Carnegie Libraries the Good, the Bad, and

the Beautiful

Andrew Carnegie

Requirements for receiving

Carnegie Funds for a Public Library

A Public Library Board organized according to

State Law was the recipient of the funds.

Community must provide a site with convenient

access, natural light around the building and room to

expand for the future.

Tentative building plans had to be approved by

Carnegie.

The funding source

had to be public and

agree to a basic funding level that would be

maintained by them.

The public entity

had to agree to continue the continuous existence of the Public Library in

the community.

Lincoln Main 1901

Fremont 1903

Beatrice 1904

Beatrice Foyer

Hastings 1904

Grand Island 1905

Kearney 1905

Adult Reading Room (Kearney)

Children’s Reading Room (Kearney)

Havelock (Lincoln) 1907

Pawnee City 1907

Tecumseh 1907

Albion 1908

Albion Interior

McCook 1908

McCook Front View

Fairbury 1909

Northeast Branch (Lincoln) 1909

Superior 1909

Superior Interior

Sutton 1910

Alma 1911

Ashland 1911

Aurora 1911

Chadron 1911

Neligh 1911

Norfolk 1911

Schuyler 1911

Alliance 1912

Geneva 1912

North Bend 1912

North Platte 1912

North Platte Interior

O’Neill 1912

Pierce 1912

Ponca 1912

Ponca (Later View)

Gibbon 1913

Madison 1913

Wayne 1913

Wayne (Later)

Burwell 1914

Fairfield 1914

Seward 1914

Shelton 1914

Columbus 1915

Crete 1915

Franklin 1915

Stanton 1915

Bloomfield 1916

Broken Bow 1916

Broken Bow (Newspaper Clipping)

College View (Lincoln) 1916

Gothenburg 1916

Hartington 1916

Harvard 1916

Plainview 1916

Tekamah 1916

University Place (Lincoln) 1916

Arcadia 1917 (Newspaper Clipping)

Blair 1917

Loup City 1917 (Newspaper Clipping)

Sidney 1917

Spencer 1917

Ravenna 1918

Clarks 1919 (photo taken 1978)

David City 1919

Wymore 1919 (photo of renovated building in 2002)

Scottsbluff 1921

West Nebraska Art Center(formerly Scottsbluff Carnegie Library)

Cozad 1922 (Newspaper Clipping)

-Bobinski, George S. CARNEGIE LIBRARIES: Their history and impact on American Public Library development. Chicago: ALA, c. 1969

- CARNEGIE ENDOWMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL PEACE. A Manual of the public benefactions of Andrew Carnegie. Washington, 1919.

- Jones, Theodore. CARNEGIE LIBRARIES ACROSS AMERICA. New York: John Wiley & Sons, c. 1997.

- Pollak, Oliver. A STATE OF READERS: Nebraska’s Carnegie Libraries. J & L Lee Co., c. 2005.

- http://www.nlc.state.ne.us/docs/nlcarchives/Carnegie/carnegiephotos