Library History

Before the City of Westland opened its first city library, Westland had an agreement with the City of Wayne to share library services. This agreement went back to a time when Westland was Nankin Township and the City of Wayne was a Village.

In 1923, the Village of Wayne established a library in the Morrison and John Soe store on Michigan Avenue with 500 books on the shelves. By the end of the third week after it had opened, 65 people had registered to use the books.

In November 1926, the Village of Wayne and Nankin Township agreed to share the expenses of the library, becoming the Wayne-Nankin Library. The library moved many times, to several different rental locations, until its permanent location was established on Sims Street in Wayne, in June 1957. When Nankin Township became the City of Westland, the name changed to the Wayne-Westland Library.

The Wayne-Westland Library was disbanded in May 1996 when the new Wayne Library was opened. From May until November, Westland residents relied on other cities for their library services until the William P. Faust Westland Public Library was opened November 3, 1996. It is named in honor of the late state senator William P. Faust, an avid reader and library advocate who was instrumental in obtaining state funds for the Library.

The new library was designed by TMP Associates, Inc and is 25,400 net square feet (33,450 gross square feet). It was modeled after the Carnegie libraries of the early 1900’s, which traditionally feature a grand hall and a fireplace.

© 2023 William P. Faust Westland Public Library