History

A Quick Library History

In 1915, the Vista library started with 50 books in the home of Nellie Acker. Over time, it moved to the Vista Inn, then later to the Woman’s Club of Vista clubhouse. In the 1950s, it found its home in a former automotive building with 900 square feet in the 300 block of South Santa Fe Avenue. In 1964, the library was moved to the Regional County Center on Melrose Drive.  By the 1970s, the Vista Library was in desperate need of more space as well as a permanent place.

The Friends of the Vista Library Was Incorporated

In the late 1970s, several members of the community saw the need for an improved library and set out to do something about it. The Friends of the Vista Library was formally incorporated in 1981, and for more than a decade, its sole purpose was to raise money for a new building. Members of the Friends held fundraiser after fundraiser and raised hundreds of thousands of dollars. In 1992, key community members along with the current librarian were able to raise the $4.5 million they needed to build the new library. In 1994, the new library on Eucalyptus Avenue opened.

The ENCORE Bookstore

In the 1990s, the leaders of the Friends of the Vista had tremendous insight when it came to the design of the library.  From the very start, a bookstore was included in the building plans, and the ENCORE Bookstore became the first bookstore inside a library in San Diego County and the primary source of funding for the Friends of the Vista Library to be able to provide supplemental programming, additional collections, and capital improvements that were not included in the county budget. 

Championing the Vista Library

In the mid- and late 1990s, the Friends funded the entire children’s programs at the library. Over the years, they paid for much of the furniture, the computer center, benches, and the tile wall. The Friends expanded the reference materials and purchased books in Spanish and other languages. They sponsored a painting exhibition one year. They also covered expenses for an afterschool tutoring program for kids who needed extra help.

More recently, the Friends paid for the mural that you see at the library entrance as well as darkening blinds for the community room. Throughout their existence, the Friends continues to support the Summer Reading programs, year-round monthly concerts, holiday events, special programs, new collections, and furniture and fixtures as they are needed in the library.

In its 44 years of existence, the mission of the Friends remains the same: to champion the Vista Library for the benefit of the community.