This Oregon library ditched Dewey Decimal and got people excited about books again

American libraries have evolved in recent decades as their role as centers for learning and community expand. Many have added maker spaces, turned into climate resilience hubs, and even become partners in projects to add more affordable housing. But despite all that change, a vast majority of them still organize books with the Dewey Decimal System, a categorizing system developed in 1873, which critics say still has the outdated 19th century social opinions to match. [Photo: Kevin Scott/courtesy Miller Hull Partnership] In Deschutes County, Oregon, the local library system not only said “down with Dewey” but rethought how books should be categorized and displayed. After passing a $195 million bond measure in 2020, the county redesigned all its branches at once, which allowed library staff to conduct an experiment in rethinking how libraries engage readers today. [Photo: Kevin Scott/courtesy Miller Hull Partnership] The new Stevens Ranch Central Library in Bend, Oregon, a 100,000-square-foot branch designed by architects from the Miller Hull Partnership, features a new philosophy of organization and engagement. In addition to a new set of shelving units designed to feel more like a…