History
Oakwell Branch Library was opened March 23, 1969. The site, which originally was part of Oakwell
Farms, was donated to the City of San Antonio by Robert Lynn Batts Tobin in memory of his grandfather,
Judge Robert Lynn Batts. City bond money combined with state and federal funds to pay for the
construction, parking, necessary fees and equipment to build Oakwell Library at a cost of $181,324.
The 1969 book collection has been strengthened with funds provided by the Texas State Library under
the terms of Title I of the Federal Library Services and Construction Act.
In 1989 Elizabeth Evelyn Beike donated her estate to this branch. These funds were used for part of a
renovation that increased the library’s size to 13,000 square feet.. More than $630,000 went into a
renovation that began in December 1994 and culminated in the January 6, 1996, reopening.
In late 2007, the Tobin Foundation and the City of San Antonio funded more than $300,000 in renovations
that included a new roof, parking lot improvements, sidewalks, new carpeting, interior paint, interior
lighting, a new reference desk, reorganization of the staff work areas, landscaping upgrades, a
large plaque honoring Tobin and new exterior signage. The branch reopened as The Tobin Library at
Oakwell on December 3, 2007.
- Square footage: 13,000 square feet