The Facebook page for a library in Lincoln, Mich.
The Lincoln Public Library has been fielding a lot of emails since the building closed in March due to the pandemic. But some of those hopeful patrons might want to brush up on their geography
As noted in the police log published on July 28, some of those who’ve recently stopped by the Lincoln, Mass., police department for directions have been dismayed to learn that they are not close to the Twin River Casino in Lincoln, R.I., or that the officer on the phone can’t help them with the rabbits infesting their yard — in Lincoln, Neb. Turns out the Lincoln Public Library has the same problem.
“At the library this summer, we’ve fielded questions from Lincoln, Michigan and Lincolnshire, England, both insisting that we are their home libraries,” said head librarian Barbara Myles. “The Lincoln, Michigan person was complaining in an e-mail that our website says our book drop is unlocked, but she kept going to the library and finding it locked and could not return her books,” and she was quite peeved. The book drop here in town has been unlocked since the library closed on March 14, “so we couldn’t understand why she was having trouble. Finally, we asked her if she was from Lincoln, Mass., and the mystery was solved,” she said.
Myles speculated that the mixups have become more frequent because people are looking for online library services during the pandemic. They might do a Google search for a phrase like “Lincoln library” without specifying the state, and then shoot an email to the library that tops the list of their search results.
“I can understand a search for our library popping up to the top of the list in Massachusetts, but why would that happen in Michigan?” Myles wondered. Perhaps it says something for the library’s diligent SEO efforts.
As a footnote, the town’s library and police are not the only local entities involved in search engine mixups. In the early days of this very publication, if you Googled “Lincoln Squirrel,” you’d get referred to a clip from an episode in season three of “The Simpsons.” To really boost readership, maybe we should rename this site “The Lincoln Project.”