Alexandria-Monroe Public Library, Alexandria, Indiana
Posted by: 
boatchick
N 40° 15.808 W 085° 40.424
16T E 612775 N 4457843
The historic Carnegie library is a local treasure of "Small Town USA," Alexandria, Indiana.
Waymark Code: WM63T0
Location: Indiana, United States
Date Posted: 03/28/2009
Views: 14
The Alexandria Public Library was one of fifty-seven public libraries in Indiana in 1899, when the state's Public Library Commission was created. The Alexandria library was established in 1895, and was one of the first few libraries in the state to receive Carnegie funds. A grant of $14,000 was awarded in 1902, and the building was opened to the public in December of 1903.
A cornerstone to the right of the entrance to the yellow brick and limestone building is, over a century later, too weathered to be legible. However, the inscription over the entrance still proclaims "This building is the gift of Andrew Carnegie Erected 1902". A plaque near the entrance commemorates the expansion of the building in 1989. The appearance of the exterior suggests that the library entrance was originally accessed by a set of stairs; there is now a ground-level, handicapped accessible entrance. The 1989 expansion carefully matches the design of the Carnegie building. The interior is a modern facility which seems to have been completely renovated. Both the town's website and the Chamber of Commerce's brochure make note of the building's historic nature and modern, up-to-date facilities.
References
Jones, Theodore. Carnegie Libraries Across America
Library Occurrent, Indiana Public Library Commission, Indiana State Library: Volume 5, Number 8 (October 1918), V.5 N.9 (December 1918)