Smith Memorial Library is a member of the Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Library System, located on Bestor Plaza on the grounds of

Chautauqua Institution The Chautauqua Institution ( ) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit education center and summer resort for adults and youth located on in Chautauqua, New York, northwest of Jamestown, New York, Jamestown in the Western Southern Tier of New York State. Estab ...

Chautauqua, New York Chautauqua ( ) is a town and lake resort community in Chautauqua County, New York, United States. The population was 4,017 at the 2020 census. The town is named after Chautauqua Lake. It is the home of the Chautauqua Institution and the birthplac ...

. and The library was constructed from a $69,000 gift willed from the estate of Mrs. A.M. Smith Wilkes. The library serves as caretaker of the Chautauqua Institution Archives, including all Chautauqua Press publications from as early as 1876. It also houses objets d'art, books, and journals which Mrs. A.M. Smith Wilkes collected on her travels. The building is a

contributing property In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distric ...

in the Chautauqua Institution Historic District.

References

Chautauqua Institution National Register of Historic Places in Cattaraugus County, New York Historic district contributing properties in New York (state) Libraries on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state) {{CattaraugusCountyNY-NRHP-stub