Parkway Central Library also known as Free Library or Central Library is the main public library building and administrative headquarters of the

Free Library of Philadelphia The Free Library of Philadelphia is the public library system that serves Philadelphia. It is the 13th-largest public library system in the United States. The Free Library of Philadelphia is a non-Mayoral agency of the City of Philadelphia gover ...

system. It is the largest library, and only

research library A research library is a library which contains an in-depth collection of material on one or several subjects.(Young, 1983; p. 188) A research library will generally include an in-depth selection of materials on a particular topic or set of to ...

, of 54 library branches in the Free Library system. The library opened on

Vine Street Vine Street is a street in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California that runs north–south between Franklin Avenue and Melrose Avenue. The intersection with Hollywood Boulevard was once a symbol of Hollywood itself. The famed intersection fell into d ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

in 1927. Four stories and the ground floor are open to the public. The main entrance steps are on Vine Street, between 19th and 20th Street.

History

Founding

William Pepper William Pepper Jr. (August 21, 1843July 28, 1898), was an American physician, leader in medical education in the nineteenth century, and a longtime Provost of the University of Pennsylvania. In 1891, he founded the Free Library of Philadelphia ...

secured initial funding through a $225,000

bequest A bequest is property given by will. Historically, the term ''bequest'' was used for personal property given by will and ''deviser'' for real property. Today, the two words are used interchangeably. The word ''bequeath'' is a verb form for the act ...

from his wealthy uncle, George S. Pepper, and

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the re ...

ed the Free Library of Philadelphia in 1891 as "a general library which shall be free to all". The first public library in Philadelphia was opened in March 1894. The initial library was located in three cramped rooms at

City Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

, but moved on February 11 of the following year to the old Concert Hall at 1217-1221 Chestnut Street. Library officials criticized this second facility as "an entirely unsuitable building, where its work is done in unsafe, unsanitary and overcrowded quarters, temporary make-shifts". Fifteen years later the Library was moved again, on December 1, 1910, to the northeast corner of 13th and Locust Streets.

Opening

Pediment Of The Central Library (Philadelphia, PA)

Parkway Central Library had been planned for its current location since 1911; various obstacles, including

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, held up progress. Construction started in 1917 and was completed in 1927. The grand Beaux-Arts building was designed by

Julian Abele Julian Francis Abele (April 30, 1881April 23, 1950) was a prominent Black American architect, and chief designer in the offices of Horace Trumbauer. He contributed to the design of more than 400 buildings, including the Widener Memorial Library at ...

, chief designer in the office of prominent Philadelphia architect

Horace Trumbauer Horace Trumbauer (December 28, 1868 – September 18, 1938) was a prominent American architect of the Gilded Age, known for designing residential manors for the wealthy. Later in his career he also designed hotels, office buildings, and much of t ...

. Its design, that of the adjacent Philadelphia Family Court building, and their placement on Logan Circle closely follow that of the

Hôtel de Crillon Hôtel de Crillon, A Rosewood Hotel () is a historic luxury hotel in Paris which opened in 1909 in a building dating to 1758. Located at the foot of the Champs-Élysées, the Crillon, along with the Hôtel de la Marine, is one of two identical st ...

and the Hôtel de la Marine on

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

Place de la Concorde The Place de la Concorde () is one of the major public squares in Paris, France. Measuring in area, it is the largest square in the French capital. It is located in the city's eighth arrondissement, at the eastern end of the Champs-Élysées. ...

. In addition to being the main library, the building serves as the system's administrative building. The library opened on June 2, 1927 at its present location on 1901 Vine Street.

Library

Four stories and the ground floor are currently open to the public. Until 2016, the library used an elevator system, similar to one used by the

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second largest public library in the United States (behind the Library of Congress) ...

system, to retrieve books from large collections housed in the storage stacks. In 2014, books located in storage were transferred to the Regional Operations Center (ROC) which is open only to staff.

Philbrick Hall

Philbrick Hall, located on the first floor, is the fiction, popular culture and central circulation department of the library. The department contains the Teen Center which provides young adult fiction and non-fiction.

Pepper Hall

Pepper Hall houses both the literature department which contains over 100,000 volumes and the art department which maintains a collection of over 60,000 books on fine arts, crafts, collectibles and photography.

Culinary Literacy Center

After renovations, the 4th floor currently contains the Culinary Literacy Center, a commercial-grade kitchen used as a classroom and public education dining space which opened in June 2014. The concept came from Free Library of Philadelphia's President and Director, Siobhan Reardon who wanted to "create a space to advance literacy through food and cooking around a communal table". The other section holds the Skyline Terrence which includes a

green roof A green roof or living roof is a roof of a building that is partially or completely covered with vegetation and a growing medium, planted over a waterproofing membrane. It may also include additional layers such as a root barrier and draina ...

. Another section of the floor is used as event spaces and meeting rooms.

Special collections

Children's Literature Research Collection

The library'
Children's Literature Research Collection
maintains a research collection of children's literature published after 1836. The CLRC archive holds of the one the largest collections of primary source material for children’s literature in the country. The collection includes a range of original artwork, manuscripts, and ephemera from children’s literature.

Rare Book Department

The Rare Book Department features the

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian er ...

’ collection, with first editions, personal letters, and Dickens’ stuffed raven, Grip, among

illuminated manuscript An illuminated manuscript is a formally prepared document where the text is often supplemented with flourishes such as borders and miniature illustrations. Often used in the Roman Catholic Church for prayers, liturgical services and psalms, th ...

s, Americana,

Beatrix Potter Helen Beatrix Potter (, 28 July 186622 December 1943) was an English writer, illustrator, natural scientist, and conservationist. She is best known for her children's books featuring animals, such as '' The Tale of Peter Rabbit'', which was ...

, early children’s books,

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wid ...

, and

Pennsylvania German The Pennsylvania Dutch ( Pennsylvania Dutch: ), also known as Pennsylvania Germans, are a cultural group formed by German immigrants who settled in Pennsylvania during the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. They emigrated primarily from German-spe ...

folk art. The John Frederick Lewis Collection of European Manuscripts contains over 200 illuminated manuscripts from the 11th to the 16th centuries, and approximately 2,300 cuttings and manuscripts leaves. There are over 50

Books of Hours The book of hours is a Christian devotional book used to pray the canonical hours. The use of a book of hours was especially popular in the Middle Ages and as a result, they are the most common type of surviving medieval illuminated manuscript ...

, numerous bibles, liturgical texts, and psalters, including the Lewis Psalter from the reign of Saint Louis. Works of secular literature are represented including Lewis' illuminated manuscripts from the Widener Collection. There is collection of approximately 800

incunabula In the history of printing, an incunable or incunabulum (plural incunables or incunabula, respectively), is a book, pamphlet, or broadside that was printed in the earliest stages of printing in Europe, up to the year 1500. Incunabula were pro ...

, of which 500 come from the P.A.B. Widerner bequest of 1899. The collection of eastern Asian manuscripts, from John Frederick Lewis are in the library. The 153 East Asian manuscripts provide physical formats, including books, scrolls, accordion books, and palm-leaf books.

Music

The library music department contains the Edwin A. Fleisher Collection of Orchestral Music, the world's largest lending library of orchestral music consisting of over 21,000 titles and offers a research center into the lives of composers and conductors in the 19th and 20th century. The department holds the Drinker Collection which contains over 900 works of sacred and secular music for choral performances.

Others

Parkway Central Library's Automobile Reference Collection maintains an extensive automobile catalog. The library holds over 130,000 maps from around the world, both historic and current as a part of their Map Collection. Items in the special collections have been digitized and can be viewed online.

2019 renovations

In April 2019, three new sections opened in the library after over a decade of renovations.

Business Resource and Innovation Center

On April 12, 2019, the Business Resource and Innovation Center which opened in 2016 was moved to the newly renovated space on the ground floor of Parkway Central Library. The Business Resource and Innovation Center focuses on helping people find new employment opportunities, helping small business growth and assistance in grant finding for non-profit organizations including prospect research. The center also offers assistance in intellectual property protection and is one of three locations in Pennsylvania to be designated by the

United States Patent and Trademark Office The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is an agency in the U.S. Department of Commerce that serves as the national patent office and trademark registration authority for the United States. The USPTO's headquarters are in Alex ...

as a Patent & Trademark Resource Center.

Marie and Joseph Field Teen Center

Also located on the ground floor is the 4000-square-foot Marie and Joseph Field Teen Center which is designed as a teen oriented activity center where young adults can form study groups and have access to young adult non-fiction and fiction.

The Robert and Eileen Kennedy Heim Center for Cultural and Civic Engagement

The Robert and Eileen Kennedy Heim Center for Cultural and Civic Engagement, located on the first floor directly above Business Resource and Innovation Center, is designed as a center for "engagement and interaction, intellectual discourse, and grassroots problem solving".

References

External links

* {{Authority control Libraries in Philadelphia Library buildings completed in 1927 1927 establishments in Pennsylvania Logan Square, Philadelphia