In 1816, Pennsylvania formed the first state library followed the next year by Ohio.
Within twelve years, 24 states had established similar institution.
The role of these libraries rapidly expanded to include state and local records, federal documents and general reference materials.
[3] The State Library Agencies Division (SLAD) was founded on January 1, 1957 and in 1958 SLAD merged with the AASL to become the State Library Agency Division which subsequently changed its name to the Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA).
In 1973 SLAD established the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies (COSLA)[4] and in 1983 a compilation of American Library Laws was published.