Cold Weather Alert for the City of Hamilton

Cold Weather Alert for the City of Hamilton Monday January 19, 2026.

The temperature is expected to plummet below minus 15 Celsius. For warm place hours visit hpl.ca/hours

For a list of shelters and health information visit www.hamilton.ca/cold

Published:
Monday, January 19, 2026 - 8:00am
Barton Branch Accessible Washroom Out of Order

The accessible washroom at Barton Branch is not working. We aim to get it fixed quickly.

Published:
Saturday, January 17, 2026 - 3:00pm
Online Resources - Update

The following eResources have been recently discontinued in our HPL collections: Novelist, Summa, Summa Kids, and Northstar Digital Literacy. Please visit www.hpl.ca/articles/read-watch-listen for our full listing of online resources for your next read, watch, listen and/or learn.

Published:
Wednesday, January 7, 2026 - 11:00am
Waterdown Branch Accessible Door Out of Order

The accessibility door at Waterdown Branch is not working. We aim to fix it quickly.

Published:
Tuesday, December 30, 2025 - 12:00pm
Printing Updates

Daily print balances for black and white and colour printing change January 2, 2026. The new daily print balance is 40 cents. Members receive four free black and white copies or two free colour copies. 

Large format and vinyl printing pricing also change on January 2. Visit https://www.hpl.ca/makerspaces for updates.

Published:
Monday, December 22, 2025 - 2:00pm
Replacement and Damage Fees

Bring back your borrowed library items within 28 days to avoid a replacement or lost fee. We'll remove the fee when you bring back your overdue items. 

Published:
Thursday, September 11, 2025 - 3:00pm

Ready for Reading

Mother reading with young daughterDid you know that it is never too early to prepare your child for success as a reader?  As a parent or caregiver of a newborn, toddler or preschooler, you are your child's first teacher.

Reading together is the most important gift that you can give your young child. Every Child Ready to Read identifies five pre-reading skills that children should have in order to learn to read.

Talking 

Talking with children is one of the best ways to help them learn new words and information.
 

Singing

Songs are a natural way for children to learn about language.
 

Reading

Reading together is the single most important way to help children get ready to read.
 

Writing

Writing and reading go together. Scribbling and writing help children learn that written words stand for spoken language.
 

Playing

Playing helps children put together thoughts into words and think symbolically so they understand that spoken and written words can stand for real objects and experiences.