Belmont Library

Last updated
Belmont Library
Belmont Library in Portland.jpg
Library exterior in 2012
Portland map.png
Red pog.svg
General information
Location Belmont
Address1038 SE César E. Chávez Blvd.
Town or city Portland, Oregon
CountryUnited States
Coordinates 45°30′55″N122°37′22″W / 45.515166°N 122.622786°W / 45.515166; -122.622786
OpenedMarch 7, 1924
Owner Multnomah County Library
Technical details
Floor area5,954 square feet (553.1 m2)
Design and construction
Architect(s) Jamieson Parker
Main contractorW. C. Moore
Renovating team
Architect(s)Thomas Hacker and Associates
Renovating firmAndersen Construction
Website
Belmont Library

The Belmont Library is a branch of the Multnomah County Library, located in Belmont, Portland, Oregon. [1] The original library building opened in 1924 and was expanded in 1937 with the addition of a children's room. The brick building had small round windows and large oak tables. Renovations during 1999–2000 nearly doubled the library's capacity. [1]

Contents

The branch offers the Multnomah County Library catalog of two million books, periodicals and other materials. The Belmont Library features a 24-person capacity meeting room for hosting community events at no charge on a first come, first served basis. A decorative quilt made by residents of the Sunnyside neighborhood is also housed within the building. [1]

History

In 1923, residents of the Belmont and Hawthorne areas of southeast Portland raised funds to construct a library building at East 39th Avenue and Taylor Street (now S.E. César E. Chávez Blvd. and S.E. Taylor Street). The Library Association of Portland paid for the building plans. According to the association president, the Belmont effort was one of the first in Portland during which library users raised funds to erect a branch library building in their own neighborhood. [2] The neighborhood presented the building debt-free to the association in early 1924, and the 2,924-square-foot (271.6 m2) library opened on March 7, 1924. [2]

Federal funds through the Works Progress Administration paid for expansion of the library in 1937. The addition of a children's room and staff work areas increased the building's floor area to 3,554 square feet (330.2 m2). Even so, circulation at the library continued to grow until the floor area was considered inadequate. In 1996, voters approved a bond measure to renovate the county's libraries and to pay special attention to four of them, including Belmont. The branch closed in June 1999 for remodeling and reopened in March 2000. The resulting expansion added 2,400 square feet (220 m2) to the library's floor area, bringing the total area to 5,954 square feet (553.1 m2). The renovated library can hold up to 20,000 volumes. [2] Self-checkout stations and security gates were installed in 2011 during a minor renovation. [3] [4] [5]

Over the years the library has hosted numerous activities, including a children's jamboree, [6] knitting groups, [7] [8] lectures and readings. [9] [10] [11] The building also serves as a ballot drop-off site during elections. [12]

In 2023 the library averaged 2,300 items on hold per month, more than any other branch in the Multnomah County Library system. [13] It is undergoing renovations to expand space in the library. The site plan and design were not finalized as of early 2024. [13]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Multnomah County Library</span> Library system serving Multnomah County, Oregon, United States

Multnomah County Library is the public library system serving Portland and Multnomah County, Oregon, United States. A continuation of the Library Association of Portland, established in 1864, the system now has 19 branches offering books, magazines, DVDs, and computers. It is the largest library system in Oregon, serving a population of 724,680, with more than 425,000 registered borrowers. According to the Public Library Association, it ranks second among U.S. libraries, based on circulation of books and materials, and ranks first among libraries serving fewer than one million residents. In this respect, it is the busiest in the nation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central Library (Portland, Oregon)</span> Library building in Portland, Oregon, U.S.

The Central Library is a three-story public library branch in the downtown core of Portland, Oregon, United States. Opened in 1913, it serves as the main branch of the Multnomah County Library system. In 1979, the Georgian style building was added to the National Register of Historic Places as the Central Building, Public Library. The library underwent major structural and interior renovations in the mid 1990s. The library also underwent a refresh in 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clinton Street Theater</span> Theater in Portland, Oregon

The Clinton Street Theater is a theater located in southeast Portland, Oregon. It is believed to be the second oldest operating movie house in the city and one of the oldest continually operating cinemas in the United States. The theater was designed by Charles A. Duke in 1913, built in 1914, and opened as The Clinton in 1915. It became known as the 26th Avenue Theatre in 1945 and the Encore in 1969, before reverting to a resemblance of its original name in 1976. The Clinton often screens exploitation, cult and experimental films, and has become known for hosting regular screenings of The Rocky Horror Picture Show and Repo! The Genetic Opera. The venue also hosts the annual Filmed by Bike festival, the Faux Film Festival and the Portland Queer Documentary Film Festival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woodstock Library</span> Library branch in Portland, Oregon

The Woodstock Library is a branch of the Multnomah County Library in southeast Portland, Oregon, United States. The library's origins date back to 1908, when the people of the Woodstock neighborhood established a reading room at the Woodstock Fire Station, which soon became one of fifteen "deposit stations". The Woodstock collection began as an assemblage of children's books and was housed within a public school. In 1911, the station was replaced by a "sub-branch" library offering more books for adults and children, but without the reference works and services available at regular branches. The collection moved into a larger facility in 1914, which became a full branch in 1917, offering additional resources and services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hillsdale Library</span> Library in Oregon

The Hillsdale Library is a branch of the Multnomah County Library, located in Hillsdale, Portland, Oregon. The branch offers the Multnomah County Library catalog of two million books, periodicals and other materials. The original library building at this location opened in 1957 and was replaced by a new building on the same site in 2004. The new library, a green building designed to minimize environmental impacts, has 12,000 square feet (1,100 m2) of floor space and a storage capacity of 75,000 volumes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hollywood Library</span> Library building in Portland, Oregon, U.S.

The Hollywood Library is a branch of the Multnomah County Library (MCL), in the Hollywood District of Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. The building, at NE 41st Avenue and Tillamook Street, opened in 2002, and has three residential stories above the library. The previous building, constructed in 1959 at NE 39th Avenue and Hancock Street, was expected to be sold in 2003 to a private party, for its appraised price of $675,000. The branch offers the MCL catalog of two million books, periodicals and other materials.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Midland Library</span> Library in Oregon

The Midland Library is a branch of the Multnomah County Library, in Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. The branch offers the Multnomah County Library catalog of two million books, periodicals and other materials.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Albina Library</span> Multnomah County Library branch in Portland, Oregon, U.S.

The Albina Library is a branch of the Multnomah County Library, located in northeast Portland, Oregon. The library's origins date back to 1906 with the establishment of a small reading room that housed 100 books. The branch has relocated four times since then, moving back to the building which used to house The Title Wave Used Bookstore from a retail plaza in northeast Portland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Capitol Hill Library</span> Library in Portland, Oregon, U.S.

The Capitol Hill Library is a branch of the Multnomah County Library, in the West Portland Park neighborhood of Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. The branch offers the Multnomah County Library catalog of two million books, periodicals and other materials. Capitol Hill and the Holgate branch are of a similar design.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gregory Heights Library</span> Library in Portland, Oregon, U.S.

The Gregory Heights Library is a branch of the Multnomah County Library, in Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. The branch offers the Multnomah County Library catalog of two million books, periodicals and other materials.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holgate Library</span> Library in Oregon

The Holgate Library is a branch of the Multnomah County Library, in Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenton Library</span> Library in Oregon

The Kenton Library is a branch of the Multnomah County Library (MCL), in the Kenton neighborhood of Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. Preceded by reading rooms in North Portland and later by the Lombard Branch Library, the Kenton Library opened in 2010 in a storefront on North Denver Avenue. The branch offers the MCL catalog of two million books, periodicals and other materials.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Portland Library</span> Library in Oregon

The North Portland Library is a branch of the Multnomah County Library, in Portland, Oregon. The branch offers the Multnomah County Library catalog of two million books, periodicals and other materials.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northwest Library</span> Public library in Portland, Oregon, USA

The Northwest Library is a branch of the Multnomah County Library, in Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. The branch, which opened in 2001, offers the Multnomah County Library catalog of two million books, periodicals and other materials.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rockwood Library</span> Library in Oregon

The Rockwood Library is a branch of the Multnomah County Library, located in Portland, Oregon. The branch offers the Multnomah County Library catalog of two million books, periodicals and other materials. The library also features a 30-person capacity meeting room for hosting community events at no charge on a first come, first served basis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sellwood-Moreland Library</span> Library in Oregon

The Sellwood–Moreland Library is a branch of the Multnomah County Library, in the Sellwood neighborhood of Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. First established in 1905 as the Sellwood Reading Room, it operated in several Sellwood locations before re-opening in 2002 in a new mixed-use building at S.E. 13th Avenue and Bidwell Street.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Johns Library</span> Library building in Portland, Oregon, U. S.

The St. Johns Library is a branch of the Multnomah County Library, in St. Johns, Portland, Oregon. Operating at the same location since 1913, it underwent major renovation in 2000 to upgrade its infrastructure, expand its floor area, and increase its holding capacity to 25,000 volumes. The branch offers the Multnomah County Library catalog of two million books, periodicals and other materials.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Troutdale Library</span> Library in Oregon

The Troutdale Library is a branch of the Multnomah County Library, in Troutdale in the U.S. state of Oregon. The library, part of the Cherry Park Market Center, offers the Multnomah County Library catalog of two million books, periodicals and other materials.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Country Bill's</span> Defunct restaurant in Portland, Oregon, U.S.

Country Bill's Restaurant was a family-owned American-style steakhouse and seafood restaurant in the Woodstock neighborhood of Portland, Oregon, in the United States. Adjacent to the restaurant was a bar called CB's Lounge. The restaurant opened in 1964 when ownership transferred from Bill Blake to Ron Thomas' family. Though Thomas was not particularly fond of the name of the business Blake had established in 1960, he was unable to afford new signage and kept the lounge's title. Over time the restaurant grew from a hamburger stand into a family dining restaurant, expanding from one space to four. In 1978, the family purchased the building and property following the landlord's death.

<i>Allow Me</i> (Portland, Oregon) Statue in Portland, Oregon

Allow Me, also known as Umbrella Man, is a 1983 bronze sculpture by John Seward Johnson II, located in Pioneer Courthouse Square in Portland, Oregon, United States. The sculpture, one of seven Allow Me casts, was donated anonymously to the City of Portland in 1984 for display in the Square. It depicts a life-sized man dressed in a business suit, hailing a cab and holding an umbrella. Constructed from bronze, aluminum and stainless steel, the sculpture stands six feet, ten inches tall and weighs 460 pounds. The sculpture is one of many works of art generated by the city's Percent for Art program, and is considered part of the City of Portland and Multnomah County Public Art Collection courtesy of the Regional Arts & Culture Council.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Belmont Library". Multnomah County Library . Retrieved November 1, 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 "Belmont Library History". Multnomah County Library. Retrieved November 1, 2012.
  3. ↑ "Belmont, North Portland and St. Johns libraries to Close for Equipment Installation". Multnomah County Library. February 23, 2011. Retrieved November 1, 2012.
  4. ↑ "Belmont Library Closed March 28 Through April 1 for Service Updates". Multnomah County Library. March 10, 2011. Archived from the original on March 20, 2011. Retrieved November 1, 2012.
  5. ↑ Buxton, Matt (March 22, 2011). "Belmont Library to Close for Improvements from March 28 to April 1". The Oregonian . Portland, Oregon: Advance Publications. ISSN   8750-1317 . Retrieved November 1, 2012.
  6. ↑ "Lorna Miller's Little Kids' Jamboree". The Portland Mercury . Portland, Oregon: Index Publishing. 2012. Retrieved November 1, 2012.
  7. ↑ McMullen, Peggy (January 4, 2011). "Knitting Groups in Portland Libraries Offer Something for New Knitters, Kids, Bilingual Learners". The Oregonian. Portland, Oregon: Advance Publications. ISSN   8750-1317 . Retrieved November 1, 2012.
  8. ↑ "Knitting Groups". Multnomah County Library. Retrieved November 1, 2012.
  9. ↑ "Lessons from Lincoln: Is Political Bipartisanship Possible?". The Portland Mercury. Portland, Oregon: Index Publishing. Archived from the original on September 29, 2014. Retrieved November 1, 2012.
  10. ↑ "Kim Weitkamp". The Portland Mercury. Portland, Oregon: Index Publishing. 2011. Retrieved November 1, 2012.
  11. ↑ "Andrew Halloran". The Portland Mercury. Portland, Oregon: Index Publishing. 2012. Retrieved November 1, 2012.
  12. ↑ "Oregon Ballot Dropoff Sites and Southwest Washington Ballot Dropoff Sites". Portland, Oregon: KPTV. October 30, 2012. Retrieved November 1, 2012.
  13. 1 2 Krogh, David (February 2024). "Belmont Library Renovations and Addition". The Southeast Examiner.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.