Hessen Cassel, once a farming settlement several miles southeast of Fort Wayne, was so named by the German-Catholic immigrants who settled in the region as early as 1832 after their home region in Germany, Hesse Kassel. In 1970, when ACPL began planning a southeast branch in response to requests and proposals from the surrounding blue-collar neighborhoods, the branch name was selected to honor the German heritage of the region. It was situated on the southeastern edge of Fort Wayne in order to be accessible to the outlying communities as well as town-dwellers.

The original building, which has since undergone two renovations, in 1989 and 2004, opened in 1972 with special consideration to serving customers with disabilities by making all areas of the building accessible without stairs. The one-story, L-shaped building is situated on a low hill with several large trees and a large rolling lawn. A container garden, visible from windows inside the children’s space, is used throughout the year for science education. When school is not in session, staff prepares programs and self-guided activities nearly every day to serve the neighborhood children.

The community surrounding Hessen Cassel Branch has changed over the past half-century since it opened. Today, our staff interacts daily with many patrons with limited English skills, including members of the Burmese diaspora and refugees, immigrants, and asylum-seekers from Central America and Mexico. In addition to materials in English for all levels of readers, the branch has a small collection of children’s books in Spanish, Burmese, and Karen, and in 2024 began adding a selection of teen and adult books in Spanish as well. Unfortunately, very few printed materials are available in Burmese, Sgaw Karen, Po Karen, Chin, Kachin, Shan or Rohyinga.

Hessen Cassel offers access to one large meeting room and two small private study rooms, 18 computers for public access, a fax machine and copy machine/scanner. In June of 2024, Hessen Cassel’s Mini Maker Lab began hosting open hours, providing the community with access to a variety of machines and staff instruction, including a Prusa 3D Printer, Cricut Heat Press and Precision Cutting Machines, a Janome Sewing Machine, a Vevor Button Maker and a GBC Laminator.