The A. K. Smiley Public Library is a public library located at 125 W. Vine St. in Redlands,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. Built in 1898, the library was donated to Redlands by philanthropist Albert K. Smiley. The library is within

Smiley Park Historic District The Smiley Park Historic District is a residential historic neighborhood in Redlands, California, United States. Adjacent immediately south of the downtown area. The neighborhood is centered on Smiley Park, which was named for benefactors Alfr ...

and adjacent the

Redlands Bowl The Redlands Bowl is an amphitheatre in Redlands, California, USA, founded in 1924. It is used for music and theatrical performances which are offered to the public at no charge. The bowl is within Smiley Park Historic District that also includes ...

and

Lincoln Memorial Shrine The Lincoln Memorial Shrine in Redlands, California, is a memorial and research center dedicated to the memory of Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States of America. It was opened on February 12, 1932, by local philanthropist ...

History

Architect T.R. Griffith designed the library in a style which has alternately been described as

Mission Revival The Mission Revival style was part of an architectural movement, beginning in the late 19th century, for the revival and reinterpretation of American colonial styles. Mission Revival drew inspiration from the late 18th and early 19th century ...

and

Moorish Revival Moorish Revival or Neo-Moorish is one of the exotic revival architectural styles that were adopted by architects of Europe and the Americas in the wake of Romanticism, Romanticist Orientalism. It reached the height of its popularity after the mi ...

and includes a variety of elements from additional styles. The building has a tile roof and

parapet A parapet is a barrier that is an upward extension of a wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian ''parapetto'' (''parare'' 'to cover/defend' and ''petto'' 'chest/brea ...

s topping

arcade Arcade most often refers to: * Arcade game, a coin-operated video, pinball, electro-mechanical, redemption, etc., game ** Arcade video game, a coin-operated video game ** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade video game's hardware ** Arcad ...

s on its sides, which suggest a Mission Revival influence; however, the

battlement A battlement, in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at intervals ...

and the curves in the parapet are Moorish Revival elements. In addition, elements of the arches in the arcade, the windows, and the roof ridge were borrowed from classical,

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, a Germanic people **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Gothic alphabet, an alphabet used to write the Gothic language ** Gothic ( ...

Spanish Romanesque Spanish Romanesque designates the Romanesque art developed in the Hispanic-Christian kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula in the 11th and 12th centuries. Its stylistic features are essentially common to the European Romanesque although it develop ...

, and Oriental themes. The library still serves as the Redlands public library. In addition, it houses a collection of materials on native tribes in California donated by

Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie ( , ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the History of the iron and steel industry in the United States, American steel industry in the late ...

, as well as a collection of rare materials about Southern California and local history. The library was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

on December 12, 1976. It was designated a

California Historical Landmark A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is a building, structure, site, or place in the U.S. state of California that has been determined to have statewide historical landmark significance. Criteria Historical significance is determined by meetin ...

on August 17, 1990.

References

External links

official A. K. Smiley Public Library websiteVirtual tour
* National Register of Historic Places in San Bernardino County, California Libraries on the National Register of Historic Places in California Library buildings completed in 1898 Buildings and structures in Redlands, California Mission Revival architecture in California Moorish Revival architecture in California Education in San Bernardino County, California Tourist attractions in San Bernardino County, California Public libraries in California History of Redlands, California California Historical Landmarks {{SanBernardinoCountyCA-NRHP-stub

History

See also

References

External links