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A Brief History of the D.C. LibraryA Public Library for the DistrictThe District of Columbia was created by a act of Congress in 1896 "to furnish books and other printedmatter and information service convenient to the homes and offices of all residents of the District." Theestablishment of the Library was largely due to the long and arduous efforts of Thedore W. Noyes, editor of the Evening Star. Mr. Noyes served as president of the Board of Library Trustees for 50 years.The D.C. Public Library was located in a house at 1326 New York Avenue, N.W. from 1898 until 1903. In1899 Andrew Carnegie donated funds to build the Central Library at Mount Vernon Square. The buildingwas dedicated in 1903 with President Theodore Roosevelt attending the ceremony.The Central Library was replaced in 1972 by the large, modern Martin Luther King Memorial Library at9th and G Streets, N.W. The new main library was designed by Mies van der Rohe and is eight times thesize of the original Carnegie Library.The first neighborhood library was built in 1912 in Takoma Park and additional facilities were added over the years. The neighborhood library system now includes four regional neighborhood library libraries, 17local neighborhood library libraries, four community libraries and a kiosk.As the number of buildings has grown, so have the services offered by the Library. Patrons may nowchoose from a broad range of audiovisual materials as well as books and magazines. There are services for the blind and physically handicapped persons, the homebound, and the institutionalized. There aretelephone information services, a mobile service for senior citizens, services for the deaf, a system-wideCommunity Information Service, book-on-tape, a video rental service, a mobile service to licensed familyday care providers for children, and many programs and activities to inform, educate and enrich the public.Central LibraryMartin Luther King Memorial LibraryThe Martin Luther King Memorial Library, the main building of the District of Columbia Public Library,opened in August 1972. An extensive study by the firm of Booz, Allen and Hamilton had established theneed for a new central library in the downtown business district. The original Carnegie Library, opened in1903 at Mount Vernon Square, was unable to keep up with the growing needs of Washingtonians.The world-famous architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe was commissioned to design the structure, andground was broken at the 9th and G Street site in July 1968. By action of the Board of Library Trustees in1971, the new building was named in memory of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The new library,dedicated in September 1972, has contributed to the revitalization of the old downtown business districtand shopping area.Constructed of matte black steel, brick and bronzed-tinted glass, the building cost about $18,000,000 and provides 400,000 square feet of floor space on four floors above ground and three underground levels. Ithouses public service areas, including subject divisions, meeting room and exhibition space of the centrallibrary as well as the administrative and support services for all public libraries in Washington, D.C.The King MuralThe King Mural, © the District of Columbia Public Library, by artist Don Miller, is a tour de force --thenation’s definitive visual documentation of Dr. King’s great influence on modern American society. It ishistory revealed through Mr. Miller's careful research. He retraced the life of Dr. King by reading existingscholarship and interviewing the men and women who worked closely with Dr. King. The conceptualframework for the mural was drawn from their memories. To the many achievements and sacrifices of Dr.King and the movement he led, Don Miller has committed his talents as an artist. The mural summons theimages of the African American's finest hours in the struggle for social justice. It is a work of enormoushistorical scope, and in keeping with Dr. King's life, it is a work having a deeply emotional connection tothe history of black and white Americans from 1955 to 1968.

Neighborhood library LibrariesAnacostiaThe first library neighborhood library built across the Anacostia River was the Anacostia Neighborhoodlibrary located in the Southeast quadrant of Washington, DC at 1800 Good Hope Road. The library wasfirst conceived as early as 1940, and while a site was located and purchased, World War II disrupted the plans for the new library. A temporary neighborhood library located in rented quarters at 1537 Good HopeRoad, S.E. was established in the interim. The present building, designed by D.C. Municipal ArchitectMerrell A. Coe, was finally constructed and opened on April 12, 1956. The neighborhood library was builtat a cost of $284,750 by the Washington construction firm of Tuckman-Barbee. The Anacostia library wasthe first of six public library neighborhood libraries built under the D.C. Public Works Program, and became the model for several subsequent neighborhood library buildings.The community of Anacostia, one of the oldest residential areas in Washington, DC, had long beenconsidered a primary location for a potential neighborhood library of the public library. Funding for theD.C. Library Board of Trustees was finally received in 1940. The proposed Anacostia neighborhood librarywould serve the primarily working class neighborhoods of Twining City, Washington Highlands, OldAnacostia, Hillcrest, Bolling Air Force Base, the Naval Air Station, St. Elizabeth’s, and ten public schools,a junior high school, and two parochial schools. A site on the northeast corner of 18th Street and GoodHope Road, S.E. was purchased in 1942. Construction was delayed, however, by the intervention of thewar and funds allocated to the library were redirected to the war effort.Although construction of the new neighborhood library was postponed, a temporary library neighborhoodlibrary was established in rented quarters at 1537 Good Hope Road, S.E. in 1942. The rented spaceoccupied a two-story brick building that was erected in 1938 as a store and apartment building. Thetemporary neighborhood library opened November 20, 1942 with a collection of 7,000 volumes and 27 periodicals. City Commissioner Guy Mason and George C. Havenner of the Library's Board of Trusteesspoke at the dedication. In attendance were numerous members of the Anacostia community including JohnJ. Watson, president of the Anacostia Citizens Association. District Librarian Clara W. Herbert garneredspecial appreciation from the community for her efforts in the establishment of the Anacostia Neighborhood library Library. Special evening hours were set up at the new neighborhood library toaccommodate the adult patrons of the library.

A Brief History of the D.C. Public Library