If you haven’t checked out the Montgomery County Memorial Library System lately, there have been a few changes, with a new library and community center recently opened, the Genealogy and Preservation Center at the Central Library has some new digitized records, plus we have a belated birthday celebration for a south county library, and there is still time to get a new library card before the month of September runs out.
The new Kevin Brady Library and Community Center opened earlier this month in Grogan’s Mill Village Center, off South Millbend Drive in The Woodlands, is named in honor of the former Congressman. The new library replaces the South Regional Library that closed over the summer season, in late July, 2025. The new Library building, sits on the footprint of the now closed Randall’s Supermarket, and was redesigned and revitalized as a new state-of-the-art library to serve The Woodlands.
“We invite our Montgomery County community and neighbors to visit this new modern public
library, a welcoming place for all to discover, connect, and innovate,” said MCMLS Library
Director Dr. Janna Hoglund.
The library opening marks the end of a year of construction to redevelop the shopping center with the goal of establishing the library as a community anchor. The design of the library encompasses the nature of the area with images and sculptures, and has definitive spaces for children, teens, and adults. The library includes a 100-person theater-style classroom, coupled with study areas and meeting spaces, as well as a podcast studio with video and audio production capabilities, which was made possible due to the support and sponsorship of South Montgomery County Library Friends Group and Howard Hughes. The Friends of the Library will also have space for their bookstore to further support the new library.
Kevin Brady served over 25 years with The Woodlands/South Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce, the Texas House of Representatives, and the U.S. Congress.
“I love to read, and growing up I spent a lot of time in our local library,” said Brady. “There are just so many adventures to be found in books, and there is no question reading has shaped the trajectory of my life.”
The Kevin Brady Library has a staff prepared to serve more than 100,000 cardholders in south county, and with the South Montgomery County Friends of the Library at the new location, will be more than capable of handling its new mission.
The MCMLS Genealogy and Preservation Center (G&PC) at the Central Library in Conroe was busy over the summer with programs, but recently announced the digitization and online access to the archived issues of the Conroe Courier, and Courier Daily Newspapers. Previously, the library owned microfilm of the periodicals, searchable by microfilm reader, which was cumbersome and the issues were not always put back in chronological order. The project took a year to complete, and was a cumulative effort between MCMLS and NewsBank, Inc, which hold image copyrights for Hearst Corporation which prints The Courier.
“If you did not know the exact date of your event, you had to scroll through the film, page by page, looking for a name,” said Librarian & Manager of the G&PC, Laura Politte. “Now you can search it, find an article, photo, or obituary, and save it to your computer or a USB drive.”
So far the years involved in the digitization project include 1925-1983, which encompasses a big chunk of Montgomery County’s biggest modern developments. The project was funded with a grant from the Mellon Foundation that was awarded in April 2023.
Also, over the summer The George and Cynthia Woods Mitchell Library Turns, celebrated its 20th birthday on July 30th. Commissioner Ritch Wheeler and visiting dignitaries attended, along with library goers, where the attendees signed the story book. Library goers were treated to birthday cake, photo opportunities, and other activities. The Mitchell Library opened to the public in 2005 and was placed to accommodate the tremendous growth of The Woodlands which at the time pressed the needs of the South Regional Library. The Mitchell Library’s location has resulted in it being a family-centered resource for early childhood literacy, offering quality programming, AWE early literacy, computers, databases, and a large collection of books of all kinds. It too has an active Friends of the Library chapter, and serves more than 53,000 cardholders.
The Montgomery County Memorial Library System has grown exponentially since 1948, now containing a circulation of more than 2.5 million items. And with Montgomery County’s population now over 750,000 people, with more than 400,000 cardholders, the MCMLS mission over the years to come will be even more important as more people move to Montgomery County.
For more information, visit: countylibrary.org