Chestnut Hill Library

Wednesday, February 26 – Message from Staff

 

You can now sign-up for the Chestnut Hill Library Newsletter online! Keep up to date on all the events happening at our branch, alongside learning about highlights from our collection! Sign-up HERE to subscribe.

 

8711 Germantown Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19118-2716
Germantown Ave. & Bethlehem Pike
Open today 11:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Sunday, 6/8 Closed
Monday, 6/9 11:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Tuesday, 6/10 11:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Wednesday, 6/11 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Thursday, 6/12 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. *
Friday, 6/13 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Saturday, 6/14 Closed
  • * Thursday has hour changes – due to staff development
Sunday Closed
Monday 11:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Tuesday 11:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Wednesday 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Thursday 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Friday 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Saturday Closed

Upcoming Closures

  • Thu., Jun. 12 : Opening at 1:00 PM due to staff development
  • Thu., Jun. 19 : Closed Juneteenth
  • Fri., Jul. 4 : Closed Independence Day
  • Mon., Sep. 1 : Closed Labor Day
View all holiday closings

Facilities

  • Baby changing station
  • Bicycle rack
  • Book drop box
  • Computers for public use
  • Electrical outlets available
  • Photocopier (black/white)
  • Printing (black/white)
  • Public restrooms
  • Street parking (metered)
  • Water fountain
  • Wireless internet access (wi/fi)

Upcoming Events

Gender and Sexuality Fundamentals

Mon, June 9, 2025 5:15 P.M.

This workshop centers and prioritizes LGBTQIA+ identities, experiences, and their safety. Participants will be introduced to the differences between gender expression, assigned sex, gender identity, and sexual orientation. Discussion topics will include using gender-neutral language and applying…

Stop the Bleed Training

Tue, June 10, 2025 4:00 P.M.

In under 1 hour, you can learn to save a life.  Average time it takes someone to bleed to death: 3 - 5 minutes Average time for first responders to arrive: 7 - 10 minutes Trauma-related deaths worldwide due to bleeding: 40% Participants will receive formal Stop the Bleed training,…

Summer Reading Kickoff: With the Philly Goat Project!

Tue, June 10, 2025 5:00 P.M.

Join the Philly Goat Project to celebrate the start of our Summer Reading program! We will have a goat parade, read storybooks, and perform a silly play!  Friends and people of all ages and stages are welcome. 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. Rain date is June 24 at the same time.  Please…

Yoga for Curious Kids

Wed, June 11, 2025 10:30 A.M.

In this class, children and their favorite adult will experience 30 minutes of fun and inspirational interaction, encouraging the child's natural thirst for knowledge. This class is personalized around children's curiosities as they learn yoga through  social interaction,…

About

Located a half-block north of Bethlehem Pike in the middle of a lovely garden, the library is just beyond the end of the 23 route. facebook.com/FLPChestnutHill/

History

The first inhabitants of the Chestnut Hill area were the Delaware Indians. One of their leaders, Chief Tedyuscung, is immortalized in a statue in nearby Fairmount Park overlooking Wissahickon Creek. The Indians sold this section of their territory to William Penn on July 14, 1683.

The area's first white settlers were religious dissenters from Holland who were attracted to Penns Woods by the tolerance of its gentle leader. The name Chestnut Hill first appeared in a deed of 1711. Although there were no more Chestnut trees on the hill than anywhere else, the now almost extinct trees gave the town its name.

To serve the schools and the community, philanthropist Henry Williams built the Christian Hall Library in 1872 at 8711 Germantown Avenue. Williams named the library Christian Hall because he did not wish anything to go on in the two-story building and subsequent annex that would be inconsistent with the word "Christian." Singing, elocution classes, magic lantern shows, art lectures, church fairs and temperance meetings were permitted.

At first the library was only a reading room, and books were issued only to subscribers. But after 1876, Mr. Williams was persuaded to allow anyone to take books without charge. In 1897, the trustees of the Christian Hall Library decided that the library would be of greater benefit to the community as a branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia, and so they granted the grounds to the city.

A new library building was built in 1907, funded by Andrew Carnegie and on the same site as the Christian Hall Library. In 1991, a modern meeting room addition was added. The library was renovated in 1999 as part of the "Changing Lives" campaign, which brought Internet service to every branch. Active support is provided by the Friends of the Chestnut Hill Library, founded in the 1970s.