Built 1904 Opened 1904 Architectural style Neoclassical architecture | NRHP Reference # 02000463 Phone +1 217-379-3431 Added to NRHP 17 May 2002 | |
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Location 254 S. Market St., Paxton, Illinois MPS MPL015 - Illinois Carnegie Libraries Multiple Property Submission Address 254 S Market St, Paxton, IL 60957, USA Similar Arcola Carnegie Public Lib, Piatt County Museum, Danville Public Library, Vermilion County Museum, Hoopeston Carnegie Public Lib | ||
Paxton Carnegie Public Library is in the Ford County, Illinois city of Paxton. The building is on the National Register of Historic Places. The building is still used by the Paxton Carnegie Library and is open as a public library.
Contents
History
This Carnegie Library was established in 1903 with the help of a grant from steel magnate Andrew Carnegie. The building was designed by architect Paul O. Moratz of Bloomington, Illinois and its unique architectural features have been preserved throughout its over 100 year history. Construction on the Paxton Library began when the $10,000 Carnegie grant came though; the cornerstone was laid by Harry and George Turner in October 1903. The interior has been restored to its original 1903 appearance, the original furnishings are still in use as is the original oak circulation desk. In 2003 the cornerstone of the library was removed during the 100th anniversary celebration by Harry Turner's grandson, Alan Turner of Paxton.
The library today
As of November 2006 the library director is Anne Newman and the library has five clerks on its staff. The Paxton Public Library is governed by a nine-member board of trustees which meets the first Wednesday of each month. Today, the library houses over 26,000 volumes, subscriptions to 73 periodicals for adults and 10 for children and 4 newspapers, 900 videos, 300 audio books, microfilm, vertical files, city and county history information, large print books and computers and fax machines for public use. Books are circulated for two weeks at a time, magazines for one week and videos for two days. There are overdue fines assessed. All residents of the city of Paxton can have a free library card while non residents are required to pay an annual fee. The library is an active member of the Lincoln Trails Libraries System, an interlibrary loan program.