Gibbs Memorial Library Buildings 1903-Present

Mexia Public Library was opened in 1903 in a 16' x 16' upstairs room in the Old Mexia City Hall. In 1922 the library moved to a new brick building at 505 E. Commerce, where it stayed for 26 years. On April 1, 1950 the renamed Gibbs Memorial Library was opened at 305 E. Rusk. Mrs. Mary Gibbs Jones dedicated the library to her parents and the library was built on their old home plot. From the beginning, the steel, concrete, & Indiana limestone building experienced structural problems stemming from the fact it was located on a geological fault line. A new building was built on the back portion of the same lot and opened June 1, 1975. A needed expansion was completed in October 1984 that houses an office, genealogy department and children's room.