The Frances Perkins Branch Library, formerly known as the Greendale Branch Library, is a branch library in the public library system of

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...

. It is located at 470 West Boylston Street, in an architecturally distinguished building, funded in part by

Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans i ...

and built in 1913. The building was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1980.

Architecture and history

The library is located on Worcester north side, and is set on the east side of West Boylston Street ( Massachusetts Route 12), on the corner of Kendrick Avenue. It is a single story masonry structure, finished in brick with limestone trim. It has a tile hipped roof with modillioned eave. Its main facade has a projecting central pavilion in which the main entrance is set, flanked by Corinthian pilasters and topped by a semicircular pediment. Worcester's public library was established in 1859, begun with donated collections and initially stored in a central library on Elm Street. In 1895 the city established a delivery point for books at a shop in the Greendale area, an idea that was expanded to other areas after it met with success. After a drive began in 1908 to establish branch libraries, the city received a gift of $75,000 from the steel baron and philanthropist

, which was used in the construction of three branches, including this one. It was designed by Lucius W. Briggs, of the L. W. Briggs Company, and was completed in 1913. The branch was renamed in 1994 in honor of

Frances Perkins Frances Perkins (born Fannie Coralie Perkins; April 10, 1880 – May 14, 1965) was an American workers-rights advocate who served as the 4th United States secretary of labor from 1933 to 1945, the longest serving in that position. A member of th ...

, the first female member of the

United States Cabinet The Cabinet of the United States is a body consisting of the vice president of the United States and the heads of the executive branch's departments in the federal government of the United States. It is the principal official advisory body to ...

and a resident of Worcester during her youth. Perkins served as the United States Secretary of Labor from 1933-1945, through the entire presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, leading the Department through the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

References

External links

Frances Perkins Branch of the Worcester Public Library
- formerly the Greendale Branch {{National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts Library buildings completed in 1913 Libraries in Worcester, Massachusetts Libraries on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts National Register of Historic Places in Worcester, Massachusetts Carnegie libraries in Massachusetts 1913 establishments in Massachusetts

Architecture and history

See also

References

External links