Siouxland Libraries

First, Happy New Year!  I hope that everyone has enjoyed their 2012 holiday season and is looking forward to a grand start to 2013.

As part of our holiday traditions, we visit my husband’s [large extended] family in South Dakota on even-numbered years in mid-December.  This is our 7th visit over the years, and if you can believe it, the first time I’ve visited a library in the City of Sioux Falls library system – Siouxland Libraries! The City has a wonderful historic downtown filled with sculpture and brick buildings and my destination was the main library branch building (constructed in the 70s), as well the former Carnegie library building, now the Carnegie Town Hall. 

The Carnegie building, constructed of a native stone called rose quartzite, was used from 1903 to 1972 as the library, then housed various art-related functions, and since 2001 has been the Town Hall with the City Clerk and Council chambers plus a few other City departments. Since we were visiting during a Friday afternoon the building was open and when we peeked in, we were lucky enough to receive a short tour from the super friendly City of Sioux Falls City Clerk.  She pointed out a few features of the original building and showed us the state-of-the-art council chambers – it was quite a treat for a little special attention.

Our next stop was the current main library branch, decorated festively for the holidays. My mother-in-law was with me for the afternoon field trip and since she works close by, she’s been a frequent visitor over the years.  She described to me all of the changes to the floor plan as well as reminisced about bringing the grandchildren over the years to story times on Saturday morning.  I know how popular the story times are at KCLS, so wasn’t surprised they were just as fun in her library system too!

From the main library, it was just a hop, skip, and a jump to The Old Courthouse Museum, part of the Siouxland Heritage Museums collection.  My favorite exhibit was either the cold weather clothing or the bicycles – both provided interesting views into days gone by.

As you know, visiting libraries isn’t complete for me unless it’s also accompanied by sampling the local cuisine.  Oh My Cupcakes! rounded out our leisurely downtown strolling afternoon quite nicely.

Wishing you all the best in the coming New Year!

How Do I Love Libraries…Let Me Count The Ways…

The title isn’t exactly what I’m going to write about, but it felt more creative than “A Visit to Chicago Public Libraries”!

As you might already know, when I travel, I love experiencing new places through their libraries.  In the next six months I hope to be able to visit libraries in Oregon, Illinois (again), New Mexico, California, and South Dakota.  I recently visited an old college friend who lives smack in the middle of The Loop in downtown Chicago.  It’s a fabulous location for a visitor to start from…especially considering how many libraries there are within a few miles walking distance!

My first stop was the Harold Washington Library Center downtown.  Wow.  I’m pretty sure the entryway I came in through had more square footage than the Redmond library!  The building opened in 1991 and is a whopping 756,640 square feet.  (As soon as I confirm the square footage of the Redmond library, I’ll tell you how many times bigger than Redmond that is!).  I picked up the self-guided tour brochure at the reference desk in the lobby (atrium? foyer? rotunda?  lobby doesn’t do the space any justice) and off I went to explore the nine floors.

I won’t bore you with the play by play of my visit to each floor, but will mention a few interesting spaces I saw.  Amanda, Redmond’s Teen Librarian, had recommended “The Book Thief” to me several months ago.  I read it, thought it was fabulous, and was delighted to see it was the One Book, One Chicago selection featured in The Popular Library on the first floor.

I loved the display of new library card holders in the Thomas Hughes Children’s Library on the 2nd floor! The namesake of this section of the library did a really cool thing after the 1871 Chicago Fire.

And…we’ll jump all the way up to the 9th floor into the Winter Garden.  This is a shot looking up through the 100+ foot glass ceilings and the beautiful murals on the south side of the garden. It’s a marvelous space available for private events.

But wait, there’s even more library in store for the day!  In the early evening, we headed over to The Newberry and their annual book fair.  Alas, I only have the one sad photo of the trip below…I spent too much time perusing old cookbooks at the fair so didn’t spend too much time in the other parts of the building and completely neglected to take more pictures.  I did pick up an awesome 1970s crockpot cookbook though! It’s a good thing I’ll be back in Chicago in September and might have another shot at visiting. I’m hoping to visit the Pritzker Military Library on that trip too!

Bellevue Library Parking Garage: Under Construction

For those of you that use other Eastside libraries, the downtown Bellevue Library is expanding its parking capacity to 365 vehicles by building a new 3-story parking structure. During the construction, which is now underway, the only parking available will be 51 spots at the adjacent Ashwood Park. For more details about the project, including parking alternatives, click here.

The new parking garage structure is being built on the former surface parking lot area, which parallels NE 12th Street.

Here’s an architectural rendering of the proposed landscaping for the parking structure:

The new parking garage is expected to be completed in late 2012.

Our Architecture Legacy: The Stories Old Buildings Tell Us

Join historic preservation lecturer, Michael Herschensohn, for a talk on how architecture reflects our culture. The talk is at the Redmond Library on Saturday, March 17th at 1pm. Michael Herschensohn has a degree in Preservation Planning and History of American Architecture. For 21 years he has been on the board of Historic Seattle, the city’s only historic preservation organization. This program is made possible by a grant from Humanities Washington.

 Seattle Central Library (1919)

The places we create for ourselves — homes, factories, schools, parks, hotels, barns — are key markers in the story of people’s daily lives. Understanding the structure of these places helps us interpret human experience and foster greater appreciation for the past. In this Redmond Centennial Discovering History program, Michael Herschensohn examines historic buildings from across the state, with special emphasis on Redmond. By looking carefully at old buildings we can begin to understand the similarities and differences between the past and our contemporary lives.

 Seattle Central Library (2004)

Historic Seattle
Historic Seattle believes that buildings provide an essential link to the past, reminding us of who we are and where we came from. Founded in 1974, Historic Seattle is the only nonprofit membership organization dedicated to preserving Seattle and King County's architectural legacy. Its mission is to educate, advocate, and preserve.

For 2012, Historic Seattle provides a variety of tours, lectures, and special events that will expand your view of the Seattle area and give insights into its architectural delights. See the Events Calendar for details.

The Enduring Literary Legacy: Carnegie Libraries in Washington State

On several recent trips around Washington state, I stopped by Sound Bend and Port Townsend. I was surprised to discover that both these towns have original Carnegie libraries still in use. In fact, the South Bend library, which is now part of the Timberland Regional Library system, has functioned continuously as a library for over 100 years.

These libraries are a legacy of Andrew Carnegie, a Scottish-born American industrialist and philanthropist. At the end of the nineteenth century, Carnegie had become the richest man in the world, amassing a $500-million fortune (worth about $200 billion in today’s dollars).

In 1901, he sold his Carnegie Steel Company and retired. However, he decided to use his wealth for the public good. He donated about $350 million to several causes, including the endowment of over 2,500 libraries worldwide. Of these libraries, 44 were funded and built in Washington State between 1901 and 1916.

Nearly all of Carnegie's libraries were built according to "The Carnegie Formula", which required applicants to:

• Demonstrate the need for a public library
• Provide the building site
• Provide partial support for its operation
• Provide free service to all

Carnegie Libraries in Washington
The first Carnegie library grants were approved for several Seattle area libraries. A $430,000 grant was given for the construction of the original Seattle Central Library, which was razed in 1957.

Of the 44 Carnegie libraries built in Washington (see list), 33 still stand. Of those, 14 still serve their original purpose.

As many of these existing libraries enter their second century of service to their communities, they’ll need to be expanded and modernized. Port Townsend is launching a capital campaign to expand and upgrade the historic Port Townsend Public Library, which would double the library’s existing square footage. Here’s an architectural rendering of the project.

 
Expansions for historic buildings, such as Carnegie libraries, typically preserve the architectural heritage of the building. In 2004, the Carnegie-funded Columbia Branch of the Seattle Public Library was expanded to twice its original size. The new portion of the building extends from the back of the original structure, maintaining the building’s original street presence.

Grand Tour
The Carnegie Library Consortium of Washington is an organization whose mission is to raise awareness of the Carnegie libraries in Washington state and to preserve them for future generations. In 2009, this organization sponsored the Mr. Carnegie’s Grand Tour of Washington — a driving tour of the remaining 33 Carnegie library buildings in Washington. The Grand Tour Guide provides useful info on visiting these historical sites.

So with 2 libraries visited, I have only 31 more to go!

“Bhutan”: The Book the Size of a Coffee Table

Measuring 5x7 feet and weighing nearly 150 pounds, the world’s largest book, Bhutan, is on display at UW’s Suzzallo Library.

Everything about Bhutan is extraordinary: it is printed with a gallon of ink on a roll of paper longer than a football field. The printing process takes an entire 24 hours for each copy. It weighs 133 pounds making it the heaviest book in UW’s Special Collections as well as the biggest. A new page is turned once a month.

The full name of the book is Bhutan: A Visual Odyssey Across the Last Himalayan Kingdom. It contains 114 pages of photographs capturing the people and spirit of this enchanted country. To view sample pages, click here.

Suzzallo Library
A trip to the Suzzallo Library wouldn’t be complete without a visit to the Reading Room. Measuring 65 feet high, 52 feet wide, and 250 feet long, the Reading Room features a vaulted ceiling elaborately decorated with richly colored and gilded stenciling. The oak bookcases are topped with a hand-carved frieze representing native plants of Washington state.

For info on visiting the library, see Suzzallo Library.

BTW, if you really want to buy Bhutan: A Visual Odyssey Across the Last Himalayan Kingdom at Amazon, it’ll cost you — $30,000 to be exact.

Free Libraries For All

We recently spent two weeks roaming the U.S. - from Chicago to Philadelphia and all New England states, ending in Boston.  How I regret not photographing every library we encountered in our 2,600 mile, 13 state journey!  The range of library building styles was incredible as we traversed major cities and tiny towns.

By far one of the most impressive library structures we viewed was the Central Library in the Free Library of Philadelphia (FLP) system.  (Also, one of the few we saw that we did actually photograph.)

 

Situated along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, the Library’s 7 million item collection now, amazingly, overcrowds the massive building. (In comparison, KCLS has approximately 4 million items in their collection.)

While planning began in the 1890s, construction did not begin until 1910. It took 17 years to complete. Finally opened in 1927, the Free Library was one of the most technologically advanced libraries in the world.  Pneumatic tubing and teletype systems helped librarians gain access to the 2 million volume collection that resided on more than 20 miles of shelves!

For more information about the Central Library, including photographs, original blueprints and plans, visit their 75th anniversary website.