[4] The first library in Peach County opened in 1878 in Fort Valley, and "housed 2500 volumes of choice and well-selected reading matter.

The central branch today, the Thomas Public Library, was founded on September 15, 1915 at a members' meeting called by the president of the History Club.

By the end of the meeting the Fort Valley Library Association was formed from a donation by Dr. and Mrs. E. G. Thomas, who at the time were lending their 500-volume collection to local friends and patients.

By the mid-1930s, when the collection had grown to over 7,000 volumes, the library moved to the recently constructed courthouse to obtain adequate space.

[5] In 1936, with help from the Works Progress Administration (WPA), the town of Byron, Georgia opened its own branch under the supervision of the Thomas Public Library.