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The Minnesota Digital Library has another addition to its Primary Source Set Collection, Traveling Library Services in Minnesota. Minnesota Reflections is rich with images and documents chronicling bookmobiles and other traveling library services in our state. The first remote access to library services was in the form of traveling libraries, collections of 25-50 books packed into a box and delivered to communities requesting them. Bookmobiles emerged in the early 20th century and reached prominence by mid-century. Despite today’s prevalence of remote digital access to library services and resources, there are still hundreds of bookmobiles in operation across the United States. The Traveling Library Services Primary Source Set features images documenting the evolution of bookmobiles through the decades as well as book lists from the earliest traveling libraries.

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The Minnesota Digital Library has another addition to its Primary Source Set Collection, Traveling Library Services in Minnesota. Minnesota Reflections is rich with images and documents chronicling bookmobiles and other traveling library services in our state. The first remote access to library services was in the form of traveling libraries, collections of 25-50 books packed into a box and delivered to communities requesting them. Bookmobiles emerged in the early 20th century and reached prominence by mid-century. Despite today’s prevalence of remote digital access to library services and resources, there are still hundreds of bookmobiles in operation across the United States. The Traveling Library Services Primary Source Set features images documenting the evolution of bookmobiles through the decades as well as book lists from the earliest traveling libraries.

The Minnesota Reflections Primary Source Sets are designed to highlight primary source materials in the Minnesota Digital Library that relate to a specific topic, while providing context to help students and researchers better understand historic events and the resulting documentation created by the people who experienced these events.

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Historical content from Minnesota's cultural heritage organizations, all in one place