In the United States of America, state library agencies established in each state have long been a catalyst for a great deal of the motivation for public library cooperation.
This has been since the founding of the movement, starting in 1890 when Massachusetts created a state Board of Library Commissioners charged to help communities establish and improve public libraries.
[1] Over the years, state library agencies played a major role in encouraging larger units of service to provide library resources.
[2] The Library Services Act (1956) and the Library Services and Construction Act (1964) were keystones in the goal of providing library service throughout the nation.
[3] In addition, many of the 50 states have state archives similar to the federal National Archives and Records Administration to keep records relating to information on state laws, census information, etc.