In 1935, a public meeting was held in the Bremer County town of Fredericksburg to formally organize a library organization. During the meeting, board members were elected, bylaws were drawn, and letters were sent to local organizations asking for help financing the library. The library was housed in the upper room of a local store until 1954, when it moved within the community hall building.
In 1975, resident Vern Upham purchased and donated a building to the city for use as a standalone library facility to be named in memory of his wife Dahlia. The library’s floor space was doubled after an expansion project was completed in 1995.
The post office in the Bremer County seat of Waverly was constructed in 1936 with funds provided by the Works Project Administration. The facility continues to serve the community, but was out of service for four months in late 2004 following a ceiling collapse in the lobby. Though the lobby was littered with nearly a foot insulation and plaster, the workroom floor was not impacted by the collapse, which occurred over the Labor Day holiday weekend.
By September 24, the Post Office moved to a temporary location at an old lumber building, two blocks away from the former location. Both box service and window service for stamps and parcels was available through the temporary location. A new ceiling was in place and work was completed on the walls and floors before the historic Waverly Post Office reopened January 28, 2005.
Readyln resident Glennis Meier led the effort to establish the first community library on March 27, 1965. The library originally was located in the back room of the City Hall, with books purchased from local donations and fundraisers. As the library collection grew, more space was needed, and the present library building was constructed in 1968. In 1992, a multi-purpose room was added to the brick library, which now provides patrons with books, CDs, DVDs, public computers, and wireless internet access.
After sitting vacant for many years, community members came together to revive the Sunset Theatre in Sumner, Iowa. A non-profit organization was formed, and with some help from a Vision Iowa grant in 2003, the theatre was fully restored and reopened. Originally dating to the 1940s, the single-screen theatre shows movies daily and has the ability to accommodate live performances.
Admission to movies is a mere 99 cents, likely the cheapest place to see a first-run show in the state. For current show times, visit the theatre website or call (563) 578-5307.
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