September 20, 1971 —
Canyon Country library dedicated.
The Canyon Country Library at 18536 Soledad Canyon Road was the Los Angeles County Public Library system's second permanent library facility in the Santa Clarita Valley (following Newhall)
when it opened September 20, 1971. With a 25,000-book capacity, it
supplanted the
Saugus Mobilibrary, which was a joint venture of the Saugus Union School District and the County Public Library.
The new, permanent library filled a 5,050-square-foot brick building that the county initially leased from Pierpont Warehouses Corp.; then in 1985 the county bought the building.
Two years later, in 1987, the city of Santa Clarita was incorporated and assumed most municipal duties excluding the library system.
In 2001, in partnership with the County Public Library and a private shopping center developer, the
city spearheaded construction and contributed more than $5 million toward a new, 17,000-square-foot, county-operated library building across the street at 18601 Soledad Canyon Road, to replace the
outdated and outgrown 1971 facility. The new library, which shelved more than 100,000 books, periodicals and audio and video assets, was named for Jo Anne Darcy, who served both the city and county as a founding Santa Clarita City Council member and local field
deputy to county Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich.
When it opened November 17, 2001, the county utilized 12,864 square feet of the Canyon Country Jo Anne Darcy Library building for library services and leased 4,136 square feet to College of the Canyons for its nascent
east-side eductional center. When COC's permanent East (aka Canyon Country) Campus opened in 2007 at 17200 Sierra Highway, the educational services moved out of the library and into that location.
On July 1, 2011, the city of Santa Clarita launched its own library system, taking operational control of the three public libraries that existed within city limits at that time — the third being the Valencia
Library, which opened May 24, 1972.
LB7101: 9600 dpi jpeg, County of Los Angeles Public Library.