Spectacular Library Photos

[bookslover]

OK, all you fellow readers and library haunters: here are some rather spectacular photos of an old public library in Cincinnati, Ohio, that existed from 1874 to 1955, when it was torn down and replaced with - you guessed it - a parking lot. Boy, I wish I could have explored this place. Unfortunately, I was 3 years old in 1955 and living 1500 miles away in California.

www.historicalphotos.com/the-old-cincinnati-library-demolition-1874-1955/

Update: And, once again, the link doesn't work. Too bad: these photos are pretty nifty.

 

[Logan]

The Old Cincinnati Library Before Being Demolished, 1874-1955 - Rare Historical Photos

Built in 1874 on the site reserved for an opera house, the Old Cincinnati Library was a thing of wonder. These pictures show how it looked like.

rarehistoricalphotos.com

Impressive, but sounds quite impractical. Many books were out of reach, there looks to be only enough room for one person on most levels, the collection was too big, so they'd already been planning a new building 30 years earlier, and it was originally meant for an opera house so it's not like it was designed this way intentionally from the get-go. It would be fun to visit but I'm sure the new location was greeted with enthusiasm by the patrons of the time.

 

[Jack K]

All through college, I worked in the old library at the University of Missouri, reshelving books. These photos remind me of parts of that massive library. Older sections of it were subdivided into half-floors stacked with shelves upon shelves of books, connected by narrow stairways that were more like ladders and one ancient elevator that felt like a moving cage.

It was a magical place. All those books represented possibilities. Endless learning about every subject. A place where anyone could find whatever he needed to know. Just being there and having access to that library, and being a guy who knew his way around it real well, made me feel alive.

Of course, it was also cramped and dark and musty. And today, with much of the world's learning available via the Internet, including most books, I am able to do my work from my small-town home instead of having to live in a big city or university town. I like that, but I also sense we have lost something.

 

[bookslover]

Thanks, Logan, for discovering how to post those photos, when I failed. You, obviously, are the king of the internet!

 

[C. M. Sheffield]

Library's are one of the things that I truly love. Unfortunately, they are reflections of the surrounding society. So, here in the United States, they are also things that I really hate.

Libraries used to be run by librarians. The role of the librarian was not merely clerical, but one of an authoritative scholar who was qualified to determine what works were of genuine value to a reader. As a result, libraries were places where the general population would come to learn what was important. But like so many other things in modern society, this was turned on its head. The need to get people through the doors increasingly led to them offer the public, not what they needed to read, but what they wanted to read. Sadly today, a visit to most local libraries will find shelves full of women's novels and children's books but precious little of the great works of Western civilization.

Recently, when visiting a rather large library here in North Carolina, I was shocked to discover they had no copies of Pascal's Pensées. Upon being informed of this, I asked, "Really?" To which the librarian replied, "We base our inventory on what people want." And that exchange pretty well sums up why I hate public libraries.

 

[bookslover]

Library's are one of the things that I truly love. Unfortunately, they are reflections of the surrounding society. So, here in the United States, they are also things that I really hate.

Libraries used to be run by librarians. The role of the librarian was not merely clerical, but one of an authoritative scholar who was qualified to in determine what works were of genuine value to a reader. As a result, libraries were places where the general population would come to learn what was important. But like so many other things in modern society, this was turned on its head. The need to get people through the doors increasingly led to them offer the public, not what they needed to read, but what they wanted to read. Sadly today, a visit to most local libraries will find shelves full of women's novels and children's books but precious little of the great works of Western civilization.

Recently, when visiting a rather large library here in North Carolina, I was shocked to discover they had no copies of Pascal's Pensées. Upon being informed of this, I asked, "Really?" To which the librarian replied, "We base our inventory on what people want." And that exchange pretty well sums up why I hat public libraries.

That helps to explain why so many public libraries are stuffed with DVDs and video games. Public libraries are actually helping people and the wider culture to become more illiterate. It's really sad.

 

[Phil D.]

Of course, it was also cramped and dark and musty.

Ahhhh.... I actually came to like that smell! I've done some cave crawling through the bowels of various college and seminary libraries over the years, and can recall it almost at will...

 

[Logan]

Recently, when visiting a rather large library here in North Carolina, I was shocked to discover they had no copies of Pascal's Pensées. Upon being informed of this, I asked, "Really?" To which the librarian replied, "We base our inventory on what people want." And that exchange pretty well sums up why I hate public libraries.

I can sympathize with this sentiment, I really can. But practically speaking, our local library system is paid for by taxes. Should we really pour millions of dollars into something that is "good" for people but that nobody will use? In a world where you have all kind of competition for your time, do you honestly think a library filled with things like Pascal is going to be of practical good to...more than 0.1% (if that) of the population? If Pascal is all that's available, it won't encourage more people to read it, they will just spend their time elsewhere.

Would a library that has only 10 patrons a year (yet who all read Shakespeare) be able to legitimately justify its existence?

Privately funded libraries, sure, do what you want, just don't expect many patrons.

 

[retroGRAD3]

I can sympathize with this sentiment, I really can. But practically speaking, our local library system is paid for by taxes. Should we really pour millions of dollars into something that is "good" for people but that nobody will use? In a world where you have all kind of competition for your time, do you honestly think a library filled with things like Pascal is going to be of practical good to...more than 0.1% (if that) of the population? If Pascal is all that's available, it won't encourage more people to read it, they will just spend their time elsewhere.

Would a library that has only 10 patrons a year (yet who all read Shakespeare) be able to legitimately justify its existence?

Privately funded libraries, sure, do what you want, just don't expect many patrons.

Well, that would be the other problem. Why have we given so much over to the government to control?

 

[Logan]

Well, that would be the other problem. Why have we given so much over to the government to control?

Would we have libraries in most places if it wasn't a publicly-funded service? I kind of doubt it. I mean, I get it: there's what I would like to see and yet then there's what is practical in reality.

 

[Phil D.]

In a world where you have all kind of competition for your time,

The unbelievable accessibility to books and literature the internet brings is also a huge factor in libraries' attempts to stay relevant and survive. It's definitely changed many of my research habits. Still, it is quite sad to see some of the traditional aspects of libraries start to fade away, and it all brings on a strong sense of nostalgia for me. But as with so many other things, change is inevitable...

 

[retroGRAD3]

Would we have libraries in most places if it wasn't a publicly-funded service? I kind of doubt it. I mean, I get it: there's what I would like to see and yet then there's what is practical in reality.

Personally, I am all for privately run business. If there was an interest and people would pay for it, it would make it. If there is no interest for libraries and its only there so the government can tax us more, maybe we don't need them (not ideal I realize, but either is government run services).

 

[Edward]

"We base our inventory on what people want." And that exchange pretty well sums up why I hate public libraries.

Still, it is quite sad to see some of the traditional aspects of libraries start to fade away,

Around here, the libraries have significantly cut back on the number of books, particularly hardback fiction but also non-fiction. The shrinkage in the periodicals section is understandable, as the universe of available material has declined.

 

[Logan]

Personally, I am all for privately run business. If there was an interest and people would pay for it, it would make it. If there is no interest for libraries and its only there so the government can tax us more, maybe we don't need them (not ideal I realize, but either is government run services).

Well, libraries is one of those few public services I get taxed for that I make excellent use of. I probably check out around 100 books a year and appreciate how it's set up in our city.

 

[Jake]

Personally, I am all for privately run business. If there was an interest and people would pay for it, it would make it. If there is no interest for libraries and its only there so the government can tax us more, maybe we don't need them (not ideal I realize, but either is government run services).

We use our public library a good bit. Even when we haven't gone in person lately, they have a lot of resources available digitally (eBooks, audiobooks, etc.).

We do have a library that is at least sort of private nearby. The Carnegie library in Newnan used to be the public library, but it's now overseen by a non profit and is separate from the county library system (which has a location just a few miles away). https://www.newnancarnegie.com/

 

[Jonathco]

Logan, you make a valid point; the majority of tax payers are simply not interested in the classics or deep reading now days. As Richard pointed out, the prevailing trend is movies, music, and video games. This is indicative not of a problem with the library system, in as much as it is a problem with society at-large. Not to derail the discussion, but this is just one of the many reasons why my wife and I homeschool. We desire to have children raised who fear the Lord, and are also well-read and able to think critically.

I would agree that libraries today are trending toward entertainment over education (and left over right), but I would posit that this is society collectively, not libraries specifically.

 

[Logan]

Exactly. Demand is driving supply. Changing the supply will not have a noticeable impact on the demand.