Calhoun County Library is located in the County Seat at St. Matthews, South Carolina. It receives its funding from the county and from the S. C. State Library, with some grants and private funding. It is governed by a seven-member board appointed by the Calhoun County Council. It has received several large private donations, one of which helped purchase the bookmobile. The library has a new headquarters that is located side-by-side with a workforce development center operated by Orangeburg-Calhoun Technical College.

LIBRARY CARD & CIRCULATION POLICIES

A library card may be obtained free of charge for any resident of Calhoun County and is required to check out materials or use library computers. Children under the age of sixteen must have a parent or guardian’s signature in order to receive a card. Cards for out-of-county patrons may be purchased for $20.00. Cards are good for one year and may be renewed if your account is in good standing. You may check out up to 50 total items at a time, but you can only check out five magazines per week and five videos each week. If Calhoun County Library doesn’t have a book you need, patrons can easily request it from a SCLENDS partner library through the card catalog or with staff assistance.

• The checkout period for all books, audio books, and magazines is 14 days.
• The checkout period for all videos is 7 days.

A fine of $0.10 is charged for each day that a Calhoun County Library book, audio book, or magazine is overdue. The fine for late videos is $.50 per video per day. Fines on items from partner libraries are higher than for local materials. A patron with a fine of $3.00 or more may not check out any more items or use computers until the fine is paid. If you have books that have been out for more than 28 days you may not check out any library materials until the items are returned and the fines paid. Failure to return materials will result in referral to Unique Management, a debt collection agency.

If you need to return books after hours there is a book drop on the front porch of the library. The Calhoun County Library has easy access to all its facilities with a ramp for the physically handicapped.

OTHER SERVICES

Books can be requested or put on hold on-line through the catalog. The databases within DISCUS, South Carolina's Virtual Library, can also be accessed from home. Ask a staff member for the current user name and password. Other resources are available online with the patron's barcode and password, including auto repair reference resources, downloadable audiobooks, and language learning resources.

The library has computers for use by adult, teen, and children, as well as free public wireless access. Black and white copies are $0.15 per page and color copies are $0.75.

Calhoun County Library has a written internet policy which every user must read and sign before they are allowed to use the computer the first time. Children under 17 years old must have an adult with them if they are using the Internet. Parents may grant written permission to children 14 years old and over by coming in to the Library. Patrons are allowed 30 minutes on a computer unless they are working on homework or a research paper. Patrons are allowed 30 minutes when logging on the a computer, with time extensions available provided that no one is waiting. Use of chat rooms or instant messaging is not allowed. A patron that abuses the computer privileges is not allowed to use the computer for a period of 30 days. A second incident will result in loss of computer privileges for six months. A third incident results in the permanent loss of computer privileges.

The library has a fax machine. The fax number is 803-874-4154. It costs $0.50 per page to send a fax, and $0.10 per page to receive faxes.

The Library offers regular programs for children ages 0-4 years and their caregivers. Child development and kindergarten classes from all the schools come to the library. Child care providers interested in receiving library services should call the library and talk with Mrs. Mary Jo Springs. The Library also offers weekly programs for teens (ages 12-17 allowed).

Calhoun County Library has tax forms and information available for the public.