While passing through the town of Camden the writers of the American Guide book "
Maine, a guide 'down east,'" made note of the Camden Amphitheater and Public Library. Completed in 1931, it would have been relatively new at that time and still quite true to the original design of Fletcher Steele. Below is an excerpt from the book, Page 225.
The town has developed rapidly as a small summer resort in recent years, the estate valuation now being more than half that of Bar Harbor. It has also become a winter sports center. The summer residents have taken particular interest in the landscaping of the town, a project that is stimulated by annual contests in which prizes are awarded.
Behind the Camden Public Library, Main St., is an Amphitheater with a seating capacity of 1500, landscaped with native trees, shrubs, and plants.
Funded by patron of the arts, Mary Louise Curtis Bok, the amphitheater and library today remain much as they were when completed by Fletcher Steele in 1931. In 1996 a major addition to the library was made, the majority of it being underground. Outwardly, the addition has had essentially no visual impact on the landscaping as it was originally designed. In 1997 a major restoration project was undertaken in an effort to reverse damage and deterioration caused by weather and time. As well, any inappropriate plantings that had been added through the years were removed and replaced with materials specified in the original design.
Below is a bit of the history of the library, while further below is a more in depth description of the site, including the library's amphitheatre.
The first library established in Camden was known as the Federal Society’s Library, and was started in 1796 with a collection of 200 books. At that time, Camden was a very small town consisting of 15 houses centered around the harbor. The Federal Society’s Library operated for 34 years until the books were sold at auction.
Several years later, in 1854, the Ladies’ Library Association opened in Mrs. Jesse Hosmer’s house on Wood Street. The library later moved to the second floor of the Camden National Bank building and remained at this location until the disastrous fire of 1892 that destroyed the Camden business district.
On March 23, 1896, the citizens of Camden voted to establish a free public library to be known as the Camden Public Library. The proud townspeople of Camden raised the money to build this library through various fundraising efforts. No assistance was provided by library philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. Mary Louise Curtis Bok donated the land for the library in 1916. Parker Morse Hooper and Boston architect Charles G. Loring offered building plans. The cornerstone was laid on August 17, 1927 and the Library opened its doors on June 11, 1928 with Miss Katherine W. Harding serving as the first librarian.
In 1996 the library underwent a great expansion under the south lawn. The opening of this Centennial Wing allowed the library to accommodate larger collections and computer-based technology without compromising the scenic or historic value of the original building. Today the library is a true treasure of the coast of Maine and is a testament to the pride and determination of the residents of Camden.
From the Camden Public Library
Camden Amphitheatre
and Public Library
Designed and constructed between 1928 and 1931, this one-of-a-kind property represents the creative genius of Fletcher Steele (1885-1971), one of the nation’s premier practitioners of twentieth-century landscape design. The Camden Amphitheatre, with the associated
grounds of the Camden Public Library, is an outstanding and enduring example of Steele’s work – one that reflects the inspiration of many historical antecedents and the fusion of several distinct early twentieth century trends in landscape design.
Constructed between 1928 and 1931, the multi-tiered Camden Amphitheatre is the dominant landscape component comprising the grounds of the Camden Public Library which occupies an irregularly shaped 2.38 acre lot overlooking the busy intersection of Main and High Streets, in Camden, Maine...
...The amphitheater shares the lot with the Camden Library, a diminutive brick Colonial (Georgian) Revival building which faces west toward Main Street. The library building lies above street grade in the middle of a broad, shade-dappled lawn terrace supported by a granite rubble wall. A wide set of stone steps flanked by brick corner piers lies at the southeast corner of the lawn and connects the library to Camden’s bustling business district to the south. Rising above Atlantic Avenue, the library lawn overlooks Camden Harbor to the southeast, and provides magnificent views framed by a delicate iron picket railing set atop the granite rubble wall.
In 1996 an underground addition to the library was built beneath the southeast lawn and a new entry door and seating area was carved out of the original terrace and a new rubble wall constructed off Atlantic Avenue. The north side of the library building serves as staff parking and a utility yard for the library.
The open-air theater is located in the steeply sloping topography east of the library building. The entry sequence to the amphitheater from the west begins at the library’s rear door which opens onto a stone horseshoe staircase framed by a delicate iron railing. The symmetrical, double staircase frames a grotto with small fountain that spits water into a shallow garden pool and leads to an intimate terrace known as the Fauns Garden, which is framed by arabesque garden beds edged with low evergreen hedging. On axis with the rear door, a broad set of granite rubble stairs steeply descends the slope from the terrace to the grassy floor of the theater. A series of four stone and turf terraces extend to either side of the stairway, creating a gracefully contoured Ushaped bowl, or naturalistic cavea, with spacious aisles and informal seating set against a backdrop of tall dark evergreens.
From the NHL Nomination Form