City of Athens
Education is a key cornerstone to a healthy community. They assist children in their early introduction to reading and continue as a vital backbone to their continued growth. Libraries offer entertainment and recreation within the literary arts for persons of all ages. In addition, the libraries of McMinn County are an invaluable resource to community organizations, business and individuals for historical, research, community awareness and environmental education.
The E.G.Fisher Public Library builds community, offering all people in McMinn County a full range of resources needed to live, learn, govern and work. The library is a dependable source of reliable information and of challenging ideas that enlighten and enrich. The library offers materials in many formats that enhance leisure time and expand our knowledge of our world. The library encourages the love of reading and the joy of learning and offers the assistance people need to find, evaluate, and use electronic and print information resources that help us live successful and rewarding lives.It also offers visitors a unique experience at the Wetlands at E.G. Fisher Public Library. In this educational environment, wetland visitors, including school children, have the opportunity to become more environmentally aware and to gain a new appreciation for natural areas. It provides education on flood mitigation, wetland reclamation, stream bank restoration and others, as well as serve as an outdoor classroom.
The Etowah Carnegie Library offers patrons a wide variety of materials with the most up-to-date books and materials. In addition to checking out books, DVD's and videos, the library offers fax and copy services, free public Wi-Fi, public computer workstations with word-processing capabilities and InterLibrary Loans.
The goal at the Englewood Public Library is to provide a safe space to meet and interact with others, or to sit quietly and read. They proudly offer free public access computers, available to everyone over the age of 10, as well as free public WiFi. Their up-to-date collection includes a wide variety of adult fiction and non-fiction, audiobooks, high-school and middle-school fiction, juvenile non-fiction, easy-read and picture books, reference volumes and biographies, as well as a vast collection of resources on McMinn County and Englewood History. Over 200 DVDs with free one-week rental are also offered.
The Ocoee River Regional Library is a support service agency of the Tennessee State Library and Archives. The regional library center is one of nine multi-county regional library centers across the state, combining their efforts as the Tennessee Regional Library System. It is located in Athens, providing a central location to the counties it serves: Blount, Bradley, Loudon, McMinn, Meigs, Monroe, Polk, Rhea and Roane. The Ocoee River Regional Library provides a wide range of services to its 26 member public libraries, including leadership and guidance, materials support, technology support, and training.