Woof

I worked as a clerk at Himmel from 1998 to 2004. I remember on one occation that a dog came running through the library. One of the other library staff asked if he had a library card. Woof! was the only reply, before he left to explore the park.

Catalina Methodist Storytime

I have been a Pre-K teacher at Catalina Methodist Day School (which is acros the street) for 5 years and every Tuesday we come to the Himmel library for storytime with Ben. The kids all love Ben & his wonderful storytelling. Thank you Himmel library for being there for us every week without fail. We love the library!

Magic and Kermit the Frog

When my son was little, Himmel was one of his favorite places to come. He got his first storybook and first library card. Some of his favorite books are Magic School Bus, Magic Tree House, Pokemon, Bionicle, Andrew Lost, Scaredy Squirrel. In other words, Himmel has a lot of magic to share. My daughter Sophie, loved the Kermit the Frog. She carried it with her down the aisles and I try to keep her from knocking all the books off the shelves. I love Himmel and if my kids love to read, it's because of all the amazing book and memories we had here.

Volunteering at Himmel

My favorite memory about Himmel is coming to volunteer and seeing all the people motivated to read and get to know all of the people from the library.

A Career in the Library Field

Himmel is the first place I volunteered when I was fourteen. It was the first step in my path toward a career in the library field.

Himmel at 50, Micah at Nine and a Half

My son Micah and I have been patrons of Himmel Park Library his entire lifetime – nine and a half years! The first five years of his life, Himmel was the center of our universe. If we were not checking out zillions of pictures books, we were attending weekly story times, talking with the incredible staff at Himmel about book recommendations and life in general, frequenting the Lego and Chess Club, and chatting with friends in the children’s section.I remember the times when Micah entertained himself long enough (playing with the hand sanitizer machine and making xerox copies) to give me a precious few moments to look for books that did not rhyme!I now work at the public library, and I have the great pleasure of giving storytimes! My son no longer plays with the hand sanitizer machine, and he can use the online catalog and reserve system like a librarian. But to this day, what he still enjoys most, is walking up to the desk at Himmel, talking with the friendly staff, checking out his books, and experiencing that most human of connections - kindness.

Alyce Collinge Memorial

My Mother Alyce Collinge joined then Tucson Public Library in 1967. She became Himmel's manager in 1968. Himmel had a staff of 9, 3 librarians, 3 clerks and 3 pages, the pages and one clerk were part-time, one librarian, Eddie Brooks, was the children's librarian. Former Tucson City Manager, Joel Valdez, who had just begun his carrer, was one of the clerks. If you look closely at the 1961 photo you will see there is no conference room. It was added sometime after my Mother transferred to the Woods Library in 1970. The rest of the library is much as she knew it, minus the computers! Himmel was her favorite library, she had a great staff and she loved the sense of community inside and outside the library. Look for her memorial tree on the right as you walk into the library and remember her words: "Plant the Seed, Read." John Collinge, Bethesda, Maryland

Yarn Bombing at Himmel

Happy (first ever) International Yarn Bombing Day! at Himmel Saturday June 11th, 2011

The Southern Pacific Steam Engine no. 1673

The Southern Pacific Steam Engine no. 1673 that once resided in Himmel Park was manufactured in 1900. The engine was based in Tucson and operated in southern Arizona and was used primarily to haul freight trains. The engine was retired in 1955 and was used in various Hollywood films including “Oklahoma”. The engine was then donated to the Arizona Historical Society in 1962 where it sat until construction on the Historical Society’s building resulted to its move to Himmel Park. The engine proved to be a popular attraction and had to have a fence constructed around it to prevent vandalism. By the 1990’s, the engine was in an advanced state of deterioration and was almost scrapped. Tucson citizens intervened and formed the 1673 Task Force which had the engine registered on the National Register of Historic Places. By 1994 the engine was taken apart and restored and looked exactly how it did when it was retired in 1955. In December of 2000, the engine was moved out of Himmel Park and relocated to the Southern Pacific Depot in downtown Tucson. In 2005 the engine was opened to public display and currently resides there.

Sources:
Diamond, L. (1979, September 6). Catch 22 Holds Engine 1673 on Tracks at Himmel Park. The Tucson Citizen.

Captive Nations Monument

The Captive Nations Monument located in the northwest portion of Himmel Park was dedicated on March 8, 1986. This dedication included half dozen speakers and around two hundred spectators. The monument was constructed by Tucson sculptor Aureleo Rosano and commissioned by the Captive Nations Coordinating Committee of Tucson to commemorate the suffering and lack of human rights afforded to citizens that lived under the Soviet-bloc or Soviet influenced countries during the Cold War. The monument took Rosano around three hundred hours to complete and lists nineteen countries the committee considered to be “captive countries.” The monument weighs 1,600 pounds and cost $1,500 to build.

Source: Limberis, C. (1986, March 9). Panel Remembering “Captive Nations” Dedicates Monument in Himmel Park. The Arizona Daily Star.

Prudence Myrland Waid Haney

Mrs. Prudence Myrland Waid Haney, a retired T.U.S.D. teacher, grew up in a home at the corner of Tucson Blvd. and Hawthorne Street. The Himmel's Edmond homestead was a desert playground across the street. She remembers playing in the open area which is now the park creating small hut structures in the creosote bushes and riding her bike in her Levis with her girlfriends on Saturday mornings as the "Girls Levi Club". She also remembers the University of Arizona's ROTC Calvary riding their horses along trails in the area that is now the park. Since the university stables were close they would ride out form the U of A down Hawthorne across Tucson Blvd. and into the trails in the area of Himmel-Edmondson homestead land. Himmel Park and the library are named after Mrs. Alvina Himmel Edmondson who sold the land to the city that was latter developed into the park. Prudence Haney remembers the original Himmel homestead. Alvina and her three daughters Catherine, Grace and Alvina. At first Prudence and her girlfriends were afraid of the old red wood homestead with the tin roof, but after an accident when they needed to get help they found Alvina kind and helpful. Prudence remembers Alvina's family coming to her house to fill up buckets with water because they had forgotten to pay their water bill.

Himmel Rules

So, one morning…I come in to work. I and the janitor are the only ones there. I say good morning, how are you, blah dee blah blah; etc. He says, "oh, one interesting thing…somebody left an old mattress in front of the library." Out front? That’s weird, I said, thinking someone had dumped it by the curb for trash pickup. To which he says, "No, it was in the grass, right in front of the branch."
I said, well, that doesn’t make any sense. He said, "Well, the really weird part is that it had, written on it, in big, block letters, NANINI RULES – HIMMEL BITES THE BIG ONE (??)"
I stared at him for a moment. Then, I said, No, I don’t think so, but that’s funny. And he said, "No, really, it did." And I said, Ha ha, right. And where is this ‘message on a mattress’ "In the dumpster over by the pool." On the other side of the park? "Yeah." Okay, wait a minute.
And I proceeded to take a walk across the park to the pool area. And there, leaning against the dumpster is a mattress with, sure enough, printed in giant, perfect block letters, it says, NANINI RULES – HIMMEL BITES THE BIG ONE.
So the next person to arrive is the Branch Manager, Carl Ann Rott. I proceed to tell her about the mattress. She proceeds to say, "Ha, Ha, right." I tell her that it’s the truth. She then takes a little walk across the park.
We never did find out who left it. It didn’t make sense for it to be a member of the public, why would anyone compare the top-circulating branch in the system to little Himmel in the first place. It had to be an inside job. We suspected a couple of our pages. Carol Ann, who managed Nanini just before Himmel, thought maybe it was a personal jab of some kind. We called around. No one ever fessed up.
A few years later, I had moved on to Wilmot library but had been invited to Carol Ann’s retirement party. A day or two before her last day I was driving down the street and I saw an old mattress someone had thrown away. So when Carol Ann came in for her last day, there it was propped up against the park water fountain, and on it was written HIMMEL RULES – CAROL ANN ROCKS.

Auto Repair Database helpful for my mechanic business

I use the auto repair database all the time. Very helpful in my mechanic business.

One of the best reasons to live in Sam Hughes!

I have used the library since 1981. One of the best reasons to live in Sam Hughes! Great staff and selections of new books.

A place to unwind

Hi there. My name is Richard. I find it a true comfort to know that there is a place to unwind after work in a decent atmosphere in the midst of this ever changing world in which we live. the attentiveness of the staff and the overall resources are just right. Good Blessings to all who partake in this establishment.

Riding my bike to Himmel on Saturdays

Ever since I was fourteen years of age, I've always enjoyed going to the Himmel Library. I would get on my bike and ride all the way to this library. Upon entering this library, usually on a Saturday, I would go to the Mystery section and then to the Magazine section. The people here in this library would answer my questions about library books and were real nice and personable. I would sometimes take a break and walk to Speedway and go to Arby's or Arthur Treacher's Fish Restaurant. I have been to other libraries in Tucson, but none would give me the special feeling I would get whenever I would enter the Himmel Park Library. A way I could describe this feeling is that I would feel happy and safe.

Himmel helped me become interested in reading again

In April of 2008, I made my first visit to Himmel Library. I was needing a library card and assistance with help on one of the library computers. Sarajean helped me register for the library card and she also helped me with my computer task, which I could not have accomplished with out her help. Having accomplishing everything that I needed to accomplish, I began to explore around the library, reading newspapers, magazines, and books and became interested in reading again. I have had a bad habit of abandoning reading books for long periods of time, but I became interested in reading again, and have read many books since April of 2008. I have a lot of time on my hands since I returned from working and I find reading at Himmel Library a very relaxing and rewarding way to spend my time during the daytime. I thought I might tire of reading over a period of time but that hasn't been the case, in fact I seem to want to read more. I have read a lot of good books this past year and I plan to read many more. I have visited all the libraries around town and I find that Himmel Library is by far the most interesting library and the most fun. Its a great experience. Thanks allot.

Hand Grenade found in Park in 1961

In 1961, my friends and I found a hand grenade in Himmel Park. We called the police and the theory was that the grenade fell out of Davis Monthan bound plane.

My home away from home

I lived behind Quebedeaux street and have been coming to Himmel for about six years. I've seen many changes at the library. When I was a kid the book mobile would come every couple of weeks and I always checked out books. I come to Himmel because its my home away from home. I can't always afford a newspaper or buy a 25$ book but I can read it here or check it out.

Tutoring at Himmel

I have tutored at Himmel Library for the past few years. During this time I have met so many interesting children and families. Himmel is a warm friendly meeting place to people from so many countries. I have worked with people from Asia, South America and Europe. It has an environment that encourages sharing and coming together. Students come here to prepare for school exams and to take citizenship tests. Children sit on the floor looking through picture books while parents read aloud. The pleasant, helpful staff and neighborhood feeling makes it an ideal place to learn, read and discover. Tutoring at Himmel has been a joy.

Duffy School visits Himmel Library

In the 1950s & early 1960s, when public elementary school libraries were not much more than several bookshelves in a storage room sized space, older grades took occasional "field trips" to the downtown library. After Himmel was built, my school (Duffy) switched destinations. I also remember Lawrence Clark Powell speaking a few words in the 1990s in front of the library. I think a new section was dedicated to him. Inspiring! (He was probably close to 90 years old.)

Snow at the Library

A Himmel customer recalls as a young child being able to play in snow in front of the library.

Snow was trucked down from Mt. Lemmon and dumped on the lawn for the local kids to play in.