A "free reading room" was started by Boone residents in 1885.  The assets were turned over to the city in 1889 to become a public library.  In 1901 Senator C.J. A. Ericson, a Boone businessman, gave the city a building to house the library.  The building was enlarged in 1923 thanks to a donation by his daughter, Miss Rena Ericson.  In 1993 the building was enlarged and remodeled from the proceeds of a 1 cent local option sales tax approved by the voters.