Folger Shakespeare Library
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| Folger Shakespeare Library | |
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| (U.S. National Register of Historic Places) | |
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| Location: | Washington, DC |
| Coordinates: | |
| Built/Founded: | 1929 |
| Architect: | Cret,Paul P.; Trowbridge,Alexander B. |
| Architectural style(s): | Moderne |
| Added to NRHP: | June 23, 1969 |
| Reference #: | 69000294 [1] |
| Governing body: | Private |
The Folger Shakespeare Library is an independent research library located at 201 East Capitol Street, S.E., on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.
Folger Shakespeare Library is a renowned center for scholarship, learning, culture, and the arts. It is home to the world’s largest Shakespeare collection and a primary repository for rare materials from the early modern period (1500–1750).
The Folger is an internationally recognized research library offering advanced scholarly programs in the humanities; an innovator in the preservation of rare materials; a national leader in how Shakespeare is taught in grades K–12; and an award-winning producer of cultural and arts programs – theater, music, poetry, exhibits, lectures, and family programs.
By promoting understanding of Shakespeare and his world, the Folger reminds us of the enduring influence of his works, the formative effects of the Renaissance on our own time, and the power of the written and spoken word.
It is home to the world's largest collection of the printed works of William Shakespeare, as well as collections of other rare Renaissance books and manuscripts. Also included in the collections are playbills, paintings, drawings, prints, musical instruments, costumes, and films. The centerpiece of its collection is a group of 79 of the approximately 240 surviving copies of Shakespeare's 1623 First Folio.
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[edit] History
Standard Oil of New York president, then chairman of the board, Henry Clay Folger was an avid collector of Shakespeareana. Toward the end of World War I, he and his wife began searching for a location for his Shakespeare library, but they could not find a location to their liking until 1928, when Congress passed a resolution allowing use of the land in Washington where the Folger Library now stands.
The cornerstone of the library was laid in 1930, but Folger died soon afterward. The bulk of Folger's fortune was left in trust, with Amherst College as administrator, for the library. The library opened on April 23, 1932 (believed to be Shakespeare's birthday).
[edit] Other information
Folger Shakespeare Library’s cultural and arts programs – theater, poetry, music, exhibits, and lectures – connect broader audiences to its collections and support the living legacy of Shakespeare in contemporary life.
Folger Theatre, the centerpiece of the Folger Shakespeare Library’s public programs, performs a three-play season, featuring the works of Shakespeare, as well as contemporary plays inspired by the Bard.
The annual PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction readings are performed in the Folger's Elizabethan Theatre.
The O. B. Hardison, Jr. Poetry Prize is awarded by the Library to a U.S. poet who has published at least one book within the last five years, has made important contributions as a teacher, and is committed to furthering the understanding of poetry.
The privately endowed Folger Shakespeare Library continues to be administered by the Trustees of Amherst College.
The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
[edit] References
- ^ National Register Information System. National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service (2006-03-15).
