Stamp Will Honor Library of Congress

Two hundred years ago today, President John Adams approved the creation of what could be called one of the foundations of our free nation, the Library of Congress.

Tomorrow, another John Adams, the county librarian for the Orange County Library System, along with Garden Grove Postmaster Skip Mejico, will dedicate a stamp commemorating the bicentennial of one of the United States’ oldest federal cultural institutions.

The national library, which began with less than 1,000 books, now has a collection of nearly 119 million items in all formats: books, films, photographs, maps, recordings, musical scores and digital materials.

The stamp features a 1980 photograph by Michael Freeman of the interior dome and several of the arched windows in the Main Reading Room in the Thomas Jefferson Building.

“As you reflect on our nation’s accomplishments during the past century,” Mejico says, “you may recall the Jeffersonian principle upon which the Library of Congress--and all libraries--were built. That free access to information and knowledge is one of the cornerstones of democracy.”

Mejico, along with Su Chay, principal administrative librarian of the Garden Grove Library, will dedicate the stamp in a noontime ceremony at the Garden Grove Regional Library, 11200 Stanford Ave.

Helping in the celebration will be Krissy Anderson, a junior and member of the Advanced Girls Ensemble at Garden Grove High School, who will sing the National Anthem.

Those buying stamps at the event can receive a customized cancellation mark and envelope featuring a silk-screened picture of the Garden Grove Regional Library.

Library officials hope the event will inspire creativity in the century ahead by stimulating greater use of the Library of Congress and libraries everywhere.

Chris Ceballos can be reached at (714) 966-7440.