New Castle - Henry County Public Library, New Castle, Indiana
Posted by: 
boatchick
N 39° 55.761 W 085° 22.050
16S E 639496 N 4421191
The original Carnegie section of the ever-expanding New Castle library remains largely intact.
Waymark Code: WM5B8H
Location: Indiana, United States
Date Posted: 12/11/2008
Views: 21
The
is a large, modern structure that boasts an auditorium, meeting rooms, and museum-like displays. The small reading room in the northwest corner of the building is where this 2008 Indiana Library Federation "Outstanding Library" got its beginning.
The New Castle library had the typical nomadic Midwestern library start. A book collection was moved around town until a 1916 Carnegie grant of $20,000 allowed for a permanent structure at 15th Street and Indiana Avenue. Since then, it seems, the library has never stopped growing. The first renovation, in 1926, made the basement into a children's section. Additions were built in 1937, 1953, and 1962, and an all-new, adjacent building was built in 1976. In the 1980s, restoration took place in the Carnegie section and the two buildings were connected. The library continues to add on and expand into the 21st century. Today, the Carnegie Reading Room is only a small part of the whole. It houses the periodicals and the snack bar(!) The fireplaces are decorated for the holidays, and some small displays of old-fashioned things (like a roll-top desk) are exhibited there. The old entrance on 15th Street has been closed and transformed into a patio. As the building continues to grow to meet the needs of the community, the builders continue to use the original design of the building as inspiration for the new additions.