List of Carnegie libraries in Maine

Auburn
Lewiston
Caribou
Fort
Fairfield
Freeport
Gardiner
Guilford
Houlton
Madison
Milo
Oakland
Waterville
Old Town
Pittsfield
Presque
Isle
Rockland
Rumford
Vinalhaven
GW-H
UMaine
Maine Carnegie libraries
(: public, : academic, : multiple)

The following list of Carnegie libraries in Maine provides detailed information on United States Carnegie libraries in Maine, where 18 public libraries were built from 18 grants (totaling $241,450) awarded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York from 1901 to 1912. In addition, academic libraries were built at 2 institutions (totaling $70,000).

Key

      Building still operating as a library
      Building standing, but now serving another purpose
      Building no longer standing
      Building listed on the National Register of Historic Places
      Building contributes to a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places

Public libraries

Library City or
town
Image Date
granted
[1]
Grant
amount
[1]
Location Notes[2]
1 Auburn Auburn Jan 13, 1903 $25,000 49 Spring St.
44°5′52.59″N 70°13′44.66″W / 44.0979417°N 70.2290722°W
Opening on August 1, 1904, this William R. Miller of Portland design has been renovated and expanded in 1956, 1978, and 2005.[3]
2 Caribou Caribou Mar 21, 1910 $10,000 30 High St.
46°51′39.06″N 68°0′39.69″W / 46.8608500°N 68.0110250°W
Designed by local architect Schuyler C. Page in the Romanesque Revival style, this library was renovated in the 1960s.
3 Fort Fairfield Fort Fairfield Feb 20, 1911 $10,000 339 Main St.
46°46′2.97″N 67°48′0.62″W / 46.7674917°N 67.8001722°W
Built in 1913, this library added a wing in 1993.
4 Freeport Freeport Mar 14, 1905 $6,500 55 Main St.
43°51′19.51″N 70°6′23.15″W / 43.8554194°N 70.1064306°W
Designed by George Burnham, this library was closed in 1997 when a new library was built. It is now a private business.
5 Gardiner Gardiner December 22, 1897 $2,500 152 Water St.
44°13′43.44″N 69°46′15.48″W / 44.2287333°N 69.7709667°W
Gardiner's grant was to complete an unfinished library.[4][5] It was designed and begun in 1881 by local architect Henry Richards.
6 Guilford Guilford Mar 21, 1908 $5,750 4 Library St.
45°10′14.63″N 69°22′59.89″W / 45.1707306°N 69.3833028°W
Designed by Bangor architect Frederick A. Patterson, this building was renovated in 1977 and 2002.
7 Houlton Houlton Jan 13, 1903 $10,000 107 Main St.
46°7′32.6″N 67°50′9.39″W / 46.125722°N 67.8359417°W
This library was designed by architect John Calvin Stevens of Portland in the Colonial Revival style, and it was renovated in 1968 and 1991.
8 Lewiston Lewiston Jan 15, 1901 $60,000 200 Lisbon St.
44°5′44.46″N 70°12′57.33″W / 44.0956833°N 70.2159250°W
A Coombs and Gibbs design, this building was significantly renovated in 1996, including moving the main entrance one block to the west.
9 Madison Madison Jun 2, 1904 $8,000 12 Old Point Ave.
44°47′48.09″N 69°52′47.03″W / 44.7966917°N 69.8797306°W
This building was designed by the Madison architectural firm of Snow & Humphreys.
10 Milo Milo Sep 30, 1908 $8,500 4 Pleasant St.
45°15′12.88″N 68°59′10.02″W / 45.2535778°N 68.9861167°W
Construction for this Frederick A. Patterson of Bangor design (based largely on Plan F from the leaflet distributed by James Bertram, Carnegie's secretary) did not begin until May 1922.[6]
11 Oakland Oakland Feb 15, 1912 $10,000 18 Church St.
44°32′46.56″N 69°43′10.34″W / 44.5462667°N 69.7195389°W
Designed by Harry S. Coombs, this building was expanded in 2002.
12 Old Town Old Town Feb 12, 1903 $10,000 46 Middle St.
44°56′7.45″N 68°38′53.25″W / 44.9354028°N 68.6481250°W
A neoclassical work by New York architect Albert Randolph Ross, this library was expanded in 1991.
13 Pittsfield Pittsfield Mar 20, 1903 $10,000 89 S. Main St.
44°46′55.18″N 69°22′59.75″W / 44.7819944°N 69.3832639°W
Architect Albert Randolph Ross would later use this Beaux-Arts design for the Warsaw, New York library. A Civil War monument was built to coincide with the building's dedication in 1904.
14 Presque Isle Presque Isle May 15, 1906 $10,000 39 2nd St.
46°41′0.13″N 68°0′49.85″W / 46.6833694°N 68.0138472°W
An addition to this Astle and Page of Houlton work in 1967 significantly changed the look of this library.
15 Rockland Rockland Apr 11, 1902 $20,000 80 Union St.
44°6′19.05″N 69°6′43.67″W / 44.1052917°N 69.1121306°W
Opening April 26, 1904, this Clough and Wardner of Boston-designed library was notably visited by President Taft in 1910.[7]
16 Rumford Rumford Jan 22, 1903 $10,000 58 Rumford Ave.
44°32′49.57″N 70°32′56.93″W / 44.5471028°N 70.5491472°W
Designed by John Calvin Stevens of Portland, this Romanesque Revival building had a large addition completed in 1969.
17 Vinalhaven Vinalhaven Apr 22, 1906 $5,200 1 Carver St.
44°2′58.95″N 68°49′52.37″W / 44.0497083°N 68.8312139°W
This building was dedicated August 15, 1907. Designed by Clough and Wardner of Boston, it is in the Prairie School style.[8]
18 Waterville Waterville Apr 28, 1902 $20,000 73 Elm St.
44°33′4.59″N 69°37′55.05″W / 44.5512750°N 69.6319583°W
The work of Lewiston architect William R. Miller, this building has been renovated twice.

Academic libraries

Institution Locality Image Year
granted
[9]
Grant
amount
[9]
Location Notes
1 Good Will Home Association Fairfield Mar 30, 1905 $15,000 Hinckley campus
44°40′39.68″N 69°38′0.07″W / 44.6776889°N 69.6333528°W
Designed by Albert Randolph Ross, this library was dedicated May 29, 1907. It is now part of the Good Will-Hinckley campus.
2 University of Maine Orono Feb 7, 1905 $55,000 Carnegie Hall
44°53′52.84″N 68°40′16.12″W / 44.8980111°N 68.6711444°W
Designed in the Greek Revival style, this building was a library until 1947. It now houses art studio space.

Notes

  1. 1.0 1.1 At various times, Bobinski and Jones disagree on these numbers. In these cases, Jones' numbers have been used due to both a more recent publication date and a more detailed gazetteer of branch libraries, which are often where the discrepancies occur.
  2. Smith, Corinne H. "New England Carnegies: honoring the public libraries that Andrew Carnegie helped to fund". Retrieved 2009-07-22.
  3. "History". Auburn Public Library. Retrieved 2009-07-22.
  4. Anderson, p. 43.
  5. Because of the uniqueness of its grant, Gardiner is not listed as a Carnegie library in Bobinski. However, Anderson, Jones, and Miller all count it, with two authors attaching a footnote.
  6. Bradeen, Edna L. (June 26, 1985). "Milo Public Library has Interesting History". Piscataquis Observer. Retrieved 2009-07-22.
  7. "Rockland Library". Retrieved 2009-07-22.
  8. "Building for Another 100 Years". Vinalhaven Public Library. Retrieved 2009-07-22.
  9. 9.0 9.1 Miller, pp. 38–40

References

Note: The above references, while all authoritative, are not entirely mutually consistent. Some details of this list may have been drawn from one of the references without support from the others. Reader discretion is advised.

External links