Library of Hattiesburg Petal & Forrest County - Public library in Hattiesburg - 329 Hardy St, USA

Always an excellent resource for people living in or near Hattiesburg. With books of every kind, from reference to comics and everythingin between, half a floor dedicated to kids, a new teen center, meeting spaces, computer lab, movies, a theater, Internet access, frequent exhibits and events,and quiet places to work and relax, it makes a great place to go and spend time. It's one of my favorite 3rd places. It's located in a walkable and bikeable area with multiple access points from different streets. You can reach it safely and comfortably by car, bike, foot, or bus, as it has bike and car parking, its own dedicated bus stop, and an up to date ADA compliant sidewalk. It's an all inclusive kind of place. My only complaints are that I wish the bike racks were in a covered area to keep them out of the rain, and maybe some vending machines would be nice.

The staff was very friendly and helpful. We were taken care of in a timely manner. Very peaceful place.

The first star is for the beauty and architecture of the building itself. The second star is for the location. The loss of the 3 stars are due to the fact that I came to get a library card and left empty handed. Why you say??? First and foremost because when I called some woman was breathing into the phone like a weird stalker. "Breath breath... Can I help you?" Me: "Uhm.. yes ma'am? Uhm... I am trying to see how I would go about getting a library card since I do not live within the Forrest County limits? "Breath breaaaaaath Breath, you could just, Breath Breath pay 50 dollars and have access. Breath." Me: "Oh. Ok. What all perks does that come with?" "Breath, Hoopla, breath." Me: "So no to Libby, Overdrive, and Freegal?" "What's, Breath, that?" Me: "omg... If you had it you would know." "Breath, breath, let me transfer you to circulation." Me: "Ok." Then they transferred me and a normal person answered with no excessive breathing. And said the same thing. So I drove 40 miles to get to the building. Because they have a 50 dollar fee for non residents. Ok... no problem. Boom! Everyone takes Visa or even Mastercard. I know most places turn up their nose at American Express the same way we look down our nose at people who don't accept it. But oh no.... not here. They are cash or check only! I was flabbergasted!!! What kind of road side, mom and pop establishment had I walked in to? I had to ask??? Are "yall" stuck in the stone ages? Who brings cash or a check to the library??? Especially on this side of town. Smh... I guess I'm going to go back to audible and ordering my books offline. It would save one heck of a headache! I would NOT recommend unless you live in Forrest county and their service is free. Even with that... I still may have to look elsewhere seeing that they could not even guarantee what selections they had unless I purchased the library card. Like a home "site unseen". Not sure how many of those ever surpassed expectations. But I am going to have to do a HARD PASS on this library. Thanks, but no thanks! I do NOT recommend!

A great place to study or read! The mississippi room is one of the coolest spots in Hattiesburg, glad it's finally open again. Library card is free, workers are friendly, and there's a nice tiny outside courtyard area that's really neat too! Stop in yall!

The lady downstairs was no help. When I would ask questions she would say mmm huh or I don't know instead of asking someone else who might be able to help me. Left with nothing.

So many books! I love this library; anything you can think of is here. The reason why I don't rate it 5 stars is because, unfortunately, the staff is really iffy. Sometimes the staff are extremely nice and helpful, but they can be extremely rude and unhelpful. Really depends on what time you go there and who's helping. Other than that it's great.

So far I have only had a positive experience coming to this library. The workers are always friendly and the computers are free to use . I love the activities they have for the children and my children love participating in them .

Hattiesburg isn't a big town but its library is something id expect to see in a much larger town. It's spacious and airy. The librarians are super helpful and friendly. Even with this COVID stuff, I'm happy they are open and masks are mandatory (thank goodness).