Elmer Holmes Bobst Library

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A view of the interior of Bobst
A view of the interior of Bobst

The Elmer Holmes Bobst Library, often referred to as Bobst Library or Bobst, is the main library at New York University. Located at the Southeast corner of Washington Square Park, it is named after its benefactor, Elmer H. Bobst who gifted six million dollars towards its ultimate completion and opening on September 12th, 1973. Mr. Bobst was a leading figure in pharmaceuticals, public health, philanthropy, and a confidant of Richard Nixon. He was also a long time trustee at New York University.[1]

The library, built between 1967 and 1973, is the largest library at New York University and one of the largest academic libraries in the United States. Designed by Philip Johnson and Richard Foster, the 12 story, ~39 500 m² (425 000 square feet) structure is the flagship of an eight-library, 4.5 million volume system that provides students and faculty members with access to the world's scholarship and serves as a center for the University community's intellectual life. Bobst Library houses more than 3.3 million volumes, 20 thousand journals, and over 3.5 million microforms; and provides access to thousands of electronic resources in the forms of licensed databases, e-journals and other formats both on-site and to the NYU community around the world via the Internet. The Library is visited by more than 6 500 users per day, and circulates almost one million books annually.

Bobst Library houses several distinct special collections departments, including the Fales Library, the Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Archives, and the University Archives of NYU.

In late 2003, Bobst Library was the site of two suicides. In separate incidents, students jumped from the open-air crosswalks inside the library and fell to the stereogram patterned marble floor below. Both later died from their injuries. Since then, they have been morbidly referred to as the "Bobst diving team" by the student body. After the second suicide, NYU installed plastic windows on each level to prevent further jumping. These deaths were the first of three jumping deaths involving NYU students in 2003 and 2004.[2]

Also in 2003, Bobst Library was in the news for being the home of a homeless student who took permanent residence at the Library since he could not afford student housing. This student received the nickname Bobst Boy and was profiled by the Washington Square News, NYU's daily student newspaper. Reaction amongst the student body was mixed. Some students cited his case as an example of the university's inability to fully meet its students' financial need. [3]

Gifts from Mamdouha S. Bobst and Kevin Brine made possible a significant renovation of Bobst Library's Mezzanine, First Floor and two Lower Levels which was completed in 2005.

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