Pine Island Van Horn Public Library
The Pine Island Van Horn Public Library is a library in Pine Island, Minnesota. It is a member of Southeastern Libraries Cooperating, the Southeast Minnesota library region. The library holds both annual and temporary events, which are sometimes seasonal in nature, for both children and adults. An annual book sale and children's summer reading program are longtime programs employed at Van Horn. A cart containing books sold to support the library runs continuously. History The current facility for the Van Horn Library was funded by a generous estate gift by Frank A. Van Horn, after whom the library is named. Eight thousand dollars was specifically set aside for a library, of which 3/4ths was allotted for construction and the remaining reserved for materials. His entire estate was left for the town and he entrusted his close friend George B. Doty to oversee the responsibility. A plaque was built into the library to commemorate this contribution, and it was intended to open on January 1, 1918, but construction was not completed in time. High school students assisted in building in order to speed its completion. It opened to the public on January 24, 1918. The original rules stated a fine of