Mentor Public Library has many chapters in its history. Formed in 1819, the Mentor Library Company was the first library association in Lake County. It was a subscription library that provided its stockholders borrowing privileges from the collection of 79 volumes. By 1890, the Garfield Library was started, which was Mentor's first public library. Over the years, Mentor Public Library has had numerous names and locations due to the growing population of the city and the demand for access to information. Generations of Mentor residents have shaped Mentor Public Library into what it is today.