosted by fashion historian and archivist Tianni Graham, will feature the Shirt Kings, Black fashion designer Malik Dupri, PowHerful Apparel CEO Dave Huie and FIT Professor and hip hop fashion expert Elena Romero. They will examine how the different brands, styles and looks all played a big part in the overall hip hop culture, while having a profound impact on mainstream culture and fashion as well.
On Friday, August 4, from 10 to 11:15 AM, Rocky Bucano, the founder and executive director of the Universal Hip Hop Museum, will moderate “The Message: Media, Technology and the Future,” a conversation with VIBE Magazine Editor-in-Chief Datwon Thomas, YouTube Black Music & Culture Director Tuma Basa, Microsoft Senior Attorney Bruce Jackson and DJ TedSmooth about the intersection of hip hop, the media and technology.
The summit will close with “Fight the Power: Social Justice and Education,” (Friday, Aug. 4, from 2:30 to 3:45 PM), a panel featuring Dr. Christopher Emdin, the founder of the #HipHopEd social movement, DJ and Co-Founder of Hip Hop Blvd NYC Al Pizarro, hip hop artist and criminal justice reform activist Mysonne Linen, and Lennox Yearwood Jr., President and CEO of the Hip Hop Caucus, a nonprofit that connects the hip hop community to the civic process. They will discuss hip hop as a legitimate vehicle for social change and how artists have traditionally responded to violence and injustice within their communities.
DJ Wiz and DJ Chuck Chillout from WBLS 107.7 FM will provide the soundtrack for the summit, and there will be several interactive performances, a fashion slideshow and a graffiti exhibit.
Throughout the summit, The Gates Preserve, a multimedia hip hop archiving and preservation firm, will be running a Pop Up Archive featuring digital activations and augmented reality experience where participants can explore hip hop magazines, tributes to late hip hop legends, and view hip hop programs from across the nation via the TRACE phone app. Attendees are also invited to bring their cell phone and printed photos as well as memorabilia from hip hop concerts, such as ticket stubs/passes and concert swag, and learn how to digitize them with the help from professional archivists. To schedule an appointment for the Pop Up Archive, go here.
The programs presented during the summit will be livestreamed on QPL’s Instagram, recorded and cataloged in QPL’s Digital Hip Hop Archive to serve as learning tools about hip hop for educators.
The summit culminates “Collections of Culture: 50 Years of Hip Hop Inside Libraries, Museums and Archives,” a six-month celebration of hip hop funded through a $342,760 grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) that began in February, when Queens Public Library partnered with New York City’s libraries and other institutions nationwide to host dozens of in-person and virtual programs.
To see a full list of panels and events, visit HipHop50Summit.eventbrite.com. The event is free to attend, but tickets are limited and required for entry.
About Queens Public Library
Queens Public Library is one of the largest and busiest public library systems in the United States, dedicated to serving the most ethnically and culturally diverse area in the country. An independent, non-profit organization founded in 1896, Queens Public Library offers free access to a collection of more than 5 million books and other materials in 50 languages, technology and digital resources. Each year, the Library hosts tens of thousands of online and in-person educational, cultural, and civic programs and welcomes millions of visitors through its doors. With a presence in nearly every neighborhood across the borough of Queens, the Library consists of 66 locations, including branch libraries, a Central Library, seven adult learning centers, a technology center located in the nation’s largest public housing complex, two teen centers, two bookmobiles, and two book bicycles.
Contact: Ewa Kern-Jedrychowska, ekern@queenslibrary.org, 917 702 0016
NYC Libraries and the New York Life Foundation to Give Away 15,000 Books in Summer Book Giveaway on July 28 and 29 at Select Locations in All Five Boroughs
JULY 19, 2023—New York City’s three library systems—Brooklyn Public Library (BPL), New York Public Library (NYPL), and Queens Public Library (QPL) in partnership with the New York Life Foundation—are giving away 15,000 books for families to keep. The giveaway is part of the libraries’ annual summer reading and learning programs, which encourage children and teens to read books to develop and maintain critical thinking skills over the summer.
“Summer Reading programs promote children’s literacy and academic skills and help prevent learning loss during the summer months. This is especially important for low-income families that have limited access to affordable and quality summer programs,” said Marlyn Torres, senior program officer, New York Life Foundation. “With a goal of combating summer learning loss in children who are at the greatest risk of experiencing the "summer slide," the libraries’ annual summer reading and learning programs help young people stay excited and engaged in learning so they can begin the school year in September on-track and better prepared to learn.”
Books for children and teens will be available at select branches on July 28 and 29. Throughout the weekend, while supplies last, young readers can pick up books to keep at home and sign up for a library card to continue reading all year long. Books will be available in English and Spanish. In select locations, books will be available in Chinese as well. The initiative builds on the Libraries' efforts to support New Yorkers in need and includes locations near Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Centers (HERRC) or shelters, which have seen an increase in residents, particularly asylum seekers.
A complete list of locations is below.
This is the fifth summer the New York Life Foundation has provided support for Summer Reading and Learning programs for New York City’s Libraries. It is estimated that summer breaks cause the average student to lose up to two months of instruction per year, with students from low-income families disproportionately affected.
The importance of reading to young children is well documented. Children who have books in their homes and are read to by parents and caregivers are more likely to succeed in school. Conversely children who enter school behind often stay behind. In addition, children in low-income households are less likely to have age-appropriate books at home or adults who support early literacy through reading or singing.
“At The New York Public Library, we are dedicated to ensuring every New Yorker has access to the transformative power of books," said Anthony W. Marx, President of The New York Public Library. "It is a unique privilege to support children and teens on their reading journey, providing them with wonderful stories that inspire and educate them. We are grateful to the New York Life Foundation for partnering with New York City’s libraries to giveaway thousands of books for young readers to take home, which will encourage them to read more and to visit their local library, where our dedicated staff can offer even more recommendations and new worlds to explore.”
“We know that growing up reading and with access to books has a powerful impact on an individual’s future success, and we are excited to help families build their own libraries at home,” said Queens Public Library President and CEO Dennis M. Walcott. “And we are grateful to the New York Life Foundation for their generous support as we work to instill a lifelong love of reading in children and teens and ensure they continue to develop their literacy skills during the summer months.”
“We are grateful to the New York Life Foundation for their continued and generous support of New York City’s young readers,” said Linda E. Johnson, President and CEO of Brooklyn Public Library. “Summer is the perfect time to escape with a good book, and reading at home prepares children for a successful school year.”
GIVEAWAY LOCATIONS AND HOURS
(While supplies last)
Brooklyn Public Library
Friday July 28, 12 to 3 p.m.
Kensington Library, 4207 18TH Ave
Crown Heights Library, 560 New York Avenue
Saratoga Library at Saratoga Park, 112 Howard Avenue
Park Slope Library, 431 6th Avenue
Saturday July 29, 12 to 3 p.m.
East Flatbush Library, 9612 Church Avenue
McKinley Park Library, 6802 Fort Hamilton Library
The New York Public Library
Friday and Saturday July 28 and 29, 12 to 3 p.m.
Manhattan
53rd Street Library, 18 W 53rd Street
Columbus Library, 742 10th Avenue
Epiphany Library, 228 E 23rd Street
Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library, 455 5th Avenue
Staten Island
Todt Hill-Westerleigh Library, 2550 Victory Blvd
Bronx
Bronx Library Center, 310 E. Kingsbridge Road
Sedgwick Library, 1701 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd
Wakefield Library, 4100 Lowerre Place
Queens Public Library
Friday July 28 12 to 3 p.m.
Arverne Library, 312 Beach 54 Street
Central Library, 89-11 Merrick Blvd
Corona Library, 38-23 104 Street
Flushing Library, 41-17 Main Street
About Brooklyn Public Library
Brooklyn Public Library is one of the nation’s largest library systems and among New York City’s most democratic institutions. As a leader in developing modern 21st century libraries, we provide resources to support personal advancement, foster civic literacy, and strengthen the fabric of community among the more than 2.6 million individuals who call Brooklyn home. We provide nearly 65,000 free programs a year with writers, thinkers, artists, and educators—from around the corner and around the world. And we give patrons millions of opportunities to enjoy one of life’s greatest satisfactions: the joy of a good book.
About The New York Public Library
For over 125 years, The New York Public Library has been a free provider of education and information for the people of New York and beyond. With 92 locations—including research and branch libraries—throughout the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island, the Library offers free materials, computer access, classes, exhibitions, programming and more to everyone from toddlers to scholars. The New York Public Library receives approximately 16 million visits through its doors annually and millions more around the globe who use its resources at www.nypl.org.
About Queens Public Library
Queens Public Library is one of the largest and busiest public library systems in the United States, dedicated to serving the most ethnically and culturally diverse area in the country. An independent, non-profit organization founded in 1896, Queens Public Library offers free access to a collection of more than 5 million books and other materials in 50 languages, technology and digital resources. Each year, the Library hosts tens of thousands of online and in-person educational, cultural, and civic programs and welcomes millions of visitors through its doors. With a presence in nearly every neighborhood across the borough of Queens, the Library consists of 66 locations, including branch libraries, a Central Library, seven adult learning centers, a technology center located in the nation’s largest public housing complex, two teen centers, two bookmobiles, and two book bicycles.
Contact: Ewa Kern-Jedrychowska, ekern@queenslibrary.org
Main image photo credit: Lefrak City Pool. Long Island Daily Press, ca. 1975.
How hot is your summer? What do you do to cool down? Where do you go? What do you love (or hate) about summer in the city?
Explore these “hot topics” while enjoying an exhibition of historic photographs from the Queens Public Library’s archival collections and see how New Yorkers have found ways to keep cool when temperatures rise, on display through Friday, August 4.
The exhibit’s curators are working on a new project called “Melting Metropolis.” Over the next five years, the project’s researchers will be working with community groups and artists in Queens, New York, as well as London and Paris, to explore how lived experiences of heat in cities have changed from 1945 to the present day.
Follow Melting Metropolis on Instagram: @meltingmetropolis and #howwedosummerinQueens, and on Twitter: @MeltingMetrop.
Recommended Books
Ready to welcome summer weather with a book? Check out these curated items from our librarians.
Queens Public Library and New York Public Library Release Special Edition Library Cards at Branches on July 14 to Celebrate 50 Years of Hip-Hop
The two library systems will also celebrate the birth of hip-hop in a series of special events August 3–5.
For QPL, early access for cards will be available at Central Library on Thursday, July 13 at a Hip-Hop Card Release Party with the Shirt Kings and special guests.
NYPL to release playlists in partnership with TIDAL featuring archival material and song selections from staff at the Library for the Performing Arts.
Visual Assets:
Links to images of NYPL and QPL cards
July 7, 2023 — In recognition of the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, The New York Public Library (NYPL) and Queens Public Library (QPL) will each release a limited edition library card that celebrates the genre and New York City’s central role in its rise as a global cultural movement that endures to this day. The cards will be available at each system’s respective branches in the Bronx, Manhattan, Staten Island, and Queens starting July 14.
The NYPL card features the iconic “Wild Style” mural from the original soundtrack of the 1983 film by the same name. That film, directed, written, and produced by Charlie Ahearn and set in the South Bronx, is considered the first ever hip-hop film, with appearances by some of the most formative figures of the genre, including Fab 5 Freddy, the Cold Crush Brothers, Lady Pink, and Grandmaster Flash. The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture acquired Fab Five Freddy’s archives in 2019.
The New York Public Library chose the “Wild Style” mural image because the soundtrack’s original cassette is part of NYPL’s extensive hip-hop research collection at the Schomburg Center. The distinct “Wild Style” mural created by artists Zephyr, Revolt, and Sharp serves as the art for the front of the library card, while the back of the card depicts the original soundtrack cassette. Other items in the Schomburg’s hip-hop collection include Hip-Hop Archive Project files, the James Topp art collection and the Talib Haqq pictorial history of hip-hop.
The special edition QPL card features art by the legendary streetwear trailblazers, the Shirt Kings. Starting in 1986 from a booth at the Colosseum Mall in Jamaica, Queens, their graffiti-inspired custom clothing designs drew some of the biggest names in hip-hop as well as everyday fans, made their way to album covers and music videos, and helped lay the foundation for hip-hop fashion as a global force. The card reflects the Shirt Kings’ trademark style, while reinforcing the importance of reading, writing, positivity, and fun.
QPL’s special edition hip-hop cards will be available at all QPL branches starting on Friday, July 14. On Thursday, July 13, at 11:30 a.m., Queens Central Library (89-11 Merrick Boulevard in Jamaica) will host an official card release party with the Shirt Kings, special guests and Ralph McDaniels, Queens Public Library’s Hip Hop Coordinator. Early access to the cards will be available at the start of the release celebration.
In addition to the release of the limited edition library cards, both Queens Public Library and The New York Public Library will be hosting activities to mark the anniversary of hip-hop, which commemorates the moment on August 11, 1973 when, at a house party in the South Bronx, DJ Kool Herc switched, repeated, and isolated tracks through record breaks—creating one of the first instances of the genre as people would come to know it.
Hip-hop Events To Be Held August 3–5 at Both Queens Public Library and The New York Public Library
As part of a six-month celebration that began in February, Queens Public Library partnered with New York City’s libraries and other institutions nationwide to host dozens of in-person and virtual programs. Titled “Collections of Culture: 50 Years of Hip Hop Inside Libraries, Museums and Archives” and funded through a $342,760 grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), the initiative has featured dozens of panel discussions, author talks, educational forums, and workshops.
The initiative will culminate in a two-day summit on August 3–4 at LaGuardia Performing Arts Center in Long Island City, Queens, which aims to further explore the history of hip-hop and its expansion into different sectors of society, including higher education, marketing/advertising, other genres of music, social justice, civil rights, and economics.
The summit’s interactive workshops will invite visitors to learn hands-on from artists who specialize in various elements of hip-hop, including DJs, break dancers, and graffiti artists. Hip-hop pioneers, performers, and scholars will lead panel discussions about the history of hip-hop and its cultural significance. To register for the summit, click here.
The following day, on August 5, New Yorkers can celebrate hip-hop culture at two corresponding events at The New York Public Library’s historic Stephen A. Schwarzman Building. “The Rap Up”— an immersive experience that will take you back in time to hip-hop’s early years featuring a series of panel discussions and hip-hop exhibits — will begin at 10 AM and feature VIBE Magazine Editor-in-Chief Datwon Thomas, Wild Style director Charlie Ahearn, Fab 5 Freddy, award-winning hip-hop artist Mickey Factz, fashion icons 5001 Flavors and April Walker, acclaimed author and journalist Vikki Tobak, music by DJ Spinna, and more.
The party will continue outside on the Fifth Avenue plaza where NYPL will conclude the celebration with a special hip-hop–themed edition of the Library’s annual Dance Party NYC, an intergenerational citywide dance party with a special guest DJ, hosted in partnership with the New Victory Theater and Bryant Park. The dance party begins at 3 PM. More information about all hip-hop anniversary activities at NYPL can be found at www.nypl.org/hiphop50.
Curated music playlist inspired by archival material in partnership with TIDAL
In partnership with NYPL’s Library for the Performing Arts, global music and entertainment streaming platform TIDAL has created three staff-curated playlists featuring music by decade inspired by the research library’s expansive VIBE magazine collection. This hip-hop playlist will be on “Live on TIDAL,” which is a feature on the TIDAL app, on Monday, August 7, at 4PM.
The playlists, a joint effort between NYPL and TIDAL, were designed to showcase the Library’s extensive hip-hop research archive, which includes the entire collection of VIBE magazine print periodicals. Each playlist is 30 songs, in recognition of VIBE’s 30th anniversary this year, and is largely inspired by artists featured in the celebrated magazine, which captured the golden age of hip-hop and was founded in 1993 by Quincy Jones and David Salzman. Over the years, VIBE profiled rappers like Tupac Shakur, Snoop Dogg, TLC, Queen Latifah, and the Notorious B.I.G., and captured the raw feelings and differences of opinion underpinning the East Coast vs. West Coast hip-hop battles of the late 90s.
About The New York Public Library
For over 125 years, The New York Public Library has been a free provider of education and information for the people of New York and beyond. With over 90 locations—including research and branch libraries—throughout the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island, the Library offers free materials, computer access, classes, exhibitions, programming, and more to everyone from toddlers to scholars. The New York Public Library receives approximately 16 million visits through its doors annually and millions more around the globe who use its resources at www.nypl.org. To offer this wide array of free programming, The New York Public Library relies on both public and private funding. Learn more about how to support the Library at nypl.org/support.
About Queens Public Library
Queens Public Library is one of the largest and busiest public library systems in the United States, dedicated to serving the most ethnically and culturally diverse area in the country. An independent, non-profit organization founded in 1896, Queens Public Library offers free access to a collection of more than 5 million books and other materials in 50 languages, technology and digital resources. Each year, the Library hosts tens of thousands of online and in-person educational, cultural, and civic programs and welcomes millions of visitors through its doors. With a presence in nearly every neighborhood across the borough of Queens, the Library consists of 66 locations, including branch libraries, a Central Library, seven adult learning centers, a technology center located in the nation’s largest public housing complex, two teen centers, two bookmobiles, and two book bicycles.
Media Contacts
QPL: Ewa Kern-Jedrychowska | ekern@queenslibrary.org
NYPL: Leah Drayton | leahdrayton@nypl.org
Historical Naturalization Records from Queens, the Bronx Now Available Online
JAMAICA, NEW YORK_Queens County Clerk Audrey I. Pheffer today joined Bronx County Clerk Ischia Bravo, Queens Public Library President Dennis M. Walcott and other local officials at the Central Library in Jamaica, Queens to inaugurate www.NYnaturalizations.com, which provides remote access to naturalization records dating from 1795 to 1952 maintained by the County Clerk’s offices in Queens and the Bronx.
This online archive, comprising well over 250,000 historical records documenting the legal process of immigration to the U.S. by foreign-born citizens, was made possible by funding from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission and the expert guidance of the New York State court system’s Division of Technology.
Naturalization records typically contain the Declaration of Intention, Petition for Naturalization, Certificate of Naturalization and Oath of Allegiance, along with additional supporting information. These records have both personal and legal value. They are depictions of individuals who emigrated from their homes–setting sail for a new home with the hope of a better life–containing details such as the immigrant’s age, height, weight, eye color, occupation, distinguishable markings and even photographs. Additionally, these records are used by researchers, historians and genealogists for lineage purposes and by the public in instances where someone wishes to declare dual citizenship in their ancestral country.
The County Clerk’s offices in Queens and the Bronx secure, preserve and manage a multitude of court records, including pre-1952 naturalization records from their respective counties; post-1952 naturalization records are maintained by the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service.
Each year, the County Clerks in Queens and the Bronx receive hundreds of in-house requests for naturalization records, spending countless staff hours retrieving, imaging and certifying such requests.
Starting today, these historical documents can be instantly retrieved by the public–from researchers to family members–to view, save and print via an online database that allows users to search by petition number, the individual’s year of arrival or their country of origin, among other search fields. The Queens County Clerk’s Office and the Bronx County Clerk’s Office have public terminals dedicated to these records, and the Queens Public Library will have a link to the website on each of their computers.
“I am thrilled to announce that naturalization records from Queens and Bronx counties are available to be accessed online by the public for free. With an award from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission’s grant program, the two Counties were able to complete this exciting collaborative project. The public has been showing great interest in these records and learning more about their own family history. This will allow the public to research their own ancestry and learn more about the people of Queens and Bronx, such as the country they came from and what year,” said Queens County Clerk Pheffer.
“As Bronx County Clerk, it is my great privilege to announce free online access to the naturalization records at my office. With Bronx County currently having a 37 percent foreign-born population, this is a historic moment for ancestral access. There isn’t a better way to preserve the achievement of long-sought citizenship than having the ability find these documents. I am grateful to partner with Queens County to house these records, and grateful to the National Historical Publications and Records Commission,” said Bronx County Clerk Ischia Bravo.
“These records, spanning three centuries, document the path to citizenship for thousands arriving in New York City in search of new opportunities and better lives. Thanks to a generous federal grant and the combined efforts of the Queens County Clerk’s Office, the Bronx County Clerk’s Office and the court system’s Division of Technology, this treasured collection of historical documents is now readily accessible to family members, genealogists and other interested parties seeking to discover or confirm vital facts about these early immigrants,” said Chief Administrative Judge Zayas.
"Queens Public Library is honored to provide an entry point to a trove of electronic records that will enable more people to deepen their understanding of the individuals who sought U.S. citizenship between the late 18th and mid-20th centuries and helped shape the most diverse place in the world,” said Library President and CEO Dennis M. Walcott. “I am grateful to Queens County Clerk Audrey Pheffer and the Office of Court Administration for this terrific collaboration and for their support as we continue to work to provide free access to knowledge, information, and opportunity to all."
# # #
Contacts:
New York State Unified Court System:
Director of Public Information Lucian Chalfen
Deputy Director of Public Information Arlene Hackel
(212) 428-2500; publicinformation@nycourts.gov
Queens County Clerk:
First Deputy County Clerk Raymond M. Weaver
Tuesday, June 27, 2023 is Primary Election Day, and several of our branches will serve as polling sites.
Queens residents will cast their votes at the Briarwood, Central, East Elmhurst, Elmhurst, Forest Hills, Kew Gardens Hills, Lefferts, North Forest Park, Peninsula, Richmond Hill, Seaside, and St. Albans branches, from 6AM to 9PM.
Is your library where you should vote? Please visit https://findmypollsite.vote.nyc or call 866-VOTE-NYC (866-868-3692) to confirm the correct location for you to vote in your neighborhood!
Juneteenth celebrates the end of slavery in the United States.
Check out our reading lists and resources and join us for our in-person and virtual programs to learn more about this important day in U.S. history.
All Queens Public Library locations will be closed on Monday, June 19 in observance of Juneteenth.
Juneteenth Books: Adult Fiction
Juneteenth Books: Adult Nonfiction
Juneteenth Books: Young Adult Fiction
Juneteenth Books: Young Adult Nonfiction
Juneteenth Books: Children's Fiction
Juneteenth Books: Children's Nonfiction
Juneteenth Programs
Join us for QPL’s Juneteenth programs for all ages, including arts and crafts, concerts, conversations, storytimes, and much more!
Juneteenth Booklists
Adult Fiction
Juneteenth by Ralph Ellison
Book | Audiobook
The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehesi Coates
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Libertie by Kaitlyn Greenidge
Book | eBook
The Sweetness of Water by Nathan Harris
Book | eBook | Audiobook
The Good Lord Bird by James McBride
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Beloved by Toni Morrison
Book | eBook | Audiobook
River, Sing Me Home by Eleanor Shearer
Book | eBook | Audiobook
The Deep by Rivers Solomon
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Jubilee by Margaret Walker
Book | eBook | Audiobook
The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
Book | eBook | Audiobook
The Book of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Adult Nonfiction
Juneteenth Texas: Essays in African-American Folklore by Francis E. Abernethy, Patrick B. Mullen, and Alan B. Govenar
The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Remembering Slavery by Ira Berlin
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Juneteenth: The Story Behind the Celebration by Edward Cotham
Book | eBook
The War Before the War by Andrew Delbanco
Black Reconstruction in America by W. E. B. Du Bois
Book | eBook
Forever Free: The Story of Emancipation and Reconstruction by Eric Foner
Book | eBook
The Second Founding by Eric Foner
Stony the Road: Reconstruction, White Supremacy, and the Rise of Jim Crow
by Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
Book | eBook | Audiobook
On Juneteenth by Annette Gordon-Reed
Book | eBook | Audiobook
To Raise Up a Nation by William S. King
Book | eBook
American Inheritance by Edward J. Larson
Book | eBook
The Failed Promise by Robert S. Levine
Book | eBook
Black Ghost of Empire by Kris Manjapra
Book | eBook
All That She Carried by Tiya Miles
Book | eBook | Audiobook
The Last Slave Ship by Ben Raines
Book | eBook | Audiobook
How the Word Is Passed by Clint Smith
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Lest We Forget by Velma Maia Thomas
Book | eBook
Young Adult Fiction
The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party
by M. T. Anderson
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Crossing Ebenezer Creek by Tonya Bolden
Inventing Victoria by Tonya Bolden
Book | eBook
Copper Sun by Sharon M. Draper
Dream Country by Shannon Gibney
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Riot by Walter Dean Myers
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Come Juneteenth by Ann Rinaldi
Book | eBook
A Sitting in St. James by Rita Williams-Garcia
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Young Adult Nonfiction
Passenger on the Pearl by Winifred Conkling
Book | eBook
In The Shadow of Liberty by Kenneth C. Davis
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Unequal: A Story of America by Michael Eric Dyson and Marc Favreau
Book | eBook | Audiobook
This Book Is Anti-Racist by Tiffany Jewell
Book | eBook
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Children's Fiction
Juneteenth for Mazie by Floyd Cooper
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Build a House by Rhiannon Giddens and Monica Mikai
Book | eBook
Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad
by Ellen Levine and Kadir Nelson
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Annie and Juneteenth by Aletta Seales and Artkina Celestin
Juneteenth Jamboree by Carole Boston Weatherford and Yvonne Buchanan
Book | eBook
Children's Nonfiction
Juneteenth by R.J. Bailey
Book | eBook
Juneteenth: Freedom Day by Muriel Miller Branch and Willis Branch
The American Civil War in Texas by Johanna Burke
Let's Celebrate Emancipation Day & Juneteenth by Barbara deRubertis
Book | eBook
Opal Lee and What It Means to Be Free: The True Story of the Grandmother of Juneteenth by Alice Faye Duncan and Keturah A. Bobo
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Hidden Black History: From Juneteenth to Redlining by Amanda Jackson Green
Book | eBook
What Is Juneteenth? by Kirsti Jewel
Book | eBook | Audiobook
All Different Now: Juneteenth, the First Day of Freedom by Angela Johnson and E.B. Lewis
Traditional African American Arts & Activities by Sonya Kimble-Ellis
Juneteenth by Julie Murray
Book | eBook
Juneteenth by Lynn Peppas
Stamped (For Kids): Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
Book | eBook | Audiobook
African-American Holidays by Faith Winchester
Juneteenth (Racial Justice in America: Histories) by Kevin P. Winn and Kelisa Wing
Book | eBook
Juneteenth: Our Day of Freedom by Sharon Dennis Wyeth and Kim Holt
Book | eBook | Audiobook
Juneteenth Resources
Learn About Juneteenth (Virtual Brochure from QPL, Langston Hughes Library, and Queens Memory)
Juneteenth - All About the Holidays (PBS Kids Video)
What Is Juneteenth? (HISTORY)
Celebrating Juneteenth, the Day Slavery Ended (The New York Times)
What is Juneteenth? (CBS News)
Juneteenth: The History of a New Holiday (The New York Times)
The History Of Juneteenth (NPR Fresh Air)
Special Series: Juneteenth (NPR)
DIY Confetti Poppers for Juneteenth (Crafting a Fun Life)
4 Meaningful Ways to Celebrate Juneteenth with Your Kids 2022 (Indy's Child Magazine)
5 Juneteenth Celebration Ideas for the Entire Family (Verywell Family)
Great Ideas for Celebrating Juneteenth (HGTV)
Here are 50 Quotes to Better Understand Juneteenth (Parade Magazine)
How to Celebrate Juneteenth This Year (PureWow)
Juneteenth Printables (Primary Treasure Chest Resources)
25 Ideas to Help You Celebrate Juneteenth (The Cubicle Chick by Danyelle Little)
Ways Your Family Can Celebrate and Find Joy Together on Juneteenth (PopSugar Family)
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May is Mental Health Awareness Month!
Teens, we want to help you feel comfortable with talking about your mental health this month.
Learn how to maintain your mental health and support your friends, with activities, exercises, and resources especially for you, all month long.
Come back to this blog post each week in May, and check out our Instagram page too, and use the hashtag #QPLTeens!
Teen Mental Health Programs
Join us for QPL’s in-person programs.
Mental Health Awareness Booklists
Moody Mondays
You know it, we know it: Mondays are the worst!
Each Monday in May, come here for music and videos to help you start your week.
May 1: Here’s some music and movement to help you improve your relaxation.
Take it Easy: A Relaxation Playlist
May 8: Here’s some music and movement to help you de-stress.
May 15: Here’s some music and movement to help you find calm.
Gentle Seated Chair Yoga For Beginners
May 22: Here’s some music and movement to help improve your mood.
Ocean County Library: Today Will Be a Wonderful Day
May 29: Here’s some music and movement to help you reduce your anxieties.
Herrick District Library: Meditate and Rejuvenate
Yoga For Health: Fears and Anxiety
Wreck It Wednesdays
Learn How to Create Your Own Wreck It Journal!
May 3: What's a Wreck It Journal?
A Wreck It Journal is not like traditional blogs, journals, diaries, or sketchbooks.
Yes, you can write or draw in it if you like. But you can also scribble nonsense, or throw it down the stairs, or put it under the leg of your kitchen table for a few hours!
There are no mistakes in how you use it, and you can wreck or destroy it however you want. Use your Wreck It Journal to let off steam, to experiment, to mess around!
Learn More and Try our Prompts to Create your own Wreck It Journal.
May 10: Teen Mental Health Month: What Do You Want?
This week, watch this video and use your Wreck It Journal to write down your goals and priorities for the rest of the month of May.
What questions do you have about mental heath and wellness? How do you want to help yourself this month? How do you want to help your friends?
May 17: Reflections from Thich Nhat Hanh
Watch this video with the Buddhist "father of mindfulness" and think about how you can practice gratitude.
Remind yourself daily of things you are grateful for. Be specific. Write them down in your Journal at night, or replay them in your mind.
May 24: Take Out the Trash!
Write down a list of everything that is making you upset. Once you have filled up the page, crumple it up and throw it in the garbage!
If you need to talk about what’s making you upset, here’s a list of free Mental Health Hotlines that you can call.
May 31: Time to Wreck that Journal!
Still need to wreck your journal?
Glue in a page from a magazine. Circle words you like. Write with your pen in your mouth. Give away your favorite page!
Here's a video with some examples of Wreck It Journals.
Fulfilled Fridays
Each Friday in May, take a moment to think about what makes you feel fulfilled.
How can you care for yourself? What can you do to care for the world around you?
May 5: Self-Care
Self-care is so important. We need to check in with how we feel, how we treat ourselves, and how we respond to the world around us. How do you care for yourself?
Search for Self-Care on the QPL Website
Visit Mental Health Is Health
May 12: Advocacy
Advocacy takes many forms. You can give support, ideas, and goals to your community, your schools, and even your city and country! What things around you would you like to improve? What are small steps that you can take? Who can you talk to about it?
Search for Activism on the QPL Website
Visit My Life Is Worth Living
Learn More about Youth Activism
May 19: Meditation
Meditation is a form of self-care. Learning to manage your breathing can help you center your thoughts and help you reduce stress and anxiety. Take a moment today to stop, pause, and concentrate on your breathing. It will really make a difference!
Search for Meditation on the QPL Website
Watch 7-Minute Meditation to Start Your Day
Watch 30 Day Meditation with Arianna Elizabeth
May 26: Art and Self-Expression
Art and self-expression can fulfill us as we navigate the world around us. What art form makes you feel fulfilled? Drawing, writing, painting, dancing, knitting, crocheting?
Search for Crafting on the QPL Website
Crafts for Teens & Tweens: 50 Awesome Ideas!
Find More Fulfillment
Queens Community House: Young Adult Services
Your Life Your Voice: Ways To Get Help
Left to right: New York Public Library President Tony Marx, Brooklyn Public Library President Linda Johnson, and Queens Public Library President Dennis M. Walcott testified this morning before the New York City Council (photo credit: William Alatriste/New York City Council)
For Immediate Release: Thursday, May 18
Contacts:
BPL: Fritzi Bodenheimer, fbodenheimer@bklynlibrary.org, 929-276-4232
NYPL: Amy Geduldig, amygeduldig@nypl.org, 212-592-7177
QPL: Elisabeth de Bourbon, edebourbon@queenslibrary.org, 917-650-3815; Ewa Kern-Jedrychowska, ekern@queenslibrary.org, 917-702-0016
New York City’s Library Presidents Testify About Impacts Proposed $36.2M Budget Cuts Will Have on Service and Days of Operation
May 18, 2023 — The presidents of New York City’s three public library systems testified this morning before the New York City Council calling on the City to reverse a planned $36.2M in proposed budget cuts in the FY24 budget. Their testimony comes after a rally outside City Hall hosted by the Libraries Committee Chair Chi Ossé, and DC37, the union that represents library workers. Hundreds of supporters attended the rally.
The hearing and rally marks the first time the three presidents — Brooklyn Public Library President Linda Johnson, Queens Public Library President Dennis M. Walcott, and New York Public Library President Tony Marx — have spoken publicly about potential budget cut impacts since Mayor Adams partially restored some library funding in the FY24 Executive Budget. All three expressed gratitude to Mayor Adams, but said the remaining $36.2M in proposed cuts would impact libraries' ability to provide critical services and programs, and their ability to stay open for their regular hours and days.
Specifically, the presidents testified that, if the cuts were to go through, the systems would need to limit hiring for vacant positions, which would result in the elimination of all Sunday service and a five-day-a-week schedule for many branches that would replace the current six-day schedule every public library now enjoys.
Copies of their prepared remarks are available here.
Prior to the budget hearing, Library leadership, staff, allies and supporters of all ages from throughout the five boroughs, rallied with the public in front of City Hall to protest the cuts. The three presidents were joined by Council Member Chi Ossé (Chair of the Council’s Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Intergroup Relations), Henry Garrido, Executive Director of DC37, the union that represents the majority of Library workers, Lauren Comito, Executive Director, Urban Librarians Unite, as well as teen patrons who shared the profound educational and social support they received from libraries.
Those in attendance wore bright orange t-shirts that read “Libraries are for everyone!” Supporters also carried signs that read: “No cuts to Libraries.” A public campaign held both online and at branches has sparked an outpouring of public support, with nearly 100,000 New Yorkers sending letters to City Hall advocating for New York City’s libraries.
Library services have remained crucial to the city's recovery from the pandemic and have also adapted to further champion access to information, fostering community collaboration, and ensuring all New Yorkers have a welcoming and inclusive space. In the past year, the three Library systems have worked to expand Teen Centers and services for students, supported asylum-seekers navigating New York City, and made frequently banned titles available to all.
Brooklyn Public Library President Linda E. Johnson, Queens Public Library President Dennis M. Walcott, and New York Public Library President Anthony W. Marx said: “New York City’s public libraries are trusted and safe community spaces that meet the diverse needs of New Yorkers, regardless of background, income, birthplace, or beliefs. From storytimes to senior services—and everything in between—libraries truly are for everyone. We thank Mayor Adams for restoring some of our funding. But our ability to continue this work is threatened by the proposed remaining budget cuts. If enacted, those cuts will end Sunday service at every branch across the city and eliminate universal six-day service. These are just a few of the difficult measures our systems will have to endure. Libraries are just 0.4% of the city budget, but their benefits are enormous.”
“Libraries are among New York’s most popular and utilized institutions, providing essential services to all New Yorkers. They need to be properly funded to continue this work. Like many New Yorkers, I grew up attending public libraries and know firsthand how these trusted institutions change and save lives. I stand with Brooklyn, Queens and the New York Public Libraries to demand fully funded systems in the FY24 City budget. Libraries are for everyone!” said Council Member Chi Ossé, Chair of the Council’s Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Intergroup Relations.
"Our library branches are vital for connecting New York City residents to their history, to the outside world and to each other. Our communities can’t afford to lose these essential services at a time when access to information, free programming and educational resources is more important than ever. We call on City Hall and the City Council to restore this critical funding immediately," said Henry Garrido, Executive Director of District Council 37.
“I don't understand a literate society not making libraries a priority. I’m addicted to St. Agnes Library on Amsterdam. I go there a lot to read the papers that I haven't caught up on. There are no seats available in the computer spaces. We need more librarians, not fewer. We need libraries to be open more hours, have more books, have more computers," said Council Member Gale A. Brewer.
“Public libraries are vital to the social and cultural life of our local communities, serving people of every ethnicity, age and economic class. We devote a small fraction of the city’s budget to funding our libraries, but the return on that investment is immeasurable. It is unthinkable to suggest they find a way to do the same with less by slashing their budgets. I pledge to support our city’s libraries to see that they get the funding they need to continue their vital work in our communities,” said Council Member Sandra Ung.
“The Mayor’s potential budget cuts to libraries are detrimental to our students, New Americans, seniors, and other vulnerable communities who rely on their services,” said Council Member Julie Won. “As an immigrant, I know firsthand that libraries are lifelines for our community. Budget cuts to libraries mean cuts to immigration resources, senior arts classes, and college readiness courses. We demand that the city fully restore cuts and baseline libraries by $36.2 million to prioritize the working people that keep New York moving.”
“Libraries are vital for our community; they are more than just a place to read books. Libraries help ensure that people can access the information they need regardless of age, education, ethnicity, language, or geographic barriers,” said Council Member Francisco Moya. “So we are doing everything we can to make sure they receive the right funding.”
About the Campaign
The #InvestInLibraries campaign is a partnership between the city’s three public library systems—Brooklyn Public Library, The New York Public Library, and Queens Public Library—and other library supporters across the city. Since the campaign launched in 2015, the City has allocated additional funding for programming as well as critical capital dollars to help address the over $1 billion in need facing the city’s aging library infrastructure. Despite this important support, libraries confront rising costs and increased demand for more services and programs (from New Yorkers and the City). The campaign urges the City to restore and increase funding to meet rising needs, demands, and costs
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