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

Bookmobile Service Update

With the cancellation of Touch-A-Truck, Bookmobile will instead visit its regularly scheduled Saturday sites at Stoney Creek Arena, Riverdale and Discovery Centre. www.hpl.ca/bookmobile

Published:

Thursday, May 21, 2026 - 2:30pm

Central Library - Fax Machine Out of Order

Please note that the fax machine is currently out of order. The estimated time of repair is unknown. Thank you for your patience.

Published:

Thursday, May 21, 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

The Duet Club

Duet Club Scrapbook

The Duet Club was established in Hamilton by Ellen Ambrose in 1889, making it the earliest recorded women's music club in Canada.

Ellen Sophia Ambrose (1851-1936) came to Hamilton with her family in 1875. She taught music first at the Wesleyan Ladies' College, where her father also taught, and in 1889 began teaching at Mrs. Thomas Chesnut's Ladies' School. In 1890 she opened her own studio.

Miss Ambrose had her students gather in her studio and in their respective homes to play for each other. Membership increased and the meetings moved out of houses and the fledgling organization was first known as the Haydn Duet Club (as they had been studying Haydn). The name was later changed to Duet Club.

The members met twice a month in the morning with an occasional open meeting. Originally intended for "ladies only", the Duet Club now welcomes all who enjoy fine music and who wish to support the study of it through the extensive program sponsored by the club.

The Junior Duet Club formed in 1928 and was later disbanded. It was reformed in 1959 and in 1962 given its own funds and its own executive.