Digital Microfilm Readers Are Currently Unavailable

Digital microfilm readers are not available at Central library branch until further notice. We're working on a repair. In the meantime a single analog reader is available in the Local History and Archives Reading Room

Published:

Monday, May 25, 2026 - 12:00pm

SmartPay Service Not Available

HPL's online payment service is not working. We aim to restore it quickly. Apologies for the inconvenience.

Published:

Friday, May 22, 2026 - 2:15pm

Bookmobile Service Modification

Due to Driver availability, Bookmobile has the following schedule modifications for the month of June. We apologize for the inconvenience.

Bookmobile Service June Modifications

Tuesday, June 2:

McMaster University - Cancelled

Friday, June 5:

Winona - Cancelled
Queen Victoria - Cancelled

Saturday, June 6:

All Regular Sites are Cancelled due to a Special Event

Published:

Friday, May 22, 2026 - 12:00pm

Staff Professional Development Day - All Branches Closed

All HPL Branches are closed on Friday May 29, for Staff Professional Development. Bookmobile is off the road and Extended Access service is not available. Regular service hours resume on Saturday May 30.

Visit our Virtual Branch at hpl.ca for our online resources and collections.

Published:

Thursday, May 14, 2026 - 12:00pm

Central Library: Children's Area Renovation on 2nd Floor

Renovations are currently underway for the 2nd Floor Central Children's Area. Programs are still being offered as scheduled and there is a temporary pop-up Children’s Area on the northeast side of the 2nd Floor (near the Piano Room), including access to collections and train tables. Construction is expected to be completed by late Spring. Thank you for your patience.

Published:

Monday, March 23, 2026 - 9:00am

Sherwood Branch: Renovations

As of Monday, March 2, Sherwood Branch's 2nd Floor is closed due to renovations. Makerspace, Children and Teen's collection are temporarily available on the 1st Floor. All programs will be held in the basement program room. Renovations are expected to be completed in late Spring. Thank you for your patience.

Published:

Tuesday, February 10, 2026 - 1:00pm

Community Publicity Procedure

PROCEDURE PURPOSE

To outline the procedures related to the promotion, distribution and display of community related publicity material at the Library’s physical locations, online on the library website, or on digital screens and social media platforms.

DEFINITIONS

Community Publicity Material: Promotional material that informs the public of a free event, initiative or service in the Hamilton area. 

PROCEDURE DETAILS

Hamilton Public Library (HPL) will only promote material that aligns with its mission and vision.

HPL reserves the right to reject any community publicity material or approve exceptions to promote.

Approval to post community publicity material does not imply the Library’s endorsement of content and will only be accommodated after the Library and the Library Partners’ needs are met.

Community publicity materials may only be accepted from legally constituted non-profit or charitable organizations or government-supported agencies such as the Board of Education. 

All material submitted becomes the property of the Library and will not be returned. HPL does not notify the community group if the request is not accepted for any reason, including lack of space.

HPL reserves the right to decide the appropriate medium and location to share community publicity.

We require submission of materials 14 days in advance of event date for Library review and posting.

COMMUNITY PUBLICITY MATERIAL 

Acceptable Material 

Any print or digital copies submitted to the library must be professional and of high quality. Printed material cannot exceed 8 1/2" x 11". Content should be submitted in file formats as follows: 

Print Posters: 8.5"x11" 300dpi PDF

Digital LCD Screens: 1920x1080px JPEG

Social Promotions: 1500x1500px JPEG

Postings are dependent on space available and may vary by library branch. 

Material may be accepted if the content of the post meets all of these criteria: 

It is aligned with the Hamilton Public Library’s mission and vision.  
It is a public free event or service offered without discrimination or prejudice to any group.

It is educational, recreational, cultural, or community interest event or service. 
It is of local interest, occurring in the Hamilton area and relevant to the local community.

Unacceptable Material

Material will not be accepted if its form or content include any of the following: 

Retail or wholesale advertisements, private notices, personal services and information about money-making events sponsored by for-profit organizations. 
Petitions and solicitations including all fundraising activities and events. 
Contravenes the Human Rights Code, the Charter of Rights, the Criminal Code of Canada, City of Hamilton bylaws, or any laws or legislation. 
Material that advocates a particular view such as political, religious or philosophic position. 
Material inappropriate in size (larger than 8 1/2" x 11") format or quality.

Material received less than 14 days in advance of an event.
Material, as determined by staff, to be not relevant to their local community.

Distribution and Promotion

HPL may elect to display copies of local community newspapers (e.g. Dundas Star) or other major cultural or educational institutions publications (e.g. college calendars, Stratford or Shaw Festival events) dependent upon space, and availability of acceptable distribution stands where possible.  

Community publicity material are not to be placed at customer service desks, or in inappropriate locations such as the floor. This material should not take visual precedence over Library business. 

Digital/social media materials should be emailed to communications@hpl.ca for consideration.

SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS  

Community publicity material must be submitted to HPL Communications Department for review.

Digital material can be emailed to communications@hpl.ca. 

Printed material can be dropped off in the Publicity Bin on the 1st Floor of the Central Library or delivered to the following address: 

Hamilton Public Library 
P.O. Box 2700
Attn: Communications Department 
55 York Boulevard 
Hamilton, ON   L8N 4E4 

Communications Department Staff reviews daily the submitted materials to determine if it follows the policy and procedure for approval for display, distribution, or promotion.

Community publicity material is approved and posted only as space and staff time permit. Approved material will be sent to the appropriate branch(s). 