Batesville Mayor Rick Elumbaugh presents Bill Walmsley with a key to the city for Walmsley’s contributions to the community. (Image by Andrea Bruner, White River Now)
Mayor presents Walmsley key to the city at City-Connections meeting
By Andrea Bruner, White River Now
When a friend approached Bill Walmsley about joining the Independence County Library Board, Walmsley said he didn’t know anything about running a library. He had a well-rounded background, but libraries weren’t exactly on his resume.
But the library at the time was in need of new leadership, and it was evident the more Walmsley looked into the situation. He’d ask how many patrons used the library in a day, or how many items were checked out, and the answer was always, “I don’t know,” or “We don’t keep those records.”
At Thursday night’s City-County Connections meeting at the River Waterfront Steak and Grill in Batesville, Walmsley and Library Director Carlene Morrison detailed the library’s transformation from a cramped, underused space into a spacious and welcoming modern facility.
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Walmsley said when he was appointed to the board in 2015, the current chairman immediately stepped down, and Walmsley was then elected to the position.
He explained that major changes were necessary, starting with removing the embattled library from the regional system, which had absorbed significant funding with little return. The next steps involved hiring a forward-thinking county librarian and searching for a new site to replace the 5,000-square-foot facility used since the 1970s, which did not have so much as a handicapped entrance.
The library had a $3 million surplus in the Maintenance and Operations Fund from the 1-mill tax, and more than $300,000 in CDs, some dating back to 1985.
Walmsley said he told the regional librarian, Debra Sutterfield, “I want you to know, you might be the best banker I have ever seen, but the one thing you’re not, you are not a good librarian. You have not spent a penny of this money on services for the people of this county, in all those years, since 1985.”
Walmsley approached County Judge Robert Griffin and asked if the city would be willing to sell the county the Barnett Building, and whether the county would purchase it. He said he believed the library board would agree to enter into a 50-year lease and use M&O funds for rent. Furthermore, the library board would pay the rent in advance of $3 million, provided the county use the funds to renovate and update the building.
With an intense year ahead, the board met with architects and construction crews, and in 2018, the library moved a few blocks down the street to the 23,000-square-foot space it now enjoys.
The Independence County Library at its opening after moving into the historic Barnett Brothers building in 2018 (File image)
When recordkeeping started in 2015, the library had about 2,500 visitors a month, but after the move, that number skyrocketed to 10,000 a month. With a bank of 22 computers available for computer use, the staff found a quarter of people coming in to use them were for employment purposes.
In 2022, when Vanessa Adams, who was hired in 2016, accepted a position at another library, the board appointed Morrison as library director, and she has done a wonderful job, Walmsley said.
Morrison said there were no programs at the old library, but in 2019, it had 197 programs with 4,330 attendees. Although COVID has slowed down the number of visitors, the library is still relevant to the community. Morrison said in 2025, there were more than 700 programs with over 14,000 attendees for that one year – and they’re always looking for more.
“I started working at the library in 2009, and I was hired full-time as a circulation clerk,” Morrison said. “We were in that little bitty building that was just crammed full, as full as you could get it. And we weren’t automated yet. My first day was the first day of the summer reading program. I don’t know if any of you have ever been there during the summer reading program when all of those little kids are there, but that’s the busiest day of the year. And that was my first day.
“I didn’t have a clue how to do anything,” she said with a laugh, recalling how they used a stamp machine to record due dates on cards and filed a separate card in a box to count how many items were checked out at the end of the day.
“I was wishing that I had taken stock in the Band-Aid company, because I always had paper cuts on my hands going home,” she said with a laugh. But in 2016, the library started using an automated system, and the Band-Aids were gone.
“In 2018, we got to move down the block thanks to the board, and Bill was a huge, huge motivator in that. Everything felt new and exciting, and so the attendance was just outstanding. I mean, it was just unbelievable how many more people came,” she said.
But COVID forced the library to close its doors to the public for a few months, with curbside service only.
“People got used to not coming to the library, and everybody started using e-books, and our attendance suffered. After we opened up, it’s taken a long time for it to build back up, and it’s still not where it was. But it’s getting there.”
For example, in 2019, there were 116,000 visits and in 2025, 87,000, she said. “We average just over 300 patrons a day that walk through the door. … In 2016, we averaged about 115 patrons a day.”
There are programs for infants, teens and tweens, as well as adults only, with a full summer slate ahead. (Visit the Independence County Library’s Facebook page for more information.)
What lies ahead? Walmsley and Morrison said there are opportunities for additional space that could be used by the community on the third floor of the Barnett Building. Walmsley said they’ve remodeled about 4,000 square feet, but there’s three times that space that could be used as well.
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Walmsley served a total of 10 years as chairman of the library board, receiving the Bessie B. Moore Trustee Award from the Arkansas Library Association in 2022 for his leadership.
Walmsley was the first in his family to attend college, enrolling at Arkansas College in 1959, where he played basketball and graduated in 1963. He earned his law degree from the University of Arkansas. He practiced law in Batesville for 46 years, served 12 years in the Arkansas Senate, and spent two years as a judge on the Arkansas Court of Appeals. He also holds ownership interests in Atlas Asphalt and White River Materials.
Since 1981, Walmsley and his wife, Janis, have owned and raced thoroughbred horses nationwide. He has served more than 20 years as president of the Arkansas Thoroughbred Owners and Trainers Association and four years as its national president, supporting benevolent services for those in need.
Throughout his career, Walmsley has demonstrated a deep commitment to public service. His leadership roles also include chairman of the boards of Wood-Lawn, Woodcrest, and Wildewood nursing and independent living facilities, president of the Independence County Youth Athletic Association, and 13 years on the Lyon College Board of Trustees.
For his significant contributions to the community, Batesville Mayor Rick Elumbaugh presented Walmsley with a key to the city Thursday night.
The Independence County Library on Main Street in downtown Batesville (File image by Gena Tate, White River Now)
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