Central Library History

Constructed: 1914 -1917

Opened: 1917

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1975

The Early Years

The Saint Paul Public Library traces its earliest beginnings to 1856 when the first private reading room opened in the city.

In 1863, the Saint Paul Library Association was formed, and in 1879, under the leadership of Alexander Ramsey, the Association proposed that the City accept responsibility for their collections and establish it as a free public library.

On September 7, 1882, the city council established the Saint Paul Public Library with a collection of 8,051 books.

In 1900, the Library moved to the old Market Hall, located on Seventh Street. Many civic leaders pushed for the construction of a new building, but the Library remained in the Market Hall until a fire destroyed the building in 1915, including the Library and its collection of 158,000 books.

Aftermath of the Market Hall fire.

Building Central Library

Planning for the new Central Library occurred well before the 1915 fire.

In 1909, work began on a new building, and the next year, the Library's site on Rice Park was chosen. Railroad baron James J. Hill offered to contribute funds for a reference library attached to the public library, and additional monies were raised through a subscription campaign, a bequest from Greenleaf Clark, and the sale of bonds.

Finally, ground was broken for Central Library in 1914. The entire building, including the Hill Reference Library, was completed in 1917 at a cost of approximately $1.5 million.

Electus Litchfield, was first suggested by his uncle, Reverend William C. Pope, and later by James J. Hill, as the architect of Central Library.

By late 1912, Litchfield had been officially selected as the architect. Born in 1862, Litchfield had studied at the Polytechnic Institute in Brooklyn and the Stevens Institute of Technology. Later, he studied architecture with the New York firm of Carrere and Hastings, designers of the renowned New York Public Library.

Plan for Central Library, 1915.

Litchfield's design for Saint Paul's Central Library also was heavily influenced by the design for the new J. P. Morgan Library in New York, completed in 1906.

Architectural & Historic Features

Central Library is Italian Renaissance revival in style. Some features marking the style include the round arched windows, the Palladian style entrances, the large stonework, the balustrade surrounding the building, the rondel features near the arched windows, use of classical columns and pilasters, and the cornice capping the structure. The style was continued throughout the interior of the Library .

The exterior of the Library is of Tennessee marble, while the interior is finished in gray Mankato stone. Blue Rutland and golden vein Formosa marble are also used in select areas.

The original wood work in the building is a gray stained maple. The floors of the three main rooms were originally of compressed cork and have been recreated in the recent renewal project.

The Kellogg Boulevard courtyard, including a new entrance, was also redesigned during the renovations.

Central Library, as seen from 4th Street.
1920

First Floor

Entering Central Library, in the lobby one encounters the donor wall, acknowledging the contributions of major donors to the restoration efforts. Continuing into the Library, the Youth Services area occupies the west wing of the first floor. Recent renovations here sought to capture the character of the original children's and teen areas. For example, note the historic stone arch doorways marking entrances to the youth areas.

Renaissance Dog Snoopy

The Youth Services area houses three bronze sculptures, by Saint Paul native Lee Hunt, of Ramona the Pest, the character from the famous children's books by Beverly Clearly, as well as the Renaissance Dog Snoopy sculpture designed by Saint Paul artists Barb and Ken Friberg. Renaissance Dog was part of Saint Paul's celebration of famed native son, Charles Schulz,in 2000.

The Skinner Room, named for library benefactor James H. Skinner, opened in 1939. Designed by local architect Magnus Jemne, the room quickly became a national model for service to teens. In 1950, the Skinner family commissioned the carved sculpture of owls in the room as a memorial to William W. Skinner, Jr. who was killed in World War II.

The puppet stage was also designed by Jemne in 1949. The stage is made of bleached walnut from southern Minnesota, and features a carved head of Loki, the god of mischief in Norse mythology.

Second Floor

On the second floor, the Nicholson Information Commons is one of the architectural highlights of Central Library. Featuring large, arched windows, the room originally served as the main reading room. Angel friezes adorn each end of the room. The paintings on the ceiling beams depict publisher marks from the 1910s, along with the initials of the Saint Paul Public Library.

Near the center of the room, there is a portrait memorializing Ray Tatar, shown wearing a beret, who tragically died in a fall while working on the restoration of the ceilings at the Library.

The Information Commons and the magazine room ceilings were designed by Frank P. Fairbanks, working with Sherwin & Berwin of New York. Recent renovations added the mezzanine level in Information Commons to house the Saint Paul Collection, featuring materials relating to the city's history. In 2002, the room was generously endowed with a $1 million gift from local philanthropists Richard and Nancy Nicholson.

The reading room, now the Nicholson Information Commons.

The Circulation Room in 1955. This room is now the Non-Fiction Room (and the IX is still missing from the clock!).

In the stair lobby of the second floor are sculptural friezes, designed by Ulysses Ricci of New York, depicting groups symbolizing Knowledge, Instruction, Science and the Arts. Other panels in this lobby area mark the creation of the Saint Paul Public Library and the opening of Central Library, as well as offering quotations from the Book of Proverbs.

The non-fiction room on the second floor features a large semi-circular alcove framed by elegant columns and arched elements. The ceiling was painted by Lee Woodward Zeigler, the former director of the Saint Paul Institute of Art.

The medallions in the painted ceiling represent the Muses, Graces, Fates and Furies, while the spaces between illustrate monograms of famous painters, as well as the architect and builders of Central Library. The remainder of the west wing on the second and third floors was entirely redone during recent renovations to make the book collections more accessible.

Third Floor

The historic highlight of the third floor is the magazine room, also known as the Greenleaf Clark room. A Minnesota Supreme Court Justice, Clark was a major donor to the Library's construction.

The room features an elegant, small alcove entered through three arches supported by groups of four columns. The central panel in the ceiling shows the old seal of the Library with the sword of St. Paul, symbolizing the city, supported by books and torches. The names of the greatest minds of old Europe, including Homer, Socrates, Descartes, Voltaire, Galileo and Da Vinci, are inscribed on the ceiling beams.

The Greenleaf Clark Room in 1930.