Amigos Library Services

{{Short description|American not-for-profit organization serving libraries}}

{{Infobox organization

| name = Amigos Library Services, Inc.

| formation = {{start date and age|1974}}

| logo = 200px

| type = library consortium, non-profit organization

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| focus = Library services

| location_city = Dallas, Texas

| location_country = United States

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| website = {{URL|https://www.amigos.org/}}

}}

Amigos Library Services, Inc. is a membership-based American not-for-profit organization chartered to serve libraries.{{cite web|title=About Amigos|url=https://www.amigos.org/about|publisher=Amigos Library Services|accessdate=11 January 2016}} The organization was formed in 1974 in Dallas, Texas, as the AMIGOS Bibliographic Council.{{cite journal|last1=Robinson|first1=Barbara M.|title=Cooperation and Competition among Library Networks|journal=Journal of the American Society for Information Science|date=Nov 1980|volume=31|issue=6|pages=413–425|doi=10.1002/asi.4630310607}} It included 22 libraries, united to bring OCLC access to the southwestern United States. {{As of|September 2021}} Amigos is one of the largest library resource-sharing networks and a provider of information technology to libraries.

In July 2012, Amigos merged with Missouri Library Network Corporation (MLNC), an organization similar to Amigos headquartered in St. Louis. The action followed votes to approve the merger in April 2012 by MLNC members and May 2012 by Amigos members.{{cite web|title=Amigos/MLNC Merger Update|url=https://www.amigos.org/node/1210|publisher=Amigos Library Services|accessdate=11 January 2016|date=12 Apr 2012}}

The combined organization retained the Amigos name with Dallas as its headquarters and an office in the St. Louis area. The new organization became the largest library network west of the Mississippi River, comprising libraries and cultural heritage institutions in 22 states.{{Cite web|date=May 15, 2012|access-date=August 22, 2024|title=Member Votes Finalize Amigos/MLNC Merger|url=https://www.amigos.org/node/1235 |website=Amigos Library Services}}

Amigos Library Services is similar in scope to other library-oriented consortia such as the Midwest Collaborative for Library Services, OhioNet, and Lyrasis.