Medford Free Public Library

Last updated
Medford Free Public Library
Medford Wisconsin Public Library.jpg
Medford Free Public Library
USA Wisconsin location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location104 E. Perkins St.
Medford, Wisconsin
Coordinates 45°8′2″N90°20′30″W / 45.13389°N 90.34167°W / 45.13389; -90.34167
Built1916
ArchitectHans T. Liebert
Architectural style Prairie School
NRHP reference No. 93000259
Added to NRHPApril 1, 1993

The Medford Free Public Library is a Carnegie library in Medford, Wisconsin, built in 1916. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1993. [1] [2]

The first library in Medford was a reading room in Temperance Hall, opened in 1903 and operated by the local chapter of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union and the Medford Women's Club. [3] In 1909 the reading room moved to a larger room in the same building, but it soon outgrew that space, too. [2]

In 1913, the library board applied to the Carnegie Foundation for support in building a free-standing library with more space. The city agreed to give $600 a year to operate the library if the Carnegie Foundation would give $6000 for the new building. Architect Hans Theodore Liebert (1877-1966) of Wausau designed the building and H. A. Giles built it. In 1915 the Medford Woman's Alliance was formed to support the library. February 22, 1917 was the grand opening, with the library holding 2,221 books. [2]

Liebert designed the building in the Prairie School style. Hallmarks of that style present in this building are the emphasis on horizontal lines, the hip roof, the stucco, and the abstract geometric patterns in the frieze. [2]

This building served the community as a library until 1998. By the 1990s needs had again outgrown the space of the building. After debating whether to expand the existing building or construct a new library at a different site, the community decided on the latter. The Simeks gave a large contribution toward a new building, the Frances L. Simek Memorial Library was built, and 20,000 books were moved in late 1998. [4] Since the library moved, the local Chamber of Commerce has taken up residence in the 1916 building. [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bascom Hill</span> United States historic place

Bascom Hill is the iconic main quadrangle that forms the historic core of the University of Wisconsin–Madison campus. It is located on the opposite end of State Street from the Wisconsin State Capitol, and is named after John Bascom, former president of the University of Wisconsin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eaton Hall (Tufts University)</span> Library, classroom in Massachusetts, US

Eaton Hall, built in 1908 as Eaton Memorial Library, used to be the main library building at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts. The historic building was designed by Whitfield & King and donated to the university by Andrew Carnegie. It was one of the first college libraries built with Carnegie funds and is one of the few that never bore his name. Today the building houses departmental offices, classrooms and a computer lab.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claude and Starck</span>

Claude and Starck was an architectural firm in Madison, Wisconsin, at the turn of the twentieth century. The firm was a partnership of Louis W. Claude (1868-1951) and Edward F. Starck (1868-1947). Established in 1896, the firm dissolved in 1928. The firm designed over 175 buildings in Madison.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ballard Carnegie Library</span> Library in Seattle, Washington, U.S.

The Ballard Carnegie Library is a historic Carnegie library in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, United States. The institution was preceded by a freeholders' library in the 1860s, which was eventually replaced in 1901 by a reading room organized and funded by a women's group. Various funds including a $15,000 grant were used to create a new library for Ballard, then an independent city. The library opened to the public on June 24, 1904. It was the first major branch of the Seattle public library system after Ballard was annexed by Seattle in 1907, and also employed one of the first African American librarians in Seattle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George and John R. Hunt Memorial Building</span> United States historic place

The George and John R. Hunt Memorial Building, often referred to as just the Hunt Memorial Building, is the former Ellenville, New York, United States, public library. It is located on Liberty Square, at the juncture of Liberty Place and Canal Street, just across from the village's post office, another Registered Historic Place in Wawarsing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lincoln Heights Branch Library</span> United States historic place

Lincoln Heights Branch Library is the second oldest branch library in the Los Angeles Public Library system. Located in the Lincoln Heights section of Los Angeles, California, it was built in the Classical Revival and Italian Renaissance Revival styles in 1916 with a grant from Andrew Carnegie. One of three surviving Carnegie libraries in Los Angeles, it has been designated as a Historic-Cultural Monument and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vermont Square Branch Library</span> United States historic place

Vermont Square Branch Library is the oldest branch library in the Los Angeles Public Library system. Located about a mile southwest of the University of Southern California campus, in the Vermont Square district, it was built in 1913 with a grant from Andrew Carnegie. One of three surviving Carnegie libraries in Los Angeles, it has been designated a Historic-Cultural Monument and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cahuenga Branch Library</span> United States historic place

Cahuenga Branch is the third oldest branch library facility in the Los Angeles Public Library system. Located at 4591 Santa Monica Boulevard in the East Hollywood section of Los Angeles, it was built in 1916 with a grant from Andrew Carnegie. One of three surviving Carnegie libraries in Los Angeles, it has been designated as a Historic-Cultural Monument and listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mabel Tainter Memorial Building</span> United States historic place

The Mabel Tainter Center for the Arts, originally named the Mabel Tainter Memorial Building and also known as the Mabel Tainter Theater, is a historic landmark in Menomonie, Wisconsin, and is registered on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carnegie Free Library of Allegheny</span> United States historic place

The Carnegie Free Library of Allegheny is situated in the Allegheny Center neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was commissioned in 1886, the first Carnegie library to be commissioned in the United States. Donated to the public by entrepreneur Andrew Carnegie, it was built from 1886 to 1890 on a design by John L. Smithmeyer and Paul J. Pelz.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Milo Public Library</span> United States historic place

The Milo Public Library is located at 121 Main Street in Milo, Maine, USA. It is located in a small, architecturally distinguished building, built with funding assistance from Andrew Carnegie. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bradford Community Church</span> Historic church in Wisconsin, United States

The Bradford Community Church, originally the Henry M. Simmons Memorial Church and later the Boys and Girls Library, is a historic church built in 1907 in Kenosha, Wisconsin, United States under the leadership of Kenosha's first woman pastor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Racine Heritage Museum</span> United States historic place

The Racine Heritage Museum is a historical museum building and former Carnegie library, located at 701 S. Main St. in downtown Racine, Wisconsin. Designed by John Mauran in the Beaux-Arts style, the building served as the Racine Public Library from 1904 until 1958, and has housed the Racine Heritage Museum since 1963. It is also the home of the Racine County Historical Society. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on March 20, 1981.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Litchfield Public Library (Illinois)</span> United States historic place

The Litchfield Public Library is a Carnegie library located at 400 N. State St. in Litchfield, Illinois. The library was built in 1904-05 through a $10,000 donation from the Carnegie Foundation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oscar Foss Memorial Library</span> United States historic place

The Oscar Foss Memorial Library is the public library of Barnstead, New Hampshire. It is located in the center of town at 111 South Barnstead Road, in a single-story Colonial Revival building designed by the William M. Butterfield Company of Manchester and built in 1916-17. The library was a gift of Sarah Foss in memory of her husband Oscar, a prominent local businessman who died in 1913.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jacksonville Public Library (Illinois)</span> United States historic place

The Jacksonville Public Library is a Carnegie library located at 201 West College Avenue in Jacksonville, Illinois. The library was built in 1902 to house the city's library program, which began in 1870. Chicago architects Patton & Miller designed the Classical Revival building. The building still houses the city's public library and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pittsfield Public Library</span> United States historic place

The Pittsfield Public Library is located at 110 Library Street in Pittsfield, Maine. The building it occupies is a Beaux-Arts building designed by Albert Randolph Ross, and was built in 1903-04 with funding assistance from Andrew Carnegie. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. It is one of the state's oldest Beaux-Arts buildings, and one of the most architecturally distinctive in the town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Janesville Public Library (Janesville, Wisconsin)</span> United States historic place

The Janesville Public Library in Janesville, Wisconsin is a large Neoclassical-styled structure built in 1902. It was one of the first Carnegie libraries in the state, while also supported by local businessman F.S. Eldred. In 1981 the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Delaware Public Library</span> United States historic place

The Delaware Public Library is a former public library in Delaware, Ohio. The building was funded by Andrew Carnegie and built in the neoclassical style. It opened to the public in 1906. The library's collection of books and volumes rapidly expanded during its operational history. By the 1970s, the Delaware Public Library started to run out of space. In 1984, a new public library was constructed, and Delaware County, Ohio started using the Delaware Public Library for office space. The building was tripled in size during a construction and restoration project that lasted from 1999 to 2001. The Delaware Public Library is currently used to house a number of Delaware County agencies, including the Delaware County Board of Commissioners.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woman's Improvement Club Clubhouse</span> United States historic place

The Woman's Improvement Club Clubhouse in Corona, California, at 1101 S. Main St., was built in 1913. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.

References

  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Amy Alexandra Ross (1992-12-01). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Medford Free Public Library". National Park Service . Retrieved 2015-05-15. With five photos.
  3. "Medford Free Public Library". Wisconsin Historical Society. Retrieved 2013-06-06.
  4. "About Frances L. Simek Memorial Library". Frances L. Simek Memorial Library. Retrieved 2015-05-17.
  5. "Medford Chamber of Commerce". Medford Area Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved 2015-05-18.