This study develops a chronological summary of the relationship between the development of library service in North Carolina--particularly public library service--and the State Library and the North Carolina Library Commission. The study was the first step in a long-range planning enterprise (to the year 2000) which encompasses not only traditional programs and activities but also the library's potential for improving service via expanded cooperation among the state's public, academic, school, and special libraries. The report is presented in seven sections: (l) The First Two Hundred Years; (2) Formation and Early Development of the Commission; (3) The Great Depression, WPA, and State Aid; (4) The State of Libraries and State Aid; (5) Federal Aid and the Allocation of State Aid; (6) Proposals for the Future; and (7) Conclusions. An epilogue by Director and State Librarian David N. McKay brings the history up to date and provides a summation with sections on: Programs, Services, Projects; Publications; Legislative Initiatives; New Library Organizations; State Aid to Public Libraries; Federal Programs; and Priorities. Appendices include tables showing State-Aid Appropriations and Federal-Aid Allotments, 1941-1979, Public Library Construction Projects with Federal Funding, and State Construction Grants, and a list of directors and members of the North Carolina Library Commission. A six-page bibliography and index are included. (THC)