How to Borrow   Borrowing In Person at Other Libraries   Loan Periods and Fees   Renewals

Returns   How to Request an Item   How to Check Your Account

How to Borrow

 The library offers books, movies, audio books, books in large print, and magazines for borrowing.  We also have a limited number of music CDs and software for children.   

·         Borrowers must present a library card that is valid for use at this library.  A card may be used only by the person whose name appears on the card and in the computer record.

·         You must be 18 years old to borrow any video (VHS) or DVD.

·         A patron’s borrowing privileges will be blocked when outstanding fines reach $10.00.

 LIBRARY ELF

Track your library books! From morethan one library, too! 

Elf is a web-based and email tool for library users to keep track of what they borrow from libraries.  Elf is like a personal assistant, whose task is to help with keeping track of what one has on loan and hold from the library. 

What does it do? 

Email and/or RSS alerts before items are due

Email and/or RSS alerts on overdues and holds

Consolidated list of yours or your family’s loans and holds

Cellphone text message alerts for holds

Real time checking by browser. 

FREE!! 

You will need your library card number and your pin #.  Stop by the library with your library card to get your PIN.  When you get to the Library list, please select NJ – Morris Automated Information network (beta) 

Click here to register.  It’s free and you can cancel at anytime. 

Borrowing In Person at Other Libraries

Through our membership in MAIN (Morris Automated Information Network) you may use your Riverdale library card to borrow and return materials when you visit another public library in Morris County.  Click here to see the list. 

Through the open borrowing program, you can use your Riverdale library card when you visit any one of more than 150 public libraries in Passaic, Bergen, Sussex and parts of Middlesex and Somerset Counties.  Ask for a green sticker on your card to show that you are in good standing with your home library.  Non-residents may borrow most Riverdale materials with library cards issued by other cooperating public libraries in the same six counties.

Note:  Residents of Morris County may use the library of the County College of Morris.  Please contact them for specific information at 214 Center Grove Road, Randolph, NJ 07869-2086 -- (973) 328-5000, www.ccm.edu.  

Through our membership in M.A.I.N.  and the Open Borrowing  program, your Riverdale library card may be used at these other public libraries. You may visit them and borrow in person, you may ask us to borrow materials for you, and you may visit their web sites to view their online services.

Morris Automated Information Network (M.A.I.N.) member libraries 

Morris County Library 

County College of Morris 

Bergen County Cooperative Library System (BCCLS) 

 Libraries of Middlesex Automation Consortium (LMxAC) 

Passaic Library System (PALS) 

Sussex County Library System 

Sparta Public Library 

Warren County Library System 

Hackettstown Free Public Library 

 Phillipsburg Free Public Library 

 Washington Public Library (Warren County) 

The Morristown Memorial Hospital Library is open to the general public and provides reference, health database searches and loans of consumer health materials.

 Atlantic Health System Libraries 

The New Jersey State Library provides a comprehensive list of all New Jersey library web sites and online catalogs.

Links to New Jersey Libraries 

Loan Periods and Fees

 A two-day grace period is granted for books. However, if the item is returned beyond this time, fines will accrue from the first day the item was overdue. Movies and any item with a per diem fine greater than 10 cents are not eligible for a grace period.
• Fines are not assessed for days the library is closed.
• If you lose or damage a book, we must charge the price indicated in the system to replace the item. An item is considered lost when it is overdue for 90 days.
• A patron’s borrowing privileges will be blocked when outstanding fines reach $10.00.
• Fines may also apply to specially marked materials such as DVDs which should be returned inside the library, not in the book drop.
• From time to time, we may limit loan periods or limit the number of materials for checkout because they are in unusually high demand.

Vacation Loans for Riverdale Cardholders
You may request an extended loan period for books that are normally loaned for 28 days. We will give you a due date that allows you to keep these materials until the end of your vacation.

Renewals
Books and other materials from the Riverdale Public Library may be renewed two times for the established loan period, providing there are no outstanding reserves or holds on the items.
Most items can be renewed online via the “My Account” feature of the Web Catalog. You may also renew in person or by telephone. Movies & DVDs must be renewed in person or by phone.

Returns
When the library is open, all items should be returned at the circulation desk inside the library. When the library is closed, many items may be returned in the book drop. Marked items such as DVDs and materials with CDs should never be dropped in the book drop. Fines will apply.
Materials checked out from Riverdale may be returned to other MAIN libraries.

How to Request an Item
You may request a hold on almost any item in the MAIN catalog. We will phone you when it arrives and hold it for you at the front desk for up to three business days. Use the online catalog or see library staff to place a hold. Some restrictions may apply.
Steps:
• Log on to the web catalog using your library bar code number and your 4-digit pin.
• Locate the book you want.
• Click on “Place a request” in the upper left corner.
• Verify that the pickup location is convenient for you.
• Click OK
For more details, please click here.
You can check or change your holds at any time by logging onto “My Account” from the Web Catalog (see below).

How to Check Your Account
You can log on to the MAIN Web Catalog to find out what materials are checked out on your card, when they are due and if there are any fines or fees expected, You can also renew most items. You need your library card barcode number and your 4-digit pin. Please visit the library if you do not know your PIN. (Note: to protect against other people using your library card, we must do this in person.)

Steps:
• Log onto the Web Catalog using your library card barcode and 4-digit pin.
• Go to “Check My Account” at the top left of this page.
• Review options for viewing your records, renewing and changing your pin.