Built 1896 (1896) Opened 1896 Architectural style Neoclassical architecture | NRHP Reference # 78001115 Area 4,000 m² Added to NRHP 7 June 1978 | |
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Similar Cattle Bank, Inman Hotel, United States Post Office, Champaign City Building, New Orpheum Theatre | ||
The Burnham Athenaeum, also known as the Champaign Public Library, is a historic library building located at 306 W. Church St. in Champaign, Illinois. Built in 1896 through a donation from Albert C. Burnham, the building was Champaign's first permanent library. Architect Julius A. Schweinfurth designed the Classical Revival building. The two-story building is built from cream-colored brick with terra cotta ornamentation. The front entrance features four two-story Ionic columns supporting a pediment and an inscribed frieze. A terra cotta band encircles the building below the second-story window sill line. The Champaign Public Library occupied the building until 1978, when it moved to a larger facility.
The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places on June 7, 1978.