About Us

If you're a City of Dryden resident or taxpayer, you can get a free library card. All you need is a piece of identification and proof of address. If you lose your library card you can get a replacement card for a fee of $2.

Students

We provide all K to 12 students going to school in Dryden and the surrounding area with a free library card, even if students are non-residents.

Non-residents

If you live outside the City of Dryden and are not a K to 12 student, a non-resident library card costs $70 per person. 

Temporary cards

If you are going to be in Dryden for a short time and need a temporary card, a non-refundable $20 fee is available for a three-month library card.

We do not place limits on fiction or non-fiction books or audiobooks. All other items have the following borrowing limits:

• DVDs: maximum of three per card
• Magazines: maximum of four per library card
• Online Overdrive service: maximum of 10 checkouts per card
• Hoopla service: maximum of three circulations per month

Renew your borrowed library items online or by calling 807-223-1475.

New books (less than two months old) can only be renewed if there are no holds placed on the item by other library customers. Most DVD and Blu-ray material can be renewed if there are no holds, however new release DVD and Blu-Ray items cannot be renewed or placed on hold until they are removed from the "New Materials" list.

Magazines are not renewable and must be returned within 7 days. All other books may be renewed for two weeks.

Unfortunately, you cannot renew interlibrary loan items.

Your user ID for the online library system is your library card number (located on the back of your card, beginning with 21475) and your default PIN is "dryden".

Use your online account to:

• Put items on hold
• Renew material
• Check your account

Our monthly newsletter is now available in print and by email.  You can subscribe to receive a copy in your inbox each month, or download a pdf version of the print copy below. 

Subscribe to the email newsletter.

The Dryden Public Library has free Wi-Fi available, as well as computers for public use.

Public access computers are available for periods of 30 per person per day.

To use a computer at the Library, you must sign in at the front desk. If you are under 13 years of age, your parent or guardian must sign a consent form before you use the Internet.

Items returned late are subject to overdue fines. Once your fines exceed $20.00 your borrowing privileges will be suspended.

For more information on Library fines and fees, visit our Library Board page.

If you have a lost or damaged item, you will be charged the replacement cost (based on the current list price) plus a non-refundable processing fee of $5.

The Library does not accept donations in place of fees for lost or damaged items. In some cases we will accept an exact replacement copy of a lost or damaged item. Library staff must be consulted before a replacement copy will be accepted.

If you return an item that requires repair the following fees may be charged:

• Missing barcode: $1
• Damaged DVD, Blu-ray or audiobook case: $2
• Damaged book cover (all books): $3
• Items requiring extraordinary cleaning: $2

 How can I request material by interlibrary loan?

If you can't find what you're looking for in our collection, we are happy to order material for you through interlibrary loan.

We can request:

• Books that are more than a year old
• Books in different formats (large print and DAISY books)
• Microfilm from Ontario Archives

You can order materials through interlibrary loan any of the following ways:

• In person at the Library
• By calling 807-223-1475
• Using our online order form

Please do not request items by interlibrary loan that are held in the Dryden Public Library collection. You can request items in our collection by placing them on hold through "My Account".

Please note that not all material available in library collections will be available by interlibrary loan. Each individual library sets its own lending policy. Library staff will contact you if the material you have requested is unavailable.

Interlibrary loans can take several weeks to arrive. We will contact you when your material is available at the Dryden Public Library.

Fees and fines apply to interlibrary loan items, so please respect the due dates on your material.

We're happy to accept financial and in-kind donations to support the Dryden Public Library. The Library is a registered charitable organization with the CRA and offers a tax receipt for donations over $20.

Our current fundraising project is the Library Shelving Fund - a $50,000 fundraising campaign to replace shelving throughout the Library.

The Dryden Public Library also accepts gifts of gently used books and DVDs. Donated items may be added to the Library collection or sold in the Book Sale. Unfortunately, the Library cannot accept donations of:

• Backlist magazines
• Encyclopedias
• Textbooks
• VHS
• CD-ROMs
• Cassette tapes
• Downloaded or unlicensed copies of audio-visual materials
• Damaged books with broken bindings, missing pages, soiled, musty, moldy, with smoke or water damage, or with excessive writing in the text

Learn more about the Library's Donations and Gifts policy or contact us by email for more information.

Interested in volunteering at the Dryden Public Library? Join the Friends of the Library - a group of citizens supporting the Library by volunteering at Library events, programs and fundraisers.

To find our more or to get involved with the Friends of the Library please contact us.