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 Grosvenor Library - Buffalo, NY Posted by:  Rayman
N 42° 53.688 W 078° 52.363
17T E 673689 N 4751327
The Grosvenor Library, originally a building designed to display cycloramas, now is used as office space and is known The Cyclorama Building.
Waymark Code: WM3MDB
Location: New York, United States
Date Posted: 04/20/2008
Views: 29
The following is an excerpt from New York: A Guide to the Empire State in the Buffalo points of interest section:
The GROSVENOR LIBRARY (open 9 a.m.-10 p.m. weekdays, 2-6 Sun.), 383 Franklin St., a rambling red brick building covered with vines, has a circular tower at the corner. Here is housed one of the largest reference libraries in the country—about 300,000 volumes, including outstanding collections in medicine, chemistry, genealogy, local history, art, and music. The library was named for Seth Grosvenor, pioneer business man, who died in 1857, leaving $40,000 to found a reference library.
The building, known when it opened and again now as the Cyclorama Building, was built in 1888 and housed a cyclorama painting for a number of years. A cyclorama was a panoramic painting of an area designed to give visitors a feel for what that area really looks like. The first cyclorama on display was "The Crucifixion of Christ". It proved to be very popular with the attracting 1,000 visitors a day. That exhibit lasted two years, replaced by another cyclorama named "The Battle of Gettysburg", which also ran for two years. After that, the popularity began to decline and the building was acquired by the City of Buffalo in 1910. It served a variety of purposes while under the city's control, including a roller skating rink, a livery, and taxi garage. By 1937 the building had fallen into disrepair and was condemned. However, work by the WPA that same year to replace the windows, roof, and flooring allowed the building to be used as a library as mentioned in the guide.
In 1963 the Grosvenor Library closed, merging with other libraries, and the reading room was shut down. The building stood empty for the next 25 years. A local developer purchased the building in 1985, but obstacles from state government about proposed renovations held up occupancy of the building until 1989. Today, that company still occupies the second floor of the 16-sided building and remains as a link to Buffalo's past.
Source: Buffalo Architecture and History website.
Book: New York
Page Number(s) of Excerpt: 217
Year Originally Published: 1940
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