The recent approval of a request from the Yorba Linda Woman’s Club to place a Little Free Library at Jessamyn West Park renews several memories of this community’s early history.
Founded in 1912, the Woman’s Club has long been associated with educational projects and support of libraries, and author Jessamyn West’s connection with Yorba Linda extends well beyond her 1909-26 residency.
In 1913, the club donated $5 and books to the community’s first library, located in a small room in the grammar school building on School Street, and in 1959 the club furnished the landscaping for a new library at Lemon Drive and Olinda Street (now an In-N-Out restaurant).
West, whose father, Eldo, was a superintendent of the area’s mutual water company and a founding school board member, was one of the first patrons of the early library, paying $1, she later said, for one of the first library cards.
West’s Quaker family moved from Indiana to Yorba Linda when she was age 6. For an interview in the weekly Yorba Linda Star newspaper in 1979, West recounted that her first paid writing appeared in the Star, for which she wrote the Social Notes column in 1923-24.
West attended Yorba Linda Elementary School, Fullerton Union High School, Fullerton College and Whittier College before marrying and leaving the community. But West returned frequently for events, including speaking at a library grand opening and on other occasions.
West’s most famous book, “The Friendly Persuasion,” was a collection of short stories that had appeared in various magazines and was published in 1945. She’s also credited for the screenplay for the 1956 film version starring Gary Cooper.
The Woman’s Club request for a Free Little Library in the city park named for the author that opened in 1984 was in a letter to the Parks and Recreation Commission. Club members will assist with the location and stock and maintain the library for a one-year trial period.
The library will be…
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