Stately, elegant, with Beaux Arts detail
This is some building on the Chisholm Trail
To read its cornerstone requires no strain
Who, when, and more it'll plainly explain.
Carnegie Library /Bell County Museum
201 N. Main, Belton, TX 76513
Times: 1:00-5:00pm (Tue-Sat) Admission: FREE
TEXAS HISTORICAL MARKER:
THE CARNEGIE LIBRARY BUILDING
Completed in 1904, this brick library building was funded by a personal contribution from the noted New York industrialist and benefactor Andrew S. Carnegie. Ben D. Lee, builder of the Bell County Courthouse, served as contractor. Designed by the firm of Smith and Moore and made of bricks from a local kiln, the structure features elaborate detailing of the Beaux Arts classical style. When the library opened in 1905, 1500 volumes were contributed by members of the Woman's Wednesday Club. Public library facilities were located here until 1975.
(http://www.texasescapes.com/FEATURES/Carnegie_Libraries/Belton_CL/carnegie_library_in_belton.htm)
Carnegie Library of Belton, TX
by John Troesser
Beautifully restored in 1991, this building was constructed in 1904 at a cost of $10,000. On the ground floor the lighter rectangles in the wood flooring show where the bookshelves once were. The spacious upstairs has a stage (a common feature of Carnegie Libraries; usually rented out for public events for as much as $3.00 per night,) which in Belton was sometimes used for public immunizations as well as plays.
The museum is the home of the "Ma" Ferguson Collection, which you can see by her photo, is definitely not a fashion line. "Ma" was the first woman to be Governor of Texas and was a Bell County native.
The upstairs also houses a collection of scale models of the Bell County Courthouse (as it was) and other notable buildings in the Bell county/Temple area.
An interesting story from a museum staff member:
According to local legend, the citizens of Belton were so persistent in writing to Mr. Carnegie himself and not the corporation, that in order to free up his mailbox, Mr. Carnegie wrote a personal check for the amount of construction. Years later when a remodeling grant was requested the Carnegie Corporation had no record of an initial grant.
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The best DETAILED history on the building comes from its listing on the National Historic Register
Carnegie Public Library Other Name: Bell County Museum
Ref #: 85000473 Architect: Smith & Moore; Lee,Ben D.
Criteria: EVENT; ARCHITECTURE/ENGINEERING
Significance: EDUCATION; ARCHITECTURE
Architectural Style: BEAUX ARTS
Foundation: WOOD Wall: METAL Roof: STONE Other: BRICK
Period of Significance: 1900-1924 Acreage: 2
Located opposite the Old Post Office a block north of the Courthouse Square, the Carnegie Public Library is a good example of early 20th-century Beaux-Artsinfluenced public buildings. The structure is in good condition, in part because few alterations were made over the years, and also because of a recent restoration. The Carnegie Public Library is a rectangular, twostory, masonry structure with shallow hipped roof. Raised slightly on a base of cast stone, the building has loadbearing exterior walls of structural clay tile and an exterior of buff brick laid in common-bond pattern.
The entrance (west) front is divided into three large bays, the central of which is framed by a portico-like element. Giant-order, inflated, Ionic columns and brick piers support architrave blocks with medallions, which in turn support the central pediment. The center double door is surmounted by a broken pediment supported by single, inflated, Ionic columns. Above is a triple window with one over-one windows, while a circular medallion is found below the pediment and above the architrave. On each side of the central bay are triple one-over-one windows on both the main and second floors. These are separated by wooden-paneled tympanums. The entablature which rings the structure is surmounted by a classical balustrade now being restored.
The north and south elevations are identical. Each features a central triple window element (similar to that of the side bays of the front elevation) and single windows of the same design at each side. Historic photographs indicate the lower side windows were once pedimented. The rear (east) side of the building has a central pavilion with four one over-one windows placed symmetrically. The northeast and southeast corners of the building have single windows on the north, south and east faces. Fenestration is duplicated on the second floor, as it is elsewhere in the library. The building has a shallow hipped roof with flat top. Some parts are covered with metal shingles.
The interior of the Carnegie Library fulfills the promise of the exterior. The ground floor is essentially one large room separated into four major spaces by inflated, four cornered, Ionic columns which support the elaborate entablature; ornamental swags adorn columns and entablature. Original pressed-tin ceilings are also found in most of the building. The second floor of the structure is dominated by a large lecture room. As with downstairs rooms, it features high ceilings covered by pressed tin. Partitions installed in the structure over the years have been removed in the recent rehabilitation of the library, which has aimed at restoring the building to its original appearance.
The Carnegie Public Library Building is located on a flat, grassy, rectangular city lot. There are no outbuildings, but mature trees are found to the north and east of the library.
Constructed in 1904, the Carnegie Public Library served the Belton community and surrounding areas until December 7, 1975, when the Bell County Historical Commission opened the building as the Bell County Museum. Belton's Carnegie Library was one of many built in the United States around the turn of the century with funds provided by Andrew Carnegie. However, this library differed somewhat from many of the others since it was funded by a personal gift of $10,000 from the steel magnate. The building retains its architectural integrity but needs some minor repairs.
In 1899, in the parlors of the Central Hotel (operated by the Sanctificationists, a women's religious sect), the Women's Wednesday Club met for the purpose of establishing a library for the city of Belton. Each member had been requested to donate a book at the time of the club's organization, resulting in the acquisition of some 350 books as the nucleus of the library. The club operated the first library in a small room of the hotel until those quarters became too small.
In April of 1900, the Club held another open house and again, with the invitation, there came the charge from II Timothy, "And when thou comest, bring with Thee Books". At the time of the opening of the present Carnegie Library Building, the club was able to donate to the institution some 1500 volumes. The club continued to seek funding from the Carnegie Foundation, as evidenced by copies of letters from the club's secretary dated 1899, 1902, and 1903. After the 1903 request, the group was notified that if the City of Belton agreed by resolution of council to maintain a free public library at a cost of not less than a thousand dollars a year, and provide a suitable site, then Mr. Carnegie would be pleased to furnish $10,000 to help erect a free library for the city. By proper resolution and public subscription, citizens were able to provide the lot and Mr. Carnegie forwarded his personal check.
Architecturally, the Carnegie Library is of considerable importance to the Belton community. While classical elements are found in other public buildings, such as the Bell County Courthouse (1883; National Register, 1976) and the United States Post Office (1918; determined eligible for the Register, 1984), no building in the city but the library displays such exuberant Beaux Arts classicism. To fledgling Texas cities, the creation of a classically-inspired center of learning was an indication that the community had arrived culturally, and the local library reflected in a very modest way the spirit of the Library of Congress or the New York or Boston public libraries. Stylistic parallels in Texas may be found in the Carnegie Library in Cleburne, Johnson County (National Register, 1976), or the Carnegie Library in Terrell, Kaufman County. Little information has survived on the architects of the Belton Library, Smith and Moore, but the contractor, Ben Lee, was well-known locally. He was also responsible for the construction of the Bell County Courthouse, the Methodist Episcopal Church, and other local landmarks.
Completed in 1904, the Carnegie Public Library has been an educational and cultural center for most of its eighty years, retaining its role as the city library until 1975. The City of Belton had severe financial difficulties for some decades after the early 1920s, and minimal public facilities were constructed in that time period. The library's lecture room/auditorium was, therefore, particularly important to the community, and provided space for lectures, little theater, graduation ceremonies, United Service Organization meetings, and dances. Additionally, civic organizations such as the Woman's Wednesday Club and the Century Club met at the Library for many years. The Library served the needs of the citizens of Belton, and people living in southern and western Bell County.
After the construction of a new public library several years ago, the Carnegie Library was designated the Bell County Museum. A gradual restoration program has resulted in the removal of later additions and modifications, and the building now looks much as it did upon completion in 1904. Of more than thirty Carnegie Libraries once found in Texas, only a dozen remain. The Belton Carnegie Library is one of the most intact and opulent of these few survivors.
BIBLIOGRAPHY ON FILE IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER
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But wait! There's More!
City of Belton webpage: (http://www.ci.belton.tx.us/index.aspx?NID=77)
ABOUT CARNEGIE LIBRARIES (http://www.texasescapes.com/Texas_architecture/CarnegieLibraries.htm)
Wiki: (
visit link)
and... just for coolness sake: (http://www.texasescapes.com/FEATURES/Carnegie_Libraries/Penny_Postcard/penny_postcard.htm )
THE CARNEGIE LIBRARY AND THE PENNY POSTCARD
by John Troesser
Recording the wonders of the new century, it’s hard to imagine the number of people who collected these photographs of history. It’s also hard to imagine an era of two and three digit phone numbers and twice-daily mail delivery. The scribbled messages also reveal their popularity: "Couldn’t find one of the Denton Courthouse, hope this will do."
"Here’s one from Beaumont, you now owe me two." The simple message "Please return favor", with nothing else except the address, shows that the sender was replying to a newspaper ad for an exchange of "views" from a distant city. So affordable and available, stores would notify customers by post ("Dear Miss, your dress is ready.") A street address wasn’t necessary in a town where everyone knew your name (and your business). I once owned several letters addressed to Captain Ira Stover, New York City.
After Courthouses and City Halls, Carnegie Libraries were the most photographed buildings from this period, although it was nearly a three-way tie with asylums and sanitariums. (Where people were thought to go when they read too much.) In the twenties, all three lead categories were swept aside by Hotel postcards, possibly because they were free in the lobby and there’s always the desire to show off to the folks back home that you always stay in a hotel with indoor plumbing, even if it’s just for the novelty of it.
Even today, most postcard dealers maintain a separate category for Carnegie Libraries. While every town had a City Hall, however humble, and every county seat a Courthouse, a library especially a Carnegie Library was a source of civic pride. Carnegie Libraries had to be applied for, which means at least one member of the community could write. Courthouses merely proved that your town had lawyers.