About the City Island Library

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City Island Library
The branch has a unique 1,000+ volume Ship Collection the topics of boat construction, naval history, pirates,  and more.

The City Island branch of the New York Public Library is located in the center of a mile-long, three-block-wide stretch of land in the Bronx, on the Long Island Sound. City Island has been described as “Martha’s Vineyard with a Bronx accent.”

The City Island Branch has been serving the island community since November 2, 1903, and had been in its current location on City Island Avenue and Bay Street since 1970.  In the spring of 1997, the City Island Library re-opened after undergoing a complete renovation that more than doubled its size.

The branch has a unique 1,000+ volume Ship Collection the topics of boat construction, naval history, pirates, the America's Cup, naval history, famous shipwrecks, fishing techniques, lighthouses, sailing how-to’s, sea fiction, and surfing. Reference materials on City Island history are available for use inside the branch. 

The branch now features a separate reference and children’s section and a landscaped backyard garden for public use. A new community room can accommodate 45 people for programs and meetings.  Eight laptops and four regular computer stations are avaiable for public use. During the school year, we open the community room to our students to play video games on the Wii or PlayStation and play or do research on the Internet. We also invite schools to bring their classes.

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