The Old Provincetown Public Library building is a historic building at 330 Commercial Street in downtown
Provincetown, Massachusetts
Provincetown () is a New England town located at the extreme tip of Cape Cod in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, in the United States. A small coastal resort town with a year-round population of 3,664 as of the 2020 United States census, Provi ...
. Built in 1874, it served as the town's public library from then until 2002, when the library was moved to the former
Center Methodist Church. The building, a fine local example of
Second Empire architecture
Second Empire style, also known as the Napoleon III style, is a highly eclectic style of architecture and decorative arts originating in the Second French Empire. It was characterized by elements of many different historical styles, and al ...
, now houses the local tourist board. It was listed on 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 ...
in 1975.
Description and history
The former Provincetown Public Library building stands on Commercial Street, Provincetown's principal commercial street, at the northwest corner with Freeman Street. It is a 2-1/2 story wood-frame structure, with a
mansard roof
A mansard or mansard roof (also called French roof or curb roof) is a multi-sided gambrel-style hip roof characterised by two slopes on each of its sides, with the lower slope at a steeper angle than the upper, and often punctured by dormer wi ...
providing a full third story. The exterior is finished in wooden clapboards, and the roof features a mansarded turret at the center of the front facade. The front is three bays wide, with a center entrance. Windows are sash, and are framed in a variety of different bracketed moulded hoods, some featuring simple cornices, with others have segmented-arch or triangular pediments. The main cornice is adorned with paired brackets, and a second cornice marks the transition between the differing slopes of the roof. A 1970s addition extends the building to the rear.
The former library building was constructed in 1874, and was a gift to the town from Nathaniel Freeman. Originally, only the ground floor housed the library: the second floor housed a
YMCA
YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It has nearly 90,000 staff, some 920,000 volunteers and 12,000 branches w ...
, and the third floor was used as commercial space.
[ In the library's early years, the most colorful of its stewards was Abbie Cook Putnam. In 1977, the library — by now the building's sole occupant — was extensively renovated. The librarian at the time was Alice O’Grady Joseph (d 2010), who was in charge from 1965 to 1982.][Dunlap, D. W. (2015). Building Provincetown: A guide to its social and cultural history, told through its architecture. Provincetown, MA: Town of Provincetown Historical Commission.]
The space housed the library until 2002, when the library was moved to the former Center Methodist Church. The building now houses the local tourist board offices.
Image:1899 Provincetown public library Massachusetts.png , 1891 Photo, reprinted in 1899
Image:PtownoldLibrary withnewowner.jpg , The same building in 2007 when it was occupied by the offices of Seashore Point
See also
*
References
Laurel Guadazno, "Architectural Treasure Restored", ''Provincetown Banner'', April 28, 2005
External links
Provincetown Tourism OfficeProvincetown Library building history
{{DEFAULTSORT:Provincetown Public Library (Old)
1874 establishments in Massachusetts
Buildings and structures in Barnstable County, Massachusetts
Commercial buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts
Libraries on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts
Library buildings completed in 1874
National Register of Historic Places in Barnstable County, Massachusetts
Provincetown, Massachusetts