Madison Public Library, Public library in Madison, United States.

Madison Public Library is the public library system of Madison, Wisconsin, made up of a Central Library at 201 West Mifflin Street and eight neighborhood libraries: Alicia Ashman, Goodman South Madison, Hawthorne, Lakeview, Meadowridge, Monroe Street, Pinney and Sequoya. It belongs to the South Central Library System, the second-largest public library system in Wisconsin after Milwaukee's.

Madison Public Library was created by city ordinance in November 1874 under Mayor Silas Pinney and opened on May 31, 1875, as the Madison Free Library in two rooms of City Hall. Its original collection was a gift of 3,170 volumes from the Madison Institute. It was renamed the Madison Public Library on January 1, 1959.

The library's name changed from Madison Free Library to Madison Public Library on January 1, 1959. Its first librarian, Virginia Robbins, tracked circulation with beans: patrons dropped a bean into a box compartment labelled history, literature, religion, travel, fiction or science for each book borrowed.

Multiple branches are distributed throughout the city, making it convenient to find one near your home or workplace. Plan your visit by checking which location has the resources you need, as collections and services can vary between branches.

The first librarian, Virginia Robbins, tracked circulation with beans: patrons dropped one into a box compartment labelled history, literature, religion, travel, fiction or science, and she sometimes added extra beans to keep the count accurate. The original 3,170 volumes came from the Madison Institute, and 200 more arrived from residents on opening day in 1875.